October Festivities At Anuga

The month of October might well be considered our industry’s equivalent of December festivities. A whole year’s worth of hard work culminates into the most important event annually. Be it at SIAL or in this year’s case, Anuga, all of us are on the lookout for exciting product debuts, updates in markets across the world, business opportunities and the cherished occasion to meet up with old friends near and far. Our booth will be at the passageway between Halls 10 & 11, Booth 006. Please come by and get to know more about us.

Visitors to Anuga: We’ve done a bit of homework for you and put together a product preview of exhibitors from Singapore and Malaysia (pages 18-23). Exports from both countries are well known for their safety and price competitiveness. Many of the names featured here are award-winning producers and leaders in their respective sectors too.

In a special report published in our June-July 2009 issue, Anuga organisers spoke about the consumer trends observed and to expect at the fair. One of them included the private labelling phenomenon, which we continued to pursue. In this issue, a 10-page special report is devoted to this topic (pg 37-47). A selection of industry news, as well as my exclusive interviews with supermarket chains NTUC FairPrice, Cold Storage group and Giant Hypermarket Singapore, puts into perspective that house brands are here to stay, and set to gain larger market shares across diverse product range. National/commercial brands will have to adjust themselves to 1) secure part of this segment via OEM and 2) enforce greater brand and product differentiation.

Opinion pieces from consultants Maxine Lauer and Bob Phibbs reiterate this need to adopt a new game plan. As retail house brands gain popularity in both the basic and premium range, Lauer says “the future of private labels will be the trade-up story, or the ability of stores to offer to consumers more mid-range luxury products… brand manufacturers will need to accept the challenge of these differentiated offerings in order to compete on the same grounds”. (Read more on pg 44.) Phibbs, the Retail Doctor, advises the same – don’t look like the mass merchants (pg 46).

For those who have successfully carved a great brand and product, more rewards await. The magazine is proud to organise the inaugural Food & Drinks Awards (Asia) 2010. The FDA is conceived to recognise excellence in the industry; provide an opportunity for companies to assess their management; inspire and motivate entrepreneurs through winning role models; and create a powerful common identity and networking platform among quality Asian companies.

Nominations and applications for FDA 2010 open October 1, 2009. Come by our booth at Anuga for more details, or visit our website at www.FoodExportOnline.com

Nicole Liang
Assistant Editor