SINGAPORE. Rémy Cointreau International celebrated its Singapore grand opening in a glamorous reception at the Fullerton Hotel yesterday.
Hosted by Rémy Cointreau Chairman Dominique Hériard-Dubreuil and Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marie Laborde, the event was attended by more than 250 guests. These included ministers from the Singapore government, chairmen of multinational companies as well as chief executives of retail companies across the Asia Pacific region.
The guest of honour was Senior Minister of State, Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Education S. Iswaran, whose presence underlined “the commitment of the Singapore authorities to major international companies which choose the city as the focal point of their Asia Pacific operations.
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| The Fullerton Hotel sets the tone for a vibrant evening as guests are treated to cocktails by award-winning bartenders | ||
In her welcome speech, Hériard-Dubreuil said: “Tonight we celebrate the opening of Rémy Cointreau International, which will play a critical role in both the domestic and global travel retail aspects of our business.
“Rémy Cointreau International will fulfil dual functions as the regional headquarters for our domestic business in Asia and the global headquarters for our global travel retail business.
“Our vision and strategy to deliver premium quality, backed by the inimitable heritage of our brands, have earned us the trust of customers around the world. This faith has allowed us to grow and establish a significant presence in more than 150 countries worldwide. With the opening of Rémy Cointreau International in Singapore, we are ready to deepen our relationships with our customers in this region.”
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(Clockwise from top left) Emcees for the evening, celebrity hosts and identical twins May and Choy; Rémy Cointreau Chairman Dominique Hériard-Dubreuil; Senior Minister of State, Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Education S. Iswaran; and Rémy Cointreau Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marie Laborde | |
On the choice of location, Laborde explained that Singapore presented the best base from which to capitalise on the potential growth in the Asian market.
He said: “Despite the economic downturn, Asia is still setting the pace for growth in the premium wines and spirits industry across the globe. Staying close to the Asia Pacific market will enable us to focus our energy on building our brands and reacting swiftly to customer needs. To capitalise on the strong growth of the Asia Pacific market, we had to select the most suitable site in the region for our base.
“Singapore was a clear choice for Rémy Cointreau with an ideal geographical location and excellent transport infrastructure, an enviable reputation in conducting business and far-sighted government policies which encourage foreign businesses to choose this location as their base.
“We continue to see Asia Pacific as a primary region for growth for the coming years. We believe that the region will become the major contributor to our global revenue as demand for premium spirits is expected to grow further.”
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Rémy Cointreau International receives the International Headquarters Award from the Economic Development Board |
Senior Minister Iswaran expressed his pleasure in welcoming Rémy Cointreau International to the dynamic business landscape of Singapore, which he billed as a key node in the Asia Pacific economy.
He said: “As Asia grows in affluence, so too will its desire and demand for luxury products and a more sophisticated lifestyle, thus it is imperative that lifestyle and luxury companies proactively tailor their marketing strategies to suit the needs of the Asian consumer and, at the same time, strengthen the premium status of their brands.
“This can be accomplished effectively only by being in Asia, close to the customer and the markets, to understand the subtleties of the Asian taste and preferences. Singapore is particularly well positioned to partner lifestyle and luxury companies such as Rémy Cointreau to capture the growth of a burgeoning Asia. We play a key role in providing companies access to the Asian market.
“As a multicultural society, the diverse Asian cultures are well represented here, and companies can capitalise on our broad based talent pool, strong intellectual property protection regime and cosmopolitan perspective to develop, test and launch new products, brands and concepts for the Asian market from Singapore.
“In other words, Singapore can in fact be Asia’s lifestyle laboratory.”
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Instead of the customary ribbon-cutting, the VIPs, including Dubreuil, Laborde, Iswaran and several of the company’s senior management, were invited to piece together a puzzle that made up the Rémy Cointreau International logo | |
Following the speeches, Rémy Cointreau International was presented with the International Headquarters Award by the Singapore Economic Development Board.
Instead of the customary ribbon-cutting, Hériard-Dubreuil, Laborde and Iswaran, together with the company’s senior management, were invited to piece together a puzzle that made up the Rémy Cointreau International logo.
The party really kicked off as guests were entertained by Wicked Aura Batacuda, Singapore’s premier samba percussion troupe, and a four-piece jazz band. Award-winning bartenders served up one-of-a-kind cocktails on a conveyor belt, while Rémy Cointreau ambassadors challenged guests to a Cointreaupolitan taste test.
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(Top) Wicked Aura Batacuda, Singapore’s premier samba percussion troupe, puts up an energetic performance as a soothing jazz band rounds up the evening; (Above) A lucky draw was held to up the evening’s entertainment value | |
To add to the festive spirit, photographers were on hand to capture candid moments, and guests were given their snapshots as mementoes. Guests were also invited to write congratulatory messages to Rémy Cointreau International. A lucky draw was held towards the end of the evening, with winners walking away with some of the company’s bestselling products.
As reported, Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail Managing Director Peter Sant will lead the worldwide duty free and travel retail team from the new office in Singapore with Regional Directors in key markets: Joel Lafon, based in Hong Kong covering Asia Pacific; Matthew Hodges in Paris looking after Europe; and François van Aal in Miami in charge of the Americas.
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(L-R) Rémy Cointreau International Director Johnny Lim; Rémy Cointreau International Managing Director Southeast Asia, Taiwan and India Suriya Parksuwan; Rémy Cointreau Group Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marie Laborde; Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry, and Ministry of Education S. Iswaran; Rémy Cointreau Group Chairman Dominique Hériard Dubreuil; Rémy Cointreau International Chairman Damien Lafaurie; Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail Managing Director Peter Sant; and Rémy Cointreau International Managing Director North East Asia & Pacific Mungo Gilchrist |
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(L-R) Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail Managing Director Peter Sant; Rémy Cointreau Group Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marie Laborde; Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry, and Ministry of Education S. Iswaran; Rémy Cointreau Group Chairman Dominique Hériard Dubreuil; and Rémy Cointreau International Chairman Damien Lafaurie |
MORE STORIES ON RÉMY COINTREAU
Rémy Cointreau expands distribution via Roust – 27/03/09
Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail unveils Louis XIII by Christophe Pillet – 17/03/09
Rémy Cointreau Global Travel Retail unveils new-look Mount Gay Rum at IAADFS – 11/03/09
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