SINGAPORE. Confectionery travel retailer and distributor Focus Network Agencies (FNA) has received an undisclosed sum from Heliconia Capital Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singaporean state-owned investment vehicle Temasek Holdings.
FNA Chief Executive and Co-Founder Paul Loo said the company – which exports to more than 100 duty free retailers in 20 Asia Pacific markets and also owns The Cocoa Trees chain of confectionery outlets – would use the investment in the “expansion of our network of duty free retailers, overseas offices and licensed The Cocoa Trees boutiques”.
 |
FNA operates The Cocoa Trees outlets in markets including Singapore (pictured at Changi Airport), Malaysia, China and Hong Kong |
Heliconia CEO Derek Lau noted that FNA is well positioned to take advantage of strong growth in Asian travel retail. “Travel retail is enjoying high double digit growth as a confluence of factors such as rising disposable income, the opening up of air travel to a wider group of consumers, and more airports being built,” Lau said.
“We were very impressed with management’s insights about its customers’ behaviour and their capabilities in domestic and regional execution. Their knowledge and experience on how to channel traffic into the stores, and more importantly, convert it into sales, creates a win-win both for the company and facilities owners.”
FNA was founded in 1991 by Paul Loo and Esther Tang-Loo, and has grown from five staff to a team of 650, with revenue of S$210 million (US$167.6 million) last year.
[houseAd5]
