INNOVATION has been at the core of Senheng New Retail Bhd
for over 30 years. This has guided its journey to become a progressive omnichannel retailer and a pioneering force in Malaysia.
The company had undergone six major transformation exercises since inception, with each one bringing important changes that enhanced its operations and set it apart from the competition.
Senheng’s digital transformation in 2015 and transition to a seamless new retail model in 2017 revolutionised its stores operations, which has allowed the group to consistently record more than RM1bil in annual revenue since 2018.
Today, its technology infrastructure and business intelligence is powering its 105 retail stores, ecommerce channels and logistics services – enabling convergence of physical and digital experiences in the new era of retail shopping.
To cater to the latest consumer demands, Senheng is moving towards more data-driven marketing campaigns as it strives to put digital marketing strategies as one of its key focus areas of growth.
“We will leverage our newly-built customer data platform, whereby campaigns are developed using customer insights and analytics,” said Senheng executive chairman Lim Kim Heng.
“Thus, we will be able to provide more precise and personalised messaging, to optimise our ads performance and improve our return on investment,” he told The Star.
Senheng is moving towards more data-driven marketing campaigns, said its executive chairman Lim Kim Heng.
In 2017, with the group’s transition to the seamless new retail model, Lim said he realised that digital marketing strategies had to be a key focus to thrive in the future.
Towards this end, he said Senheng embarked on its full digital marketing strategy. He shared that the group had focused heavily on digital marketing channels and social media platforms, which helped Senheng expand its reach to potential customers and enhance its customer engagement.
The consumer electrical and electronics retailer also worked closely with leading media partners such as Google and Facebook, and is among the first few companies in Malaysia to implement their latest ad solutions.
“We also pivoted into telemarketing automation in 2020, which opened up a new channel for our employees to promote and sell our products remotely to our PlusOne members, while being tailored to their latest preferences,” said Lim.
“These digital efforts supported our strong sales despite disruptions to physical store operations during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“Notably, net profit jumped 21.2% to RM34.1mil for the nine months ending Sept 30, 2021, compared to RM28.1mil in the same quarter of 2020 on the back of 12.3% revenue growth to RM987.7mil from RM879.6mil previously.”
As part of its innovation drive, Lim shared that the group intends to grow its existing Senheng app into a super app by creating a whole new lifestyle ecosystem – to allow its loyal members to access beyond just consumer electrical and electronics.
He said it would also encompass hosting third party merchants of different products and services on the Senheng app. These merchants include food and beverage (F&B), leisure services, health, pet fashion and sportswear.
“This is a win-win situation for Senheng and the merchants, as they can tap into our huge 3.24 million PlusOne member base, while we offer additional value and convenience to our members that will enhance their shopping experience. This will subsequently lead to more users for our Senheng app,” he added.
Technology infrastructure and business intelligence powers Senheng’s 105 retail stores, ecommerce channels and logistics services – enabling convergence of physical and digital experiences in the new era of retail shopping.
To tap into Senheng’s loyalty base, Lim said third party merchants are required to provide cashback to Senheng’s members in the form of S-Coin. This is a highly attractive cashback system, as S-Coin are valuable reward credits that can be redeemed for future purchases at Senheng.
As the S-Coin could only be spent on Senheng products, Lim said customer spending on third party merchants on its platform would drive more traffic to Senheng stores and help fuel its growth.
Senheng’s digitally-integrated model has also led to the inception of its new brand distribution business, which relies on analytics to build valuable consumer insights.
Lim said the brand distribution business is part of its strategy to offer a more comprehensive range of product selection, thus enhancing shopping experience across its stores, as well as addressing customer demands for new and exciting offerings.
Since 2017, Senheng has entered into exclusive distributorships with prominent international brands, and in 2021 launched its own in-house cookware brand Delighto.
“This in turn keeps our customers coming back for more high-quality products, positioning Senheng as a trusted one-stop retail brand,” he noted.
Senheng’s in-house cookware brand Delighto, launched in 2021.
Senheng New Retail was listed on the Main Market on Jan 25 2022, and raised RM267.5mil worth of IPO proceeds.
Of the proceeds from the public issue, 60% or RM160.5mil would be for setting up new stores, as well as upgrading existing stores into bigger, more enhanced concept stores. In total, the group has plans to open/upgrade 61 new physical stores from 2022 to 2024 under its various flagship store brands, namely Grand Senheng, Grand Senheng Elite, Grand senQ and senQ.
Of the RM267.5mil in IPO proceeds from Senheng’s listing on the Main Market on Jan 25 2022, RM160.5mil would be for setting up new stores, as well as upgrading existing stores into bigger, more enhanced concept stores.
Another 19.3% or RM51.7mil would be to strengthen the group’s back-end capacities and capabilities. This includes developing the new brand distribution business, expanding and upgrading its warehouse and logistics network, and boosting the group’s digital infrastructure.
The remaining 20.7% or RM55.3mil would be to repay bank borrowings and defray listing expenses.
"We want to be recognised as the leader in shaping the future of how consumers shop, as well as bringing the best in customer experience and convenience,” said Lim.
