Retail Scene Singapore: Where’s the Crew?

In perhaps a harbinger of things to come, the recent launch of Nex Mega Mall in Serangoon Central, marks the entry of suburban mega mall into the Singapore retail scene. The new mall, which is double the size of average sub-urban malls in Singapore, has been packing in crowds of more than 70,000 visitors daily since opening in November 2010.

This is certainly a testament of the buzzing retail scene in Singapore today. Already, our city-state has witnessed the development and opening of various large malls such as ION Orchard, 313 Somerset, Orchard Central, Mandarin Gallery, Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort in recent years. The buzz in the retail scene does not appear to be dying down anytime soon.

The booming tourism & MICE sector in Singapore is fanning this retail boom with tourist arrival numbers looking set to target of 12.5 million visitors in 2010. But this good news will bring about with it a set of ‘good’ problems. Where are we going to get the crew to staff our retail stores?

Ask any retailer in Singapore and they will tell you that apart from keeping ahead of the competition, their next most common concern is staffing. How to get them, train them and keep them!

Retail operation complexities tend to be underestimated, most of the time. Whilst the retail job may look simple and glamorous (at times), the reality is quite the opposite.  Retail crew are the front-line staff of the retail business. In many instances, there are no ‘second chances’ or‘re-takes’ when they are dealing with the customer. Just like actors in a play, there is no room for “oops”, “sorry” or “cut”. In many cases, there is only one chance to “make a customer for life” or “lose a customer for good”.  Hence, the importance of good training.

Faced with the intensity of retail competition in Singapore, all the more so, properly trained retail staffs are crucial to the success of the retailer (and this should not be underestimated).  Qualified retail staffs are valuable asset to the business. Just like condiments, they add flavour to the presentation.

Mitch Loo
(Lecturer for Retail Management)