Hold your horses – is Giant headed for bankruptcy? Or is it currently undergoing some sort of rebranding with their new image? Apparently, one particular netizen claims to have the answer to these questions.
Over the weekend, Facebook user named Faridzul Asyraf Mat Arifin came up with a long post on his social media to share his take on the rumours that have been swirling online regarding the local hypermarket and retailer chain.
You can read his full post here:
“Giant is one of the largest hypermarkets in Malaysia with dozens of franchises nationwide. Started in 1944 by the Teng Family, Giant was taken over by Dairy Farm International (DFI), a conglomerate company in Hong Kong in 1999.
The acquisition allowed the brand to further expand its market to neighbouring countries including Indonesia, Brunei and Singapore. (However) a lot of local Giant stores have ceased its operations. I took notice of this after the Giant supermarket in Sungai Petani closed down. Soon after, it appears that more and more outlets have also shut down.
“When the new Giant logo came out, many questioned if Giant was undergoing a rebranding? Or did the company have financial issues?
Before we assume that Giant is heading for bankruptcy, do note that this is quite impossible since DFI is a very large company. They own a few brands, licenses and joint ventures with several retailers across Asia. This includes Guardian, Ikea, Hero, Cold Storage. as well as a few other retail outlets.
What about here (in) Malaysia? In this case, we can see that Giant has now launched their Giant Mini convenience stores. Why would a large hypermarket reduce itself to smaller stores? t’s safe to say that the reason is because the buying culture has changed.
“Fitch Rating also claimed that the closure of Giant hypermarkets in Indonesia will not benefit other competing brands, as they have experienced a significant decline not only in the country, but all over the world! It’s a common strategy for big companies when competing with other competitors.
Their current logo is now quite simple. The word ‘GIANT’ is shaped like a mango fruit, which is synonymous with our region. The layout has also changed. They’ve made a few more significant changes in order to retain customers.
“The Giant Mini store is also introduced to retain their employees, while ‘experimenting’ with (operating) smaller sized outlets. There are 9 hypermarkets available in Malaysia right now, including Lotus, Aeon, Lulu, Mydin, NSK, Econsave, Sabasun and Servay. Is this good news for these brands?
For me, the hypermarket trend is now declining. Many Malaysians nowadays prefer to shop at grocery stores and wholesale places that are nearby their houses. The operating cost is also cheaper and it’s easier to manage smaller shops.
All we have to do is just wait and see whether these Giant Mini convenience stores can compete with other stores nationwide. Or will it experience the same fate as the Giant stores in Indonesia?”
Giant has yet to release any statements in response to the FB user’s post.
Source: Odisi.
