Analysing Inbound Travel Payment Experience in East Asia's Key Destinations – Part I
Prudence Lai
Fast, secure and frictionless payments can lead to a great travel experience. Conversely, slow, insecure and problematic payment can impact the overall trip severely, such as leading to booking failures, fraud and scams, and so on. In this two-part article, the authors analyse their own leisure and business travel payment experiences in key markets in East Asia.
Functional Health in Asia: Driving Value in Food Innovation
Emil Fazira
Asian consumers define health in a number of different ways, spread across both physical and mental wellbeing. Some markets are more skewed towards one type than another; Thais’ top three definitions of health are mental wellbeing, emotional wellbeing, and getting enough sleep, while South Koreans define healthiness as the absence of disease, avoiding illness, and having a healthy immune system.
Crystal Tomato and its Counterparts: Edible Skin Care Supplements in Southeast Asia
Melissa Gan
Whitening supplements have always been popular in Southeast Asia. Crystal Tomato, Dr Ora, and Heliocare are local and international brands capitalising on the ever-increasing demand for beauty-related dietary supplements.
Three Key Trends Driving Halal Beauty’s Growth in Southeast Asia
Anindhitha Maniath
With increasing consumer awareness and demand, coupled with tightening regulations from authorities, a growing number of halal beauty brands and products are emerging in the market. Southeast Asia, being home to over 240 million Muslim consumers, will become the predominant market for the halal beauty industry.
Three Ways to Position Food’s Sustainability in Asia
Emil Fazira
Sustainability continues to be an important long-term strategy for companies, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic driving purpose-driven initiatives globally. However, greater awareness has not necessarily resulted in action amongst consumers, especially in terms of their food choices. Only one in five consumers in Asia seek sustainably produced or raised products and one in four seek eco-friendliness.
Why Athleisure's Pulse is Racing in Southeast Asia
Anindhitha Maniath
Hybrid working policies and the greater acceptance of remote working are further fuelling the casualisation of dress codes and widely contribute to the popularity of Athleisure.
Three Areas where Global Beauty Companies are Investing in Asia
Yang Hu
According to Euromonitor International, the world beauty and personal care market size will grow to USD547 billion in 2027. Asia Pacific is the key driver of this growth, accounting for 67% of the growth value. With the region being seen as the future strategic focus, global beauty companies are investing in the following three areas in Asia Pacific: premiumisation of brand portfolio, solid R&D foundation in Asia, and virtual and interactive shopping experience.
Top Three Opportunities for Healthy Pet Food in Asia
Emil Fazira
The pandemic has raised pet ownership rates, particularly cats and small dogs in Asian cities, alongside improving attitudes towards pet care. However, inflationary pressure on the cost of living will drive cautious spending among consumers, raising the need for a clear value positioning. Pet parents switching from table scraps will also seek nutritional benefits from retail pet food, hence casting a focus on functional ingredients and nutrition.
Understanding the Southeast Asian Consumer in 2022
Sahiba Puri
The world around us has changed rapidly in the past two years. Resilience and adaptability were tested in 2021, forcing consumers to relinquish control and embrace ambiguity. This year, consumers are taking back the reins and paving a path forward based on their passions and values.