ParknShop's selling points in Hong Kong and Macau reach 260 stores, while the impact of the trend of going north leads to a reduction in stores. The "Old Lady Wong" advertisement from the 1990s creates memories for a generation

According to reports, Jardine Matheson Group plans to acquire ParknShop, a subsidiary of CKH Holdings (001), and intends to merge it with "Wellcome," which is wholly owned by Jardine's DFI Retail. The two major supermarkets in Hong Kong have been fiercely competing in the market for decades, and now the sudden acquisition news could lead to the formation of a supermarket giant in the Hong Kong market if the deal goes through. Related article: Jardine plans to acquire ParknShop under CKH Holdings, reportedly merging with Wellcome to form a supermarket giant. Analysis: The rise of online shopping drives supermarkets to change their strategies. Looking back at ParknShop's development over more than half a century, it has left many classic marks in Hong Kong's retail history. ParknShop was founded in 1972 by the well-established British company Watsons Group, with its first branch located in Stanley. In its early years, the brand primarily entered upscale residential areas, expatriate communities, or targeted middle-class customers in Mei Foo Sun Chuen. From the beginning, ParknShop demonstrated innovative marketing thinking; a newspaper advertisement from 1973 for the opening of the branch on Shan Tsui Road in Happy Valley highlighted that it was the first supermarket in Hong Kong to offer free parking spaces and pioneered a credit account service, allowing customers to "settle accounts once at the end of the month," eliminating the hassle of carrying cash. To respond to competition, ParknShop boldly changed its brand's main color from red to blue and actively expanded its scale. Today, ParknShop has over 240 branches in Hong Kong and Macau and owns several well-known retail brands, including FUSION, TASTE, TASTE x FRESH, FOOD PARC, and GREAT FOOD HALL. "Auntie Wong" Wins Hearts and Sparks a Parody Craze Before the 1980s, due to high pricing and limited locations, supermarkets struggled to gain traction. It wasn't until the 1990s, when Hong Kong's retail industry entered its peak period, that ParknShop and Wellcome frequently engaged in fierce "price wars." Every Friday, both supermarkets would publish multi-page discount advertisements in newspapers, focusing on "affordability" and "savings," with Wellcome promoting itself as offering "street prices" to meet the public's living needs. Among ParknShop's most successful promotional campaigns was undoubtedly the "Auntie Wong" series of advertisements. At that time, ParknShop claimed to have hired the strong-willed and ruthless "Auntie Wong" as the chief buyer and quality control officer, who scoured for bargains to ensure low prices, instilling fear in employees. This series of advertisements won the highest honor in Hong Kong's advertising industry, the Gold Award at the Hong Kong Advertising Awards, and Auntie Wong's professional image became deeply ingrained in the public's mind, even sparking a parody craze in the film and television industry, including Stephen Chow's portrayal of Auntie Wong defeating the villain in the movie "The King of Comedy," and Suet Nei's imitation of her performance in the TV drama "True Love," which gained immense popularity. Pioneering the Superstore Concept and Leading Retail Innovation In addition to groundbreaking promotions, ParknShop was also a pioneer in leading retail innovation. In 1996, ParknShop opened Hong Kong's first superstore, covering an area of 45,000 square feet, in Whampoa Garden. Some areas of the store featured a no-ceiling design, combining Western modern supermarket concepts with traditional wet markets, offering a wide range of global products, as well as fresh live fish, seafood, fruits, and Chinese delicacies like roasted meats To promote its brand, ParknShop invited Ekin Cheng to be its spokesperson and filmed the music video for the theme song "Discovery" at the Supermarket Plaza. Starting in 1997, ParknShop expanded the Supermarket Plaza concept to multiple locations including North Point and Fortune Centre, Causeway Bay's Hing Lee Centre, and Kwun Tong's Laguna City, opening 28 Supermarket Plazas in just two years, revolutionizing the shopping model for Hong Kong residents. In 2007, ParknShop introduced the "Easy Points" rewards program, offering customers price discounts, points rewards, and free gift redemptions, further enhancing customer loyalty. Recent Developments Turn Conservative Fusion "Downgrade" Sparks Discussion However, compared to its past active innovations, ParknShop's recent development pace appears more conservative. In the face of retail transformation and the impact of rising consumption in mainland China, ParknShop has recently made frequent adjustments to its store network. Some long-standing stores, such as the Tin Shui Wai New Bei Jiang branch (closed last June), the Tai Wo Hau Shopping Centre branch (closed earlier this year), and the Shek Tong Tsui Hill Road branch, have successively closed, causing disappointment and discussion among local residents. As for the Whampoa branch, which first introduced the Supermarket Plaza concept, its area has also gradually reduced, with some spaces being split for Fortress and other merchants, and transformed into TASTE. Related article: 30-year-old ParknShop estate store closes! Notice posted to move to 1 store shopping... Residents lament: Is the market really that bad? In addition, the high-end brand FUSION, which targets middle-class and expatriate customers and sells imported food, has also seen several stores "downgraded." Following the renovation of the Laguna City FUSION last year, which reverted to a regular ParknShop focusing on daily necessities, the stores in Lok Fu Shopping Centre and Tin Shui Wai's Shung Fu Shopping Centre have experienced similar changes. Some opinions suggest that this reflects a structural change in Hong Kong's consumer market and is a clear warning sign of "consumption downgrade." Now facing the dual pressures of online shopping and rising consumption in mainland China, if this long-established brand that has accompanied Hong Kong residents for half a century truly merges with its "rival" Wellcome, it will undoubtedly bring about a dramatic reshuffling of the retail industry in Hong Kong