Question:

Mr Melvin Yong: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) in view of the prevalence of online shopping portals, whether the annual Great Singapore Sale spearheaded by the Singapore Tourism Board is still relevant.

Written reply

1. The retail industry has been undergoing disruption and change worldwide, with evolving consumer preferences and the increasing prevalence of e-commerce. Singapore’s retail landscape has also experienced similar shifts.
2. The Great Singapore Sale (GSS), which is a marketing campaign organised annually by the Singapore Retailers’ Association (SRA) and supported by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), needs to evolve in response to changes in the retail landscape, where shoppers have many more opportunities than before to obtain deep discounts on attractive merchandise. 
3. To enhance the retail industry’s vibrancy, we had worked with industry stakeholders to develop the Retail Industry Transformation Map, launched last September. One key strategy is the need to foster the growth of a vibrant mix of highly-productive retailers, who can reach out to different consumer groups online and offline. With e-commerce becoming an important catalyst of the retail industry’s growth, traditional brick-and-mortar retailers need to adopt online strategies to reach out to more tech-savvy consumers both locally and internationally.
4. Likewise, the GSS also stands to benefit if it builds an online presence amidst the shifting retail landscape, complementing its usual offline marketing efforts. It is encouraging that SRA commissioned the GoSpree mobile application for GSS 2017, which connects consumers to exclusive shopping bargains not only from established retailers, but also emerging local brands. Many retailers promoted their in-store deals via the application, which has a geo-tagging function that allows e-coupons and deal alerts to be sent to shoppers near participating stores. 
5. Over the years, the GSS has made an impact on the retail calendar, and built mindshare amongst local and international shoppers. STB will continue to work with SRA to update and refresh the GSS. We are considering how to further leverage technology to strengthen consumer outreach. At the same time, the GSS also has potential to be reinvented as a lifestyle event going beyond shopping, through collaboration with the dining and entertainment sectors. Some local attractions and hoteliers had listed promotions on the GoSpree application this year, and we hope to bring more onboard in the coming years.