Page 12 - Sphere No.32 (Dec 2012)

10 Sphere 32
“We are honoured to contribute to these types of meaningful
holiday traditions,” said Kylie Kerrigan. “They are important to
our communities and, therefore, are important to us.”
in hong Kong, even the telecommunications division takes
part in the spreading of holiday cheer. “each year, we offer a
wide spectrum of holiday-themed multimedia content services
such as eBooks, music and movies,” said Debra ma, marketing
Director of 3 hong Kong. “For example, during the December
2011-January 2012 holiday season, we launched the ‘ 3music
has come’ campaign, which combined our content services with
holiday songs and greetings from local pop stars. customers
could download the songs and greetings and send them to friends
or set them as the connecting tones for their mobile numbers.”
A Season for Sales
in addition to sharing the spirit of the season with their
communities, for most of hutchison’s divisions, the holiday
season also represents an important time of the year financially.
nearly every business unit, from the more obvious retail
division to the less likely telecommunications division, sees
higher sales and an increased demand for their top services.
“Foot traffic in our retail stores around the globe more
than triples during local peak sales months,” said Joanna
Wong, senior corporate
communications manager
of the a s Watson Group. These
peaks vary broadly between asia
and europe, but also from country to
country, even community to community,
based on local customs.
in much of asia, for instance, the lunar new
year is the largest winter festival, causing sales peaks in
January, although some communities, such as hong Kong,
celebrate other festivals including christmas and year-end
public holidays, so December is also vital for retailers in
those areas. in much of europe, christmas is the most widely
celebrated holiday, meaning early December will be key for
retailers; however, the Three Kings holiday is given more
prominence in some countries, such as spain, and so January
will see higher sales totals than December.
This local fluctuation also affects the Group’s hotels division.
“We are usually extremely busy during December and January,
as hong Kong celebrates christmas, year-end festivities and
the lunar new year, with occupancy rates steadily between 90
and 100 per cent,” said Benedict chow, General manager of the
harbour Grand hong Kong. “We call in additional staff during
these two months, particularly for our housekeeping and
restaurant departments.”
Despite the current sluggish global economy, the outlook
for the upcoming holiday season is as bright as the lights
that herald its arrival. The retail and hotels divisions both
anticipate increased sales this season, in accordance with the
timing of local holiday celebrations.
even the Group’s telecommunications division, a less
apparent benefactor, has seen a steady increase in sales during
the holiday season over the past few years. “our industry
is really benefitting from the rising popularity of smart
phones as gifts,” shared maritheres Paul, head of corporate
communications of 3 austria. “The christmas season