Comments on newspaper article

This news article I saw in the Straits Time today just cracks me up. It's just like the story one used to hear as a kid about the bully who pouted and whined because someone bigger and stronger had came along and became the new bully on the block. The bully thus becomes the bullied. So how come NTUC was not complaining when they priced the small provision shops and mama shops out of business???

Ah, the ways of the world......

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Warehouse stores: FairPrice upset with decision

By Marcel Lee Pereira

THREE large retailers - Ikea, Courts and Dairy Farm - will be allowed to set up factory outlets on the edge of Tampines, a decision that has upset Singapore's biggest supermarket chain, NTUC FairPrice.

Under the Economic Development Board's (EDB) Warehouse Retail Scheme, the three can set up retail outlets within a warehouse development.

Previously, permanent retail activities were not allowed in industrial developments. Now, up to 40 per cent of the gross floor area can be devoted to retail.

However, the three companies must house their regional headquarters management activities, training, logistics and warehousing facilities at the 93,000 sq m site.

They will also have to meet other criteria, including annual turnover of at least $100 million by the fifth year.

The retailers will invest a total of $200 million into the project, and expect to open their warehouse stores between next November and March 2007. A ground-breaking ceremony will be held next Friday.

FairPrice, which had also applied for the scheme, claimed that it had not been offered a chance to compete for the site.

Madam Cynthia Phua, deputy general manager of FairPrice's property department, said the site was 'directly allocated' to the three retailers without being offered to others.

'It is not within the boundaries of the announced guidelines,' she added.

Last year, the EDB stipulated that the scheme was restricted to 'outlying' areas. One of these areas was north of the Tampines Expressway.

However, the announced site is south of the expressway, pointed out Madam Phua. FairPrice said it had stuck to EDB guidelines by looking at sites in Kranji and Tuas.

Stores like Giant Hypermarket, owned by Dairy Farm, and Courts were already operating in the HDB heartlands, noted Madam Phua.

With the warehouse stores coming up 'so near to existing malls at Tampines and Pasir Ris, competition will be very stiff, and we pay very high rentals there', she added.