Page 4 - February 2022

who’s who in retail

RLI MEETS

Sabrina Fung

GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR OF
FUNG RETAILING GROUP

Q. Given the current market conditions, have you had to Q. What do you make of social media and its prominent rise
re-evaluate your key objectives over the coming 12 months? in importance over the last few years, and how important do
To remain relevant in today’s changed retail environment, we have had you feel e-commerce and online activities will continue to be?
to shift our focus to build more resilience into our business and the way While e-commerce has been steadily rising for the past few years,
we provide customer experiences to emerge stronger after Covid-19. the closure of retail shops during the Covid-19 pandemic has pushed
This has seen us focus on offline-to-online as in-person interactions consumers to go digital and dramatically sped up the shift from offline-
change, new opportunities in the wellness space, embracing an agile to-online. It has changed how brands interact with consumers and the
operating model, accelerating the digital transformation of all aspects of way consumers shop. Even after the pandemic, I am certain that the
the operation and delivering the best customer service possible. future of retail is online. E-commerce is here to stay, and social media/
social commerce will be an important platform for brands to engage
Q. How would you say the Covid-19 outbreak has affected with their consumers.
your business in the past year, and will it have any effect on
your plans moving forward? Q. What would you consider to be your career highlights?
The last year has been a year of exponential change for the retail I feel honoured to be the fourth generation of the Fung family
sector, especially for Asia where the retail landscape has continued to leading our retailing arm of Fung Group. Today, we operate over 1,900
transition to a more digital omni-channel model. This has revolutionised retail outlets in over 12 markets around the globe. It feels exciting to
the way retailers do business and consumers’ purchase behaviour ride the waves of change and lead this 115-year old business through
and we have been at the forefront of this change. It has given us the transformation. Most recently, at the 4th China International Import
opportunity to explore innovative technologies, and experiment with Expo in Shanghai earlier this month, we signed a multi-year licensing
new ideas to enhance the shopping experience for our customers. partnership with NBA China for NBA-branded and licensed men’s
grooming products in China. With more than 400 million basketball
Q. What key leadership skills do you feel are the most fans across China, and an increasing focus amongst male population in

important in the current retail climate? China on grooming, wellness and healthy lifestyle, this partnership to
Engage with empathy. We are all human and we all face different develop and market NBA-branded men’s grooming products for fans
challenges at work and in our personal lives. Empathy and understanding in China is very exciting.
is essential. Communication to colleagues is critical in unprecedented
times. You cannot over-communicate in times like these. Take risks. Q. How are you feeling about the 12 months ahead?
You must continue to lead boldly and take the risks that spur business The pandemic has revealed how fragile life can be. Consumers
and personal growth. If you stand still, you go backwards. are more proactive in taking care of their own health and that of
their family, and we are seeing a paradigm shift from “reactive care”
Q. As a leader, when making key strategic decisions, what to “preventive care”. After months of social distancing, consumer
proportion of the decision do you feel is fact-based and what behaviour has changed. Home has been changed into a sanctuary which
proportion is instinctual? fuels the rise of telemedicine, at-home fitness, at-home self-testing and
In a rapidly changing business climate, leaders must nurture their digital healthcare.
intuition as much as they rely on facts and figures to make decisions. It
is important to strike a balance. Facts are useful in your decision making, Q. Do you have any words of warning for the industry as we
but sometimes it boils down to what we feel in our gut. Intuition can head into unchartered territory?
lead you to places and answers that facts, on their own, don’t. The word crisis in Chinese is made up of two characters: One
is ‘danger,’ and the second is ‘opportunity. In every crisis, there’s a
Q. Do you feel that a leader can be transformational whilst negative thought, which is danger; but there’s always a positive part,
remaining authentic, and how important do you feel this is? which is opportunity. Our industry will continue to be faced with
While the concept of authentic leadership isn’t new, it has grown headwinds and it’s very important to maintain a positive mindset, be
in importance in the last year. I believe that leading a company agile and ready to embrace change.
through transformation and change goes hand-in-hand with authentic
leadership. People want leaders they can connect with who understand Q. Any final thoughts or anything else you would like to add?
them. They seek leaders they can relate to. Leaders who have a solid Life is made up of moments, not milestones. We need to focus on
foundation of trust within their teams are best positioned to achieve the moments.
great things together.

04 RETAIL & LEISURE INTERNATIONAL FEBRUARY 2022