LI, Tao @ Hong Kong

It is hard to overlook the signage of this cosmetics chain in Hong Kong, as it is prominently displayed in almost every crowded tourist site across the city. But very few, even the regular customers, may know why a local store adopted a French name – “Bonjour” – which, as is well known in the West, means “hello” in English. Even fewer may know how the name’s impact on consumers has changed.

“When we opened our first cosmetic shop in Hong Kong in 1991, Japanese tourists were our main targeted customers, and so crazy about French big names like Christian Dior and Chanel that we decided to come up with a French name to make us more appealing to them,” Alan Chan, Bonjour’s executive director, told China Daily.

But time passes and the times change. Chan said that since the mainland authorities implemented the Individual Visit Scheme in 2003, which allows mainland travelers to visit Hong Kong on an individual basis rather than on a group tour, Mandarin speakers have completely displaced the Japanese in Bonjour’s shops.

“Each year, we see a surge in sales during the mainland’s ‘golden week’ holiday in early May, but we did not see a substantial difference this year, as this time the May holidays started on a weekend. Since individual visits have become popular, our sales on weekends are always this good,” said Chan.

According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the number of tourists from the mainland has been tracing a sharp uptrend over the last decades, up from 4 million in 2001 to more than 18 million in 2009. Mainland visitors currently account for 60 percent of the total visitor arrivals in Hong Kong.

Data also show that by the end of last year, the mainland became the second-largest market for cosmetics and personal care products in the Asia Pacific region, and the fourth-largest market in the world.

Hong Kong has long been the destination for shopping enthusiasts, as most imported goods are duty-free and retail prices are lower compared to other markets.

Chan said Bonjour explores its own logistics channels and normally imports goods from the foreign suppliers directly, which enables them to sell almost everything at a deeper discount compared with the retail prices in big shopping malls.

“I believe our products, with the same quality of any other retailers, are sold at the lowest prices in Hong Kong,” said Chan.

Unlike the first few shops, which sold only high-end cosmetics at the beginning of our operation, Bonjour today has established more than 35 retail outlets in Hong Kong and Macao, selling and distributing over 20,000 products including a range of skincare, makeup, fragrances, healthcare and personal care products.

To serve its mainland customers better, Bonjour is on course to open its first mainland shop in Guangzhou in July.

The Guangzhou shop will sell various products in the same way as the local chains, Chan said.

China Daily

(HK Edition 05/21/2010 page3)

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/hkedition/2010-05/21/content_9875068.htm