Singapore, 10 October 2017 – Singapore Management University (SMU) today officially launched the Retail Centre of Excellence (RCoE), the first and only retail insight-sharing hub in Singapore focusing on generating and disseminating actionable knowledge for retailers in Singapore, Asia and beyond.

A joint initiative between SMU, SPRING Singapore and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), the RCoE aims to empower retailers with the know-how through research and insights, and build an ecosystem (comprising retailers, retail experts, knowledge partners, SMU faculty and student talent) to ride the winds of change.  The Centre, helmed by SMU Professor of Marketing, Kapil R. Tuli, is joined by a group of Founding Members – the first being DFS Venture.  The other Founding Members collaborating with RCoE are: Microsoft, Harvey Norman, IKEA, Popular Holdings, Decathlon and Tiffany and Co.

Through this collective effort, the RCoE dedicates itself towards tackling key industry challenges and helping retailers raise their productivity and innovation levels.  This is timely, given the global retail industry’s estimated worth of USD $28 trillion by 2019 and the retail industry being earmarked as a key industry for growth in Singapore. The Centre also seeks to attract and develop a talent pipeline through academic curriculum.  These include leadership training and internships for SMU undergraduate and postgraduate students, and masterclasses for industry stakeholders, managers and C-Suite executives. Research by SMU faculty experts will be also shared with traditional and non-traditional retailers to enhance industry knowhow, enabling them to grow their retail businesses locally and abroad.

Themed ‘Reinventing Retail for the Changing Consumer’, the launch event held at the SMU Labs today was graced by Guest-of-Honour Ms Sim Ann, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and Ministry of Trade and Industry, before a 100-strong audience.  The event also included sharing sessions by several distinguished SMU faculty members who presented their retail research and case studies, as well as an introduction to the upcoming Asian Retail Leaders Programme.

Professor Lily Kong, SMU Provost, said, “We are pleased to receive the strong support and vote of confidence from government agencies, retail leaders, industry experts and knowledge partners to develop new insights and capabilities for the retail industry.   Through the work of the new Retail Centre of Excellence, we will be able to nurture a pipeline of young talent who will be excited to make retail their career and to contribute fresh ideas and perspectives.  Retail organisations will also benefit from research by our faculty experts, offering evidence-based insights of relevance to business and industry.”

In her address delivered at the launch event, Professor Kong also highlighted that SMU has begun offering a new Retail Services Management Track for SMU undergraduates from the current Academic Year.  The Track is being offered at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business under its Marketing Major, and will be open to SMU students from the business, accountancy, economic, social sciences and information system Schools.  The first cohort of students from this new specialisation is expected to graduate by April 2019. 

Mr Ted Tan, Deputy Chief Executive, SPRING Singapore, said, “We welcome the Retail Centre of Excellence (RCoE) as a key partner of the Retail Industry to promote a community of knowledge sharing amongst our SMEs.  Through RCoE, retailers will be able to gain deeper insights through retail-centric research which we hope will enable them to pioneer more innovative concepts and solutions.  SPRING will continue to work closely with industry partners to drive transformation and support retail businesses in capturing new opportunities."

“The fast-changing consumer landscape and advent of new technologies present challenges but also bring about opportunities for retailers. We believe that Singapore is ideally positioned to support retailers to develop insights about the Asian consumers, and create new omni-channel retail concepts to gain market share. RCoE will be a valuable addition to the local ecosystem to strengthen retailers’ innovation and talent development strategies to capture these growth opportunities,” said Ms Thien Kwee Eng, Assistant Managing Director, Singapore Economic Development Board.

The dynamic retail landscape is continually influenced by changes in technology, as well as consumer profiles, behaviours and preferences, and cost and manpower pressures in today’s digital age.  The RCoE thus strives to collaborate alongside retailers, with the support of the government and academia, in empowering retailers to tap on relevant knowledge, research, consumer insights and talent to thrive.  Ultimately, the Centre aspires to establish Singapore as the regional retail hub for Asia Pacific.

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About Singapore Management University

A premier university in Asia, the Singapore Management University (SMU) is internationally recognised for its world-class research and distinguished teaching. Established in 2000, SMU’s mission is to generate leading-edge research with global impact and produce broad-based, creative and entrepreneurial leaders for the knowledge-based economy. SMU education is known for its highly interactive, collaborative and project-based approach to learning, and for its technologically enabled pedagogy of seminar-style teaching in small class sizes.

Home to around 10,000 undergraduate, postgraduate, executive and professional, full- and part-time students, SMU is comprised of six schools: School of Accountancy, Lee Kong Chian School of Business, School of Economics, School of Information Systems, School of Law, and School of Social Sciences. SMU offers a wide range of bachelors', masters' and PhD degree programmes in the disciplinary areas associated with the six schools, as well as in interdisciplinary combinations of these areas.

SMU has an emphasis on generating rigorous, high-impact, and relevant multi-disciplinary research that addresses Asian issues of global relevance.  SMU faculty members collaborate with leading international researchers and universities from USA, Europe, China and India, as well as with partners in the business community and public sector, through its research institutes, centres and labs. SMU’s city campus is a state-of-the art facility located in the heart of downtown Singapore, fostering strategic linkages with business, government and the wider community. www.smu.edu.sg

About the SMU Retail Centre of Excellence

Established in 2017, the Retail Centre of Excellence (RCoE) is a joint initiative between Singapore Management University (SMU), SPRING Singapore and the Singapore Economic Development Board, and is hosted at the SMU Lee Kong Chian School of Business. RCoE aims to empower and enable brick-and-mortar and online retailers through key focus areas in research, insights, talent and community, and strives to forge Singapore as the regional retail hub in Asia Pacific. For more information, visit https://rcoe.smu.edu.sg/.

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SMU Office of Corporate Communications & Marketing

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