Singaporeans' Perception of Local Brands and Products

Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) (a) whether any study has been done about Singaporeans' perception and awareness of local brands and products; and (b) how does the Ministry plan to instill greater pride for and awareness of local brands.

Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, the development of strong design and innovation capabilities which enable the growth of distinctive local brands are key components of the Industry Transformation Maps (ITMs) in the lifestyle cluster.

While there have been surveys, like the Singapore Management University's Customer Satisfaction Index of Singapore and various surveys by private sector organisations, on consumers’ perception and satisfaction with various brands, these are not specific to Singaporeans' perception and awareness of local brands and products. We will consider doing such surveys as part of the work in implementing the ITMs.

The Government has been working with our key partners, such as the trade associations and chambers to raise awareness of local brands among Singaporeans. For instance, the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING) Singapore supported the recent collaboration between the Singapore Food Manufacturers' Association and Focus Network Agencies to help local food manufacturing companies feature their products through the Singapore Food Gifts Initiative at Changi Airport and amplify brand awareness. Participating companies were able to tap on SPRING Singapore's suite of assistance schemes, such as the Capability Development Grant, to support the packaging innovation, design and small batch production needed to commercialise these food gifts.

This year, SPRING Singapore will also be collaborating with the National Trades Union Congress' FairPrice and Nanyang Polytechnic's (NYP's) School of Business Management to launch a Retail Incubator Programme. With NYP's School of Business Management’s expertise in e-commerce and retail, and FairPrice’s supermarket channels and capital support, participating companies can develop key skills in retail management and have exclusive access to bring their products to market. To date, more than 20 companies have expressed interest to list more than 40 items under this initiative. We look forward to more companies coming on board.

The DesignSingapore Council (DSG) also supported the Textile and Fashion Federation (Singapore)'s collaboration with Boutique Fairs to organise Boutiques Edit, a shopping fair featuring local designers. The November 2017 Boutiques Edit showed a 50% increase in the number of attendees from the March 2017 edition, and quadrupled its sales, a signal that there is a growing appetite for designed-in-Singapore fashion and design. To nurture homegrown brands and profile design talent, JTC, SPRING Singapore and the Singapore Tourism Board will launch the Design Orchard initiative, with more than 60 brands on board, along Orchard Road by the end of this year.

The Government will continue to work with industry partners to support our local brands and products as part of the implementation of the ITMs.

Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank the Senior Minister of State for her very comprehensive answer which included part of my intended supplementary question. I would just like to ask a further question. Current promotions of local brands are important in my opinion because if we want to encourage our local brands to go regional, they first have to achieve a strong foothold in our own market. This is a good testbed. My question is, apart from Changi Airport, Orchard Road and some of the localities the Senior Minister of State just mentioned, will there be plans to push out more to the heartlands, to the heartland malls and so on? These locations are key to the local domestic market. I also wish that Singaporeans can support our local brands and things made in Singapore more. It is not a step towards protectionism, but it is a step for us to encourage our small and medium enterprises. And hopefully, more new ideas and innovations can prevail.

I thank the Member for the supplementary question. Indeed, we see the heartlands as a very good source of potentially strong brands that can do Singapore proud. I am also pleased to say that we are working very closely with the Federation of Merchants Association Singapore on how to rejuvenate retail in the heartlands and, we hope, in the process, continue to groom strong brands. I also hope that Dr Lim Wee Kiak can stay for the Ministry of Trade and Industry's Committee of Supply later today, where I will be speaking more on this particular initiative.