Wang Weiji: Hopes HKTVmall will join forces with mainland e-commerce platforms to take down physical retail

The vice chairman and CEO of HKTVmall's parent company Hong Kong Technology Exploration (01137.HK), Wang Wei-ki, stated that the shift of consumers to online shopping is an inevitable trend, and the three major online shopping platforms in mainland China, including Taobao, JD-SW (09618.HK), and Pinduoduo (PDD.US), have the ability to change Hong Kong's consumption model. He hopes that HKTVmall can work together with them to "defeat" physical retail. He also pointed out that the Hong Kong market is very small, and HKTVmall needs to achieve "everything for everyone," supplying all kinds of products.

Wang Wei-ki mentioned that there are currently many domestic cars appearing on the streets of Hong Kong, proving that Hong Kong consumers have fully accepted the quality of mainland products. "In fact, Hong Kong people no longer necessarily need traditional Chinese characters to buy things." He predicted that within three years, there may be a chance to achieve logistics without customs clearance; taking JD's acquisition of Jia Bao as an example, the supply chain will change accordingly, and products can be directly supplied to the shelves of Hong Kong supermarkets after being packaged in mainland China, without the need to set up warehouses in Hong Kong.

HKTVmall's e-commerce GMV has recorded a year-on-year decline for eight consecutive months since March. Wang Wei-ki explained that the number of platform users and traffic have remained similar recently, with GMV in the supermarket category continuing to grow, but the performance of small appliances and household goods has been affected by mainland online shopping platforms. He stated that next year, HKTVmall will allocate HKD 250 million for marketing and advertising, aiming to increase the monthly active user count from the current 1.6 million to 2 million.

He also revealed that currently, 5% of the company's employees come from mainland China, and he hopes to increase this proportion to 15% by the end of 2027 to explore the mainland market. Additionally, due to more mainland professionals staying in Hong Kong, HKTVmall has launched a WeChat mini-program, and the company will continue to develop independent apps targeting the elderly and young groups