Retail therapy
(China Daily)
Updated: 2006-09-11 10:24 Shopping in hypermarkets, Eric Wu often keeps an
eye out for store managers' photos hanging on the wall. If he is impressed by
the performance of the sales people, he may even jot down the name of the
manager.
Wu, a consultant at Career International, one of the nation's largest
headhunters, specializes in the retail sector and last year, he and his team
poached more than 30 senior executives for retailers.
"Retail people are 'hot' these days, as almost every retailer has an
expansion plan," says Wu.
The demand for retail talents will only intensify as the government
orchestrates the amalgamation of domestic retail enterprises in major cities to
form giant groups that can face up to the might of such foreign behemoths as
Carrefour and Wal-Mart.
This programme, first mooted in 2004, has begun to take shape, first in
Shanghai and more recently in Beijing. The success of such mega-mergers will
have a far-reaching impact not only on the retail landscape of the country but
also on all the businesses along the huge supply chain.
After decades of rapid economic growth, China is starting to show the
potential of an enormous consumer market. Retail sales are expected to expand by
13 per cent to 7.5 trillion yuan (US$937.5 billion) this year, making the nation
the world's seventh-largest retail market.
The Ministry of Commerce says the figure will balloon to 10 trillion yuan
(US$1.25 trillion) by 2010 at an annual growth of more than 11 per cent.
The rosy prospects have already lured a slew of the world's top retailers
into the market, including France's Carrefour SA and US-based Wal-Mart Stores
Inc, which have spent years preparing for the boom.
Last year was undoubtedly the starting point of their rapid expansion, as
China lifted most restrictions on foreign retailers at the end of 2004,
including limits on the number of stores, location and the ownership ceiling,
thanks to its commitments to the World Trade Organization.
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