Ordinary Gweilo

I happened to be in Festival Walk (Kowloon Tong) recently, and I had only just got over the disappointment of discovering that they are using the same giant Christmas tree for the 3rd or 4th year in a row, when I discovered that the ParknShop Superstore has morphed into something called Taste (as reported in Saturday’s Standard).  This seems to be a half-brother of the Great store in Pacific Place, adapted for the second-class citizens in Kowloon.  By the time they get around to addressing the needs of the hoi polloi in the New Territories it’ll presumably be as watered-down as orange juice in a no-star hotel for coach parties from the Mainland.

I’ve never quite understood the logic behind the ParknShop Superstore ‘concept’.  Each time they open a new one they seem to make an effort to be upmarket and cosmopolitan, but within a few months the wide aisles are piled high with cardboard boxes containing Vita Lemon Tea, Calbee Potato Chips or Lemon Coke Light; the fresh pasta and the fromage frais are long gone, and all that remains is a bigger version of every other PnS store.  Even the ersatz wet market and the fish counters sometimes seem to be found in "ordinary" PnS stores. 

Yes, I’m sure that if there is anything as vulgar as a PnS Superstore in Stanley it’s absolutely marvellous, but I can only judge them on what I see up in the New Territories. On that basis, I thought their outlet in Kowloon Tong was as good as it got (which is not saying a lot), though the good people at Batgung claimed that it was "the worst Park-N-Shop in the whole SAR" which I thought was a little harsh.  Especially considering what most of the others are like.

I can’t help comparing PnS with Tesco, which currently seems to be the most successful supermarket in the world.  They have a very clearly-defined strategy, with distinct formats for smaller convenience stores, city centre locations and out-of-town superstores. Customers understand the differences and know what to expect. Equally, Waitrose seems to be successful in going for more upmarket customers, whereas Sainsburys are suffering because they don’t seem to have a clear strategy.

Hong Kong is different because there are only two main players, and they seem reluctant to compete with each other on price, but thankfully there have been some improvements in the years that I have been living in Hong Kong. Taste seems like a step in the right direction for AS Watson/Hutchison/Li Ka Shing, and their plan of opening a dozen or so outlets seems quite sensible (though they’ll presumably be focusing on Hong Kong Island).  It certainly looks brighter and cleaner than any of the PnS Superstores I’ve ever seen, and there is undoubtedly a wider selection – but largely without the eye-wateringly high prices that we know and love from Great. 

One remaining puzzle is whether they will retain their mini Great store in Festival Walk.  There seems to be a significant overlap between the two outlets, though the cheese selection in Great is certainly better.  Unfortunately, I don’t suppose they are going to stay open just to sell me a pound of Quickes cheddar every few weeks. 

Incidentally, the SCMP managed to attain new heights of sycophancy in its headline on Saturday.  The sub-text seems to be that they’re terribly sorry for upsetting the management by their earlier of some problems in PnS, and please could they have the advertising back:

Hutchison gives shoppers fresh Taste
The new chain will offer gourmet food at affordable prices

Sorry, got to go now – I’m starting to feel a bit queasy…