Sasseur Reit chalks up 47.2m yuan on Day 1 of annual Spring Sales

THE four outlet malls under Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust (Sasseur Reit) in China registered robust first-day sales as its annual Spring Sales kicked off last month.

The combined first-day sales for the four malls in Chongqing, Bishan, Hefei and Kunming were 47.2 million yuan (S$9.62 million) - up 411 per cent from the first-day reopening sales registered as they re-opened from March 11 following efforts to curb the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sasseur Reit had previously reported that sales were "encouraging" during the reopening of its four outlet malls, with combined reopening day sales clocking gains of 129 per cent over the corresponding dates in 2019. The malls were closed 44 to 49 days in total from late January.

The Spring Sales event this year started "around the third or fourth week of April and will last up to two to three weeks thereafter", its manager Sasseur Asset Management said.

Since February, Sasseur Reit has adopted online sales and promotional activities and will continue to increase its online and offline engagement with its VIP members and customers, it said. In addition to the sales promotions, the Reit's malls have set up super atrium sales and provided free parking for VIP members, benefits for healthcare workers, and discounted cash vouchers for customers. The outlet malls are also preparing for promotions for upcoming events such as Mothers' Day.

Vito Xu, chairman of the Reit's manager, said: "More than 90 per cent of our customers are local residents rather than tourists, and the strong domestic demand generated by China's huge population base can quickly drive up our sales after the outbreak. The temporary closure period has allowed us to conduct extensive internal strategic and operational reviews. These have led to the advancement of a more intensive digital marketing plan to reach out to more customers and engage them on a deeper level."

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The outlet malls have also put in place health and safety precautions since resuming operations in March. For instance, customers, tenants and employees are required to wear face masks and undergo temperature screening upon entry. Each mall has sufficient stocks of face masks and disinfectants; cleaning and sanitising of facilities and public areas have also been stepped up, the Reit said. It has had no cases of Covid-19 in any of its malls.

Units in the Reit closed at 70 Singapore cents on Monday, down 3.5 cents.