Retail Asia 2018 RA September.October 2018 (Online) | Page 6

PUBLISHER’S NOTE Retail Asia winding down S ince its inception in 1992 as a bi-monthly magazine, Retail Asia’s mission is to provide retail professionals in the Asia-Pacific countries with news, views and reviews of events and developments that impact the retail industry in our region. One of our most gratifying projects was the launch of Retail Asia-Pacific Top 500 survey in 2004. In collaboration with Euromonitor International and KPMG, the annual ranking of the largest and most outstanding retailers in 14 economies across 11 retail formats continued uninterrupted through the years. Unfortunately, the Top 500 ranking published in July this year will be the last as digital disruptions have badly affected the publishing industry. My business partner and I have been struggling very hard to find ways and means to keep Retail Asia alive in the fast-changing publishing landscape. We have exhausted all our resources and energy ... and after doing a reality check, it was decided that we could not afford to sustain the magazine any longer. Thus, the decision is to forego this year’s Retail Asia-Pacific Top 500 Awards & Gala Dinner scheduled to be held in Vietnam in November and wind down the magazine. The September/October edition of Retail Asia is our farewell issue. It is indeed a sad development as many retailers have come to regard the Top 500 research results as an invaluable benchmarking tool; some also have found the 14 state-of-the-retail-industry reports by Euromonitor International and articles on emerging consumer trends and behaviour by KPMG incorporated into the annual ranking report by Retail Asia insightful and actionable. “We have always valued Retail Asia’s role in the Asia-Pacific retail industry. Yours has always been the only definitive publication in this region … and your Retail Asia-Pacific Top 500 has been THE event for top retailers in the region. We will miss both!” wrote Evelyn Salire, secretary-general of the Philippines Retailers Association, in an email to us when she heard the news. Thank you, Evelyn, for your kind words … glad to know that Retail Asia’s ’s efforts to provide the industry with ‘News You Can Use’ is appreciated. As we bid farewell, my staff and I like to thank Euromonitor International, KPMG, Top 500 judges headed by Dr Lynda Wee, sponsors, supporters, advertisers, subscribers and readers as well as our many friends in the industry who journeyed with Retail Asia by sharing their insights and ideas on issues affecting the retail industry over the past 26 years. Thank you, fare thee well … and God bless. Andrew Yeo Publisher R e ta i l A s i a N yc u M e d i a P t e L t d P u b l i s h e r / E d i to r Andrew Yeo D e p u t y E d i to r Muneerah Bee P ro d u c t i o n E d i to r Zuraini Ridzwan Ju n i o r S u b - E d i to r Eva Meango S e n i o r M u lt i m e d i a D e s i g n e r Raymund Jaudian C o n t r i bu to r s Dr Lynda Wee Brian Moore Shirish Nadkarni Tina Arceo-Dumlao Prakash Sakti Jayanthi Iyengar Eleanor Yap NYCU Media Pte Ltd 61 Tai Seng Avenue #05-01 Print Media Hub @ Paya Lebar iPark Singapore 534167 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] E-mail: [email protected] / [email protected] Website: www.retailasiaonline.com E v e n t M a n ag e r Phila Anne Tan O pe r at i o n s E xe c u t i v e Akram Saheed Fi n a n c e & A d m i n i s t r at i o n M a n ag e r Tan Hui Min Fi n a n c e & A d m i n i s t r at i o n E xe c u t i v e Astela Lee No reproduction is permitted in whole or in part without the written consent of the publisher/ editor. The views and opinions expressed or implied in this publication are those of the contributors and advertisers and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher/the company. MCI (P) No: 024/06/2018 PPS 1116/12/2011 (028340) Printed by Markono Print Media Pte Ltd 4 Retail Asia September/October 2018