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Singapore: Keppel Logistics unit UrbanFox expands to Vietnam, Malaysia
SINGAPORE – Omnichannel logistics and channel management solutions firm UrbanFox is expanding to Vietnam and Malaysia with support from Enterprise Singapore, it said on Tuesday (Aug 20).
UrbanFox – whose parent company is Keppel Logistics – worked with Keppel Land to establish online-to-offline (O2O) capabilities at Estella Place shopping mall in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
The O2O features allow shoppers to purchase the mall’s products at its physical stores or webstore. Customers can also opt for in-mall collection or home delivery.
Interactive kiosks have also been set up in the mall to highlight promotions and products. The mall opened last year and was developed and managed by Keppel Land.
In Malaysia, UrbanFox was recently appointed as a cross-border e-commerce initiative partner by the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).
The company plans to set up a corporate office and digitally enabled warehouse in Shah Alam, Selangor.
UrbanFox manages the logistics and e-commerce needs of more than 500 brands and over 20,000 products from various industries including food, books and fashion.
Some of these brands are looking to leverage the company’s overseas expansion to better serve customers in the region, it said.
According to a Google-Temasek report, South-east Asia’s Internet economy is predicted to exceed US$240 billion by 2025 as affordable mobile Internet drives rapid growth in sectors such as e-commerce.
In Vietnam, the e-commerce market is expected to grow from US$2.8 billion ($3.88 billion) in 2018 to US$15 billion by 2025, while Malaysia’s e-commerce market is expected to grow from US$2 billion in 2018 to US$7 billion by 2025.
Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon visited UrbanFox’s headquarters on Tuesday.
Said Law Chung Ming, director for transport and logistics, Enterprise Singapore: “UrbanFox is a good example of a forward-looking Singaporean company that is leveraging innovation to expand its business in South-east Asia.
“As Singapore strives to become a key player in global supply chain solutions, I encourage more local firms to partner Enterprise Singapore and tap on our market connections to explore deploying their suite of solutions in overseas markets.”
Alluding to the firm’s warehousing, inventory management and last-mile fulfilment capabilities, Joe Choa, managing director of UrbanFox, said: “The holistic support we can provide will help brands in the region more rapidly grow their customer base and tap cross-border opportunities.”
In February 2018, Keppel Logistics provided S$17 million in funding to UrbanFox to support growth efforts in e-commerce channel management, warehousing and inventory management as well as last-mile fulfilment.
The funding raised Keppel Logistics’ stake in UrbanFox to 85 per cent from 59.6 per cent.
Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/keppel-logistics-unit-urbanfox-expands-to-vietnam-malaysia