mdm jixn has opened pawn shops to compete with privately-owned pawn shops in the heartlands ...
aspial, lee hwa, & goldheart costume jewellery shops are empty of customers, their salespeople are always standing around swatting flies & twiddling thumbs -- yet, the shops always manage to occupy PRIME SPACE in the capitalland retail malls ...
goldheart's advert - 'fly me to the moon' was at one time, repeated over & over & over again on primetime tv ... who has money for such advertisments ? only temasek ! no customers, so advertise ... after advertm still no customers, so now stop all adverts ! ha ha ...
retail - no customer (ordinary s'porean has no spending power), so now venture into pawn shop business (let's squeeze from those ie. majority, with no spending power) ...
i say - boycott both her retail + pawn shops !
article is below (ST 27/8/09) --
MENTION 'pawnshop' and the image of a no-frills outlet in the heartlands springs to mind. But local jewellery chain Aspial Corp is taking the pawnshop business upmarket with the opening of a swanky outlet along Orchard Road.
The listed company, which owns jewellery brands including Lee Hwa and Goldheart, unveiled the first pawnshop on the premier shopping belt on Wednesday under the identity of its subsidiary Maxi-Cash.
The Lucky Plaza outlet becomes Aspial's seventh pawnshop and makes it the largest pawnbroker in Singapore since it entered the industry this February.
Aspial hopes to target a younger customer base with new concept stores. The company is keen to jettison the traditional pawnshop image of staff dealing with customers from behind metal grilles.
Aspial's chief executive officer Koh Wee Seng said the company wants to provide better customer service in a well-lit, professional atmosphere with counters that resemble those in a bank. It also wants to attract tourists and visitors to its high-traffic Lucky Plaza outlet.
While few may be familiar with Aspial's foray into the pawnbroking business, it is not the first jewellery chain to venture into this money-making area.
The Soo Kee Group currently owns four pawnshops in Singapore through its subsidiary, Moneymax, and anticipates having at least 10 fully operational outlets here by the end of this year. The group opened its first pawnshop last year.
The number of pawnshops here has grown 20 per cent since 2005 and in June numbered 122 stores, according to the Pawnbrokers' Association. Some outlets compete for business in the same area - when Moneymax's Toa Payoh store opens later this year, it will compete with both Maxi-Cash and SingPost in the neighbourhood.
Both Soo Kee Group and Aspial pointed out that their jewellery and pawnbroking businesses are operated independently, and customers should not fear that pawned items might be 'recycled' through their retail jewellery stores.
Soo Kee Group re-sells items that are not picked up during the auction part of the pawnbroking process in its Moneymax stores; Aspial does the same for gold items in its Maxi-Cash stores, but disposes of other valuables overseas.
Read the full story in Thursday's edition of The Straits Times
[email protected]
aspial, lee hwa, & goldheart costume jewellery shops are empty of customers, their salespeople are always standing around swatting flies & twiddling thumbs -- yet, the shops always manage to occupy PRIME SPACE in the capitalland retail malls ...
goldheart's advert - 'fly me to the moon' was at one time, repeated over & over & over again on primetime tv ... who has money for such advertisments ? only temasek ! no customers, so advertise ... after advertm still no customers, so now stop all adverts ! ha ha ...
retail - no customer (ordinary s'porean has no spending power), so now venture into pawn shop business (let's squeeze from those ie. majority, with no spending power) ...
i say - boycott both her retail + pawn shops !
article is below (ST 27/8/09) --
MENTION 'pawnshop' and the image of a no-frills outlet in the heartlands springs to mind. But local jewellery chain Aspial Corp is taking the pawnshop business upmarket with the opening of a swanky outlet along Orchard Road.
The listed company, which owns jewellery brands including Lee Hwa and Goldheart, unveiled the first pawnshop on the premier shopping belt on Wednesday under the identity of its subsidiary Maxi-Cash.
The Lucky Plaza outlet becomes Aspial's seventh pawnshop and makes it the largest pawnbroker in Singapore since it entered the industry this February.
Aspial hopes to target a younger customer base with new concept stores. The company is keen to jettison the traditional pawnshop image of staff dealing with customers from behind metal grilles.
Aspial's chief executive officer Koh Wee Seng said the company wants to provide better customer service in a well-lit, professional atmosphere with counters that resemble those in a bank. It also wants to attract tourists and visitors to its high-traffic Lucky Plaza outlet.
While few may be familiar with Aspial's foray into the pawnbroking business, it is not the first jewellery chain to venture into this money-making area.
The Soo Kee Group currently owns four pawnshops in Singapore through its subsidiary, Moneymax, and anticipates having at least 10 fully operational outlets here by the end of this year. The group opened its first pawnshop last year.
The number of pawnshops here has grown 20 per cent since 2005 and in June numbered 122 stores, according to the Pawnbrokers' Association. Some outlets compete for business in the same area - when Moneymax's Toa Payoh store opens later this year, it will compete with both Maxi-Cash and SingPost in the neighbourhood.
Both Soo Kee Group and Aspial pointed out that their jewellery and pawnbroking businesses are operated independently, and customers should not fear that pawned items might be 'recycled' through their retail jewellery stores.
Soo Kee Group re-sells items that are not picked up during the auction part of the pawnbroking process in its Moneymax stores; Aspial does the same for gold items in its Maxi-Cash stores, but disposes of other valuables overseas.
Read the full story in Thursday's edition of The Straits Times
[email protected]
