‘Asia fast forward’

This year’s APRCE has adopted the theme, “Asia Fast Forward,” to highlight the region’s growing strength as an economic community. Everything is converging in Asia as the fastest growing economic region in the world. The pace and scale of change in our part of the world have been staggering and the global business community is looking at Asia more than ever, for investment opportunities and future business expansion.

According to the United Nations, the Asia Pacific region accounts for 60 percent of the world’s population with an estimated four billion people, making it a top destination for global retail chains. Asia continues to serve as the main driver of retail growth in the world as countries’ economies develop and grow robustly.

According to Price Waterhouse Coopers, retail sales volume in Asia Pacific is forecasted to grow six percent in 2013 and will maintain this upward momentum until 2016 with an estimated market worth of $11.8 trillion. Furthermore, in the recent Nielsen Global Consumer Survey, Asia Pacific leads in global consumer confidence for the last quarter of 2013. It is the only region in the world that has gained in consumer confidence, increasing four points from the same period last 2012. With a growing critical mass of population in Asia Pacific, it is no doubt that the region warrants long-term investments and tailored market strategies.

THE HOST

The Philippine Retailers Association (PRA), this year’s host, will be in the forefront of bringing APRCE here in the Philippines in 2015 at the SMX Convention Center. The PRA, the country’s recognized national organization of retailers and suppliers to the industry last hosted this event in 1993, where it won the coveted Kalakbay Award for the event of the year.

The PRA counts among its members all the major players in the retail and suppliers sectors, including SM Shoemart, Robinsons, Ayala, Bench, Mercury Drug, Penshoppe, Shopwise, Rustan’s, National Bookstore, Celine Group, as well as the country’s top developers and technology companies, e.g. Megaworld, Araneta Center, IBM, HP, SAP, ACER, among others.

Today, PRA is a dynamic association with nearly 400 member companies covering the gamut of the distribution chain, from operators to traders/suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers, among others and representing over 60 percent of the local retail industry. Recognized as a paragon of a genuine partner in nation building, the PRA enjoys the distinction as The Pulse and Voice of the Philippine Retail Industry.