Press Release: 7-Eleven Malaysia ‘Bring Your Own’ Cup Day 2016 is here again!

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4th November 2016

7-eleven-holloween — Image: A collage of last year’s creative entrants

Press Release:

Wednesday, 2 November 2016 – Ever had a hankering to drink a Slurpee® out of something extraordinary? Like a bucket or sport trophy or maybe even a coconut shell?

Then, from 7 a.m. this Monday, November 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, November 8 – is your time to do so! “Bring Your Own Cup Day 2016″ is back at all 2,000+ 7-Eleven stores around the country covering both Peninsular and East Malaysia. Folks can fill up any cup they bring into the store for only RM2.90 whilst being able to participate in a photo contest to win cool prizes.

“Think of it as 7-Eleven’s Malaysia way of celebrating, not only our birthday, but more importantly, our loyal customers” says Ronan Lee, GM of Marketing at 7-Eleven. He added, “The date 7/11 is a special one for us and traditionally, we reward our fans by allowing them to enjoy their most favorite frozen beverage, Slurpee® in this unique way. As a continuation of last year’s roaring success, we’ve decided to maintain BYOC 2016 for 2 days as we want everybody to be able to celebrate with us!” He concluded by saying, “We note that the entries are getting more and more creative over the years and it’ll be a challenge to surpass past year’s creative ways of people enjoying their Slurpee®, but with Malaysian’s endless ingenuity and creativity, we believe the entries will be even better this year.”

But, alas, there are rules.

No, your “cup” can’t be a trash can (too big) or a football boot (too unsanitary) or a cap (too porous). But, most clean, water-tight vessels that are no bigger than 22 centimeters in diameter meet the requirements. If you can stick a straw in it, and it’s not a live animal or an electronic, you’re good!

The cups must be able to fit through a 22-centimeters diameter hole posted on special signs in-store. Slurpee® fans can then fill it with their favorite Slurpee® flavor – or all of them.

For those eager to bring in creative cups, but unsure what to bring, here are some oddball “cups” that customers have previously used at BYO Cup Days: plant pots, vases, tea kettles, plastic bags and, yes, even the durian shell.

Whilst enjoying their special treat then Slurpee® lovers are also able to participate in the “Bring Your Own Cup Day 2016” contest where all one has to do is snap a photo of their most creative Slurpee® “cup” with the hashtags #7ElevenMY #BYOCMY2016 and share them on 7-Eleven Malaysia’s Facebook page or one’s personal Instagram page but do remember to change the privacy setting to public for the post. Nifty prizes such as CoolWheel™ Hoverboards, Fujifilm Instax Cameras and the limited edition Slurpee® Makers will be up for grabs so let’s get creative!

For more details, please visit www.7eleven.com.my or follow 7ElevenMalaysia on Facebook.

Milo, Brand’s helping children to score better in exams

By

Tan Heng Hong

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2nd November 2016

In an exam-oriented society like Malaysia, achieving the highest grade and doing well at school are hallmarks of success. Brands are tapping into the strong desire by parents to see their children do well in their examinations and the classic example is Brand’s Essence of Chicken.

Brand’s honouring top achievers

The Brand’s Smart Achievers honours top performing students who do well in both their studies and extra-curricular activities. According to Cerebos Malaysia vice president and general manager Koh Joo Siang, “dedication and hard work with a little boost from Brand’s Essence of Chicken to improve their memory, concentration and energy levels as they go about their daily revision and activities, both students and parents are deserving of this honour.”

Give him nothing less than Milo to take on the exam

Now Milo, the chocolate malt drink from Nestle, is aligning the brand with what Malaysian parents concerned the most – examination. The message by Milo is to give your children a cup of Milo in the morning to take on the exams as Milo provides the energy needed to stay focus.

The marketing messages of Brand’s and Milo resonate with Malaysian parents’ obsession with good grades. The exam-focused culture is alive and kicking in Asia with parents in China praying for their kids to score well in the university entrance examination.

Never Give Up

Singapore is known for being a meritocratic society. The Milo advertisement conveys a different yet positive message by focusing on ‘Never Give Up’ as a way to help children to rise above the exam pressure.

“In the lead up to PSLE, children aim to live up to self-imposed expectations as well as those set by their parents, to achieve a high score.

MILO spoke with primary school going children who showed how having the right attitude helps them to rise above the pressure and #NeverGiveUp.”

This is the right message for children and parents. Ultimately, it is about nurturing the child to never give up in life.

Bandung bans styrofoam, Pop Mie to switch to paper packaging

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

2nd November 2016

strofoam — http://jabar.metrotvnews.com/peristiwa/zNPAyJPb-emil-tak-ada-alasan-gunakan-styrofoam-di-bandung

Effective 1 November 2016, the Indonesian city of Bandung, a two-hour drive from Jakarta, will ban styrofoam, which is a widely used as a cheap food packaging material. The new law will apply not only to restaurants and vendors but also to major food manufacturers. Styofoam is known to be slow decaying and is filling up the city’s landfills.

The move by Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil (Emil) is not only to protect the environment but also to safeguard consumer health. He considers sytrofoam to contain cancer causing chemicals. It will make Bandung the first city in Indonesia to ban styrofoam.

Food vendors or stores caught using styrofoam for more than three times will see their business licenses revoked.

The abrupt announcement of the ban on sytrofoam on 12 October 2016 has caught many by surprise. Many vendors are replacing sytrofoam with paper wrap (kertas nasi) and bento tray (plastik bento) and some fear this would drive up the price of food.

Indofood to change Pop Mie packaging

The country’s top cup noodle brand Pop Mie by Indofood currently uses food grade sytrofoam (image above) that meets the BPOM requirement. Responding to the sytrofoam ban in Bandung, PT Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk director Franky Welirang said the company will switch from sytrofoam to paper-based packaging from the third quarter of 2017. The change will be implemented nationwide as part of the move by the company to protect the environment. According to Franky, the company has started experimenting with the new packaging since June 2016.

Image above was taken from Emil’s official twitter on him meeting with representatives from Indomie. It says “at last, Indofood will replace the use of styrofoam in Pop Mie in the near future for distribution throughout Indonesia.”

Bandung major Emil was surprise its local law would force a major food producer to change its existing packaging. The example of Bandung in banning the use of styrofoam shows with political will, the local government can take the lead in effecting change in the country including enacting laws to better protect the environment.

Revive in smaller pack size of 1.25L

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

1st November 2016

Revive, the isotonic drink made by Etika Group of Companies for PepsiCo, is now available in a smaller pack size of 1,250ml at 7-Eleven in Malaysia. At the moment, the 1,250ml Pepsi is selling at 99 Speedmart. Both Pepsi and Revive in 1,250ml has a retail price of RM 2.00.

Limited time offer

The promotion period for the 1.25L Revive is around 1.5 months from 18 October 2016 to 2 January 2017. Also back at 7-Eleven is the 390ml Revive and Pepsi each selling at RM 0.99. The promotion period is the same from 18 October 2016 to 2 January 2017. A similar promotional campaign for the 390ml format at 7-Eleven was held for 1 month from 5 July 2016 to 1 August 2016. Now it is back and the 390ml and 1.25L formats are expected to put pressure on The Coca-Cola Co, which has not tapped the convenience store channel for its 390ml and 1.25L value-pack variants.

Red Bull (Product Of Europe) now in 473ml can

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

1st November 2016

In Malaysia, Red Bull (Product Of Europe) has introduced a larger pack size 473ml and is now available at 7-Eleven convenience store.

This comes of the heel of the unveiling of the bigger 355ml pack size at the end of 2014 with the “Which Size Suits You” campaign.

To connect with sports car enthusiasts and gamers, the 473ml pack provides RM 130 Red Bull Racers in-game code. Red Bull Racers is a racing game app that scores 3.9 out of 5 in Google Play.

The 473ml Red Bull (Product Of Europe) is also the energy drink with the biggest pack size in the market.

Wau Bulan

Previous Red Bull campaigns included the limited-edition can featuring the wau bulan (Malaysian kite) designed by street artist Fritilldea available from April 2016. The objective was to cultivate street and contemporary art scenes and its talents.

Instant coffee brands at c-stores in China, Thailand, Philippines

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

31st October 2016

Instant coffee is popular in Asia. It is commonly sold in individual sachet in convenience stores, a store format that is currently booming in the region. Here is a pictorial overview of the instant coffee in sachet in three Asian countries (China, Thailand and the Philippines) with actual on-the-ground observation in convenience stores. The objective is to highlight brands that have captured opportunities in the on-the-go category.

Malaysian coffee at FamilyMart, Shanghai

Nescafe is the market leader in China’s instant coffee (3-in-1s and 2-in-1s). Maxwell House (Jacobs Douwe Egberts) has always been a distant second and has since lost popularity. Recent reports mentioned the only Maxwell House factory in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou will close by the end of 2016. From 2017, all the Maxwell House coffee selling in China will be imported from the factory in Bangkok, Thailand.

Two Malaysian white coffee brands Home’s Cafe (Ipoh Home’s Cafe Sdn Bhd) and PappaRich were seen at FamilyMart, Shanghai. Malaysian companies are well known for white coffee. The PappaRich (金爸爸) or ‘Gold Daddy’ in Mandarin is a stevia-based white coffee produced by the PappaRich restaurant chain.

Nestle has its own white coffee in China selling under the Authentic Collection Series (馆藏系列).

Indonesian Kopiko at Lawson, Shanghai

Indonesia’s Kopiko (可比可) has a dedicated store placement at the Lawson convenience store chain in Shanghai. Nearly all the instant coffee at this Lawson outlet comes in a box rather than in individual sachet. Kopiko has been aggressively making inroad into China’s instant coffee scene focusing on Italian coffee such as cappuccino, latte and mocha. Mayora Indah, the owner of the Kopiko brand, has subsequently introduced its own white coffee.

Cephei at C-Store, Shanghai

On the top left hand corner in C-Store (喜士多) in Shanghai are instant coffees in individual sachets by Cephei. According to the official website, Cephei (奢婓咖啡) was founded in Frankfurt, Germany in January 2012 with operations in Germany, Malaysia, Italy and other parts of the world. The background of this company is sketchy but it appears to have a factory in Malaysia producing instant coffee such as white coffee.

All the images above were taken by the author in Shanghai in July 2016.

Private label coffee at 7-Eleven Thailand

In 7-Eleven, Thailand market leader Nescafe gets the largest space. The other brands are Moccana (Jacobs Douwe Egberts), Birdy (Ajinomoto) and 7-Select (7-Eleven private label). See image above.

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf at 7-Eleven, Manila

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (CBTL) instant coffee was selling at 7-Eleven, Manila. Nescafe is the market in the Philippines, followed by URC’s Great White and Mayora Indah’s Kopiko. Others include Glorious Blend Slimmax Coffee and 7-in-1 Coffemix with no sugar added (stevia) and fortified with calcium and iron as well as Maskape coffee.

UCC and Good Day at FamilyMart, Manila

Selling at FamilyMart, Manila are coffee from UCC (white coffee, Colombia coffee and original blend), Nescafe, Kopiko, CBTL, PT Santos Jaya Abadi (Good Day) and Nice Day (5-in-1 White and 10-in-1 Cleanse).

All the images of coffee in Manila were taken by the author in July 2016.

Pear is back in the spotlight

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

30th October 2016

Coca-Cola’s Heaven & Earth has recently extended its RTD porftolio into chrysanthemum tea and pear tea. Pear tea is an interesting choice. There is no similar product in the Malaysian market at the moment that focuses on pear alone.

Lipton Iced Green Tea with Pear and Peach

The closest equivalent in the RTD tea category is Lipton Iced Green Tea with Pear and Peach, launched in the second half of 2014.

Dorinku gone

Dorinku Snow Pear Juice Drink was active in 2013-14 but since then, the snow pear juice drink and other Dorinku RTD tea products were no longer in the market.

Crystal Sugar Pear Juice was a hit in China in 2012

In China, the crystal sugar pear juice was instrumental to the growth of the entire juice category for several years. In early 2011, Uni-President launched Snow Pear Juice and this was followed six months later by Tingyi’s Master Kong. Pear juice was key to the rapid growth of Tingyi’s juice sales in 2012, which jumped 73.5% year-on-year. Pear juice boosted sales for two years before consumers shifted to other flavours and drinks.

It is still early to gauge consumer reception towards the new Heaven & Earth Pear Tea since the company has yet to make it widely available. Moreover, marketing campaign has yet to start for this product. But it is interesting to see pear is getting the attention in this part of the world.

Ribena pen pineapple apple pen

By

Tan Heng Hong

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28th October 2016

ribena-apple — From Ribena Singapore Facebook

Suntory Beverage & Food Malaysia has enriched the Ribena Lightly Sparkling range in can format with two new flavours – orange & blackcurrant and apple & blackcurrant. This comes 10 months following the debut of Ribena Lightly Sparkling Ribena can in January 2016 to coincide with the 2016 Chinese New Year.

PPAB

On the Ribena Singapore Facebook page, the new apple & blakcurrant flavour, now available in Singapore, is paired with the Ribena Pineapple & Passionfruit for the ultimate Ribena version of PPAB (pen pineapple apple pen).

Coca-Cola extends its run at GSC

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

28th October 2016

gsc-coca-cola — From left to right: Lusk, Finan, Koh & Chee at the signing of the five-year beverage concession agreement

Press Release:

Coca-Cola Malaysia has signed a new beverage concession agreement with Golden Screen Cinemas Sdn Bhd (GSC), the leading cinema exhibitor in Malaysia.

The beverages produced by Coca-Cola have been present in GSC cinemas since 1987 and the new agreement will see their continued presence for another five-year term.

Under the agreement, all GSC concession counters throughout Malaysia will offer Fanta, Sprite, A&W Sarsaparilla, Minute Maid Pulpy, Coca-Cola light, Coca-Cola Zero and, of course, Coca-Cola. Popcorn paired with Coca-Cola are also available as over-the-counter combo sets or pre-purchased e-combo sets through GSC Website or the GSC Mobile App.

The agreement was signed in Kuala Lumpur today by Chief Executive Officer of Coca-Cola’s Bottling Investment Group Singapore – Malaysia – Brunei, Mr Stephen James Lusk and Chief Executive Officer of GSC, Ms Koh Mei Lee (嘉通院线总执行员高美莉).

Also present to witness the signing was Executive Vice President of The Coca-Cola Company / President of the Bottling Investments Group, Mr Irial Finan and General Manager of GSC, Mr Irving Chee (嘉通院线总经理徐焕堂).

“The excitement of the cinema experience for cinemagoers begins at the concession stand when they get the fresh, hot popcorn and an icy cold Coca-Cola beverage to complement the movie, and we are thrilled to continue the special experience for them at GSC as we have been doing so for almost three decades now,” said Lusk.

Lusk said the partnership with GSC is part of Coca-Cola’s continued commitment to the market and its customers in Malaysia, where it has already invested RM1 billion between 2010 and 2016.

“We want to grow further in Malaysia and to do that, we need to be able to be a part of the growth strategies of our business partners so that we can help each other to create ideal consumer experiences,” added Lusk.

Koh said that Coca-Cola beverages are very popular among movie-goers at GSC.

“At GSC, we strive to provide the best cinema experience to our customers and we are very excited to continue this journey with Coca-Cola. The signing of agreement marks our long-term business partnership with Coca-Cola, which is a special milestone for GSC as we are celebrating our 30^th anniversary next year,” said Koh.

GSC, which has a market share of over 40 per cent, owns a total of 306 screens in 33 locations and a seating capacity of over 51,000 in Malaysia. It also has the largest digital hall in Malaysia – the 486-seater GSC Maxx in GSC Berjaya Times Square, KL and the largest multiplex in Southeast Asia with 21 screens in GSC Mid Valley, KL.

Intra-ASEAN dairy trade set to grow, Vinamilk exports to Thailand

By

Tan Heng Hong

-

27th October 2016

Intra-ASEAN dairy trade small

The nations of Southeast Asia have a vibrant dairy market. However, most of the local producers focus largely on their own market. We are seeing dairy trade between countries but these are mainly food ingredients or multinationals exporting baby food or other dairy products from their hubs such as in Singapore, Malaysia or the Philippines.

What we are seeing is the absence of a strong push by Southeast Asian dairy companies exporting their yoghurt, cheese and milk from for example Thailand into Malaysia or the Philippines into Indonesia. This excludes the flow of products from Thailand into neighbouring countries like Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos where the dairy market is still under developed.

However, this is slowly changing. We have seen examples of Indonesian dairy firms like PT Mulia Boga Raya (Prochiz) selling its cheese in Malaysia and the Philippines. Indonesia’s Japfa (Greenfields) exporting UHT milk, fresh milk and cheese to Singapore and cheese to Malaysia.

Vinamilk exports yoghurt to Thailand

In the past three months, Vietnam’s Vinamilk has been exporting its yoghurt into neighbouring Thailand. The Vinamilk yogurt is available in plain, less sugar and aloe vera variants, while the Vinamilk Susu yoghurt comes in two flavours including apple & banana. All these products are available at The Mall, Foodland and Lawson.

Vinamilk UHT milk next

Thailand-based Topmost Enterprise is the appointed distributor. The company aims to cover all distribution channels in the second quarter of 2017. The yoghurt is priced at THB 17-19, which is higher than other brands in the market and the reason to justify the high price is quality. Vinamilk UHT milk will be the next product to exported to Thailand, reported the Bangkok Post citing TopMost Enterprise Managing director Siwat Thamaratnothai.

Vinamilk enters Myanmar

Apart from Thailand, Vinamilk announced the entry into the Myanmar market in May 2016 in a partnership with Synchro World. Image above was taken from Vinamilk corporate website. The overseas push comes as Vinamilk aims to derive 50% of its total revenue from the overseas business in the coming five years.

The Vietnamese dairy giant opened a new dairy plant in Cambodia in May 2016. The new factory is capable of producing 19 million liters of milk, 64 million cups of yogurt and 80 million cans of condensed milk per year.

Regional ambition

F&N, another regional player now owned by ThaiBev, has plans to build a factory in Ayutthaya province, Thailand in the next few years to support growth in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. This comes as the capacity at the Oishi’s beverage plant is nearly full.

The regional ambition of F&N and Vinamilk will shape the regional dairy scene in future as companies search for growth spots with plenty of growth spots still untapped in the region.

Mini Me Insights

Press Release: 7-Eleven Malaysia ‘Bring Your Own’ Cup Day 2016 is here again!

Milo, Brand’s helping children to score better in exams

Bandung bans styrofoam, Pop Mie to switch to paper packaging

Revive in smaller pack size of 1.25L

Red Bull (Product Of Europe) now in 473ml can

Instant coffee brands at c-stores in China, Thailand, Philippines

Pear is back in the spotlight

Ribena pen pineapple apple pen

Coca-Cola extends its run at GSC

Intra-ASEAN dairy trade set to grow, Vinamilk exports to Thailand

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