Eraman, the largest duty free and travel retail operator in Malaysia, has partnered with Alipay, the world’s largest online and mobile payment platform operated by Ant Financial Services Group.
Eraman will now be able to tap into 520 million Alipay active users; 4.5 million who are Chinese tourists that travel to Malaysia annually. These Chinese travelers visiting Eraman outlets will be able to conveniently pay with their Alipay personal QR code via their smart phone.
With Alipay integrated into the acquirer’s merchant portfolio of Maybank and CIMB Bank Bhd, the country’s two largest financial services provider in Malaysia by using the in-store on-line payment solution at all Eraman outlets nationwide, Eraman is confident that this new payment mode will improve the Chinese travelers’ shopping experience at the airports.
“Security and speed are important to us as we look to enable our Chinese travelers to walk into our outlets while travelling abroad and pay for purchases with the Alipay – just like they do in China. This Alipay in-store payment will act as the settlement, allowing Chinese travelers to pay for their transactions in Yuan without having concerns on the exchange rate. This is done through a simple swipe and barcode-scanning method,” said Zulhikam Ahmad, General Manager of Malaysia Airports (Niaga) Sdn Bhd.
“All Eraman retail outlets in KLIA and klia2 including duty free emporium and lifestyle stores began accepting Alipay in June 2017. However Eraman food and beverage and retails outlets in Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Penang, Langkawi International Airport and Labuan Airport have begun to accept Alipay since end of August 2017. In China, this payment system is a way of life for shopping and many other activities, and given the growing number of Chinese travelers here, we are hoping for a high uptake," added Zulhikam.
In conjunction with this smart partnership, Eraman has launched a special promotion starting from 1st September until 31st December 2017 whereby all Chinese travelers using Alipay will be entitled to an e-voucher of RMB100 when they spend RMB1000 at participating Eraman retail outlets. This e-voucher can be redeemed for the second purchase at Eraman outlets within 24-hours.
Meanwhile, Alipay users will also be able to enjoy up to 10% off for purchases made at Eraman’s Food & Beverage outlets and its convenience store, EXpress. The discount can be used for the 2nd purchase at Eraman within 24 hours.
“As the premier retail brand under Malaysia Airports, Eraman has evolved over the last couple of years. We continue to diversify our offerings, embrace the many exciting possibilities and grow our presence in the leading airports in Malaysia. This is our way in providing the total airport experience by means of having an alternate payment method and providing ease for our Chinese customers who happen to be one of our top three passenger groups in terms of nationality,” said Zulhikam.
Chinese travelers remains the highest ticket size contributor at KLIA and klia2. Eraman recorded a double-digit percentage growth in sales value with perfumes and cosmetics, liquor, tobacco boosted by purchases from the Chinese travelers. This is all due to the price and variety of the offerings which are more competitive compared to downtown especially for perfumes, cosmetics and liquor.
In terms of ranking for Chinese travelers received regionally, Malaysia comes in third after Thailand and Singapore. With this new payment solution and the great retail offerings combined with the attractive tourist locations that they are able to visit, it is hope that these Chinese travelers will make Malaysia as top of mind destination and Eraman as their preferred duty free retailer.
Eraman is keen on building long term alliances with reputable partners and recognizes this collaboration to be a major contributor to the company. Therefore Eraman will work very closely with Alipay to come up with many exciting promotions and give more value to its customers.
“The entry of Alipay marks a notable milestone in the growth of Chinese tourist arrival and on-line transaction services in Malaysia, and we are proud to be part of this development. We look forward to a strong synergistic collaboration and we are happy Alipay is on board with us,” said Zulhikam.
"We are excited to partner Eraman, a very strong player in the duty free industry. With this partnership we'll help Eraman to reach out to more Chinese customers by utilizing the Alipay marketing platform to market various top brands and products offered by Eraman," said Greta Gunawan, Alipay’s Country Manager of Malaysia. “Duty free shops are always on the must-visit list of Chinese tourists. In the future, Alipay users can check shop details and special offers via the in-app Discovery platform even before they depart to Malaysia.”
Hendra Lembong, Chief Executive Officer, Group Transaction Banking, CIMB Group added, “We are pleased to collaborate with Eraman in providing Chinese tourists a convenient and secure cashless payment experience in Malaysia with CIMB’s Alipay mobile wallet. As a pioneer settlement and merchant acquirer bank in facilitating Alipay payments in Malaysia, CIMB is confident in spearheading the growth of mobile wallet payment services in the country with its cutting edge expertise in transaction banking. We aim to not only support Malaysia’s drive for a safe and secure cashless society, but also provide our customers with a seamless banking experience within ASEAN.”
