The move comes in the wake of lacklustre sales; gas sales rose by less than one per cent last year over 2001. The company also experienced an 18.5 per cent fall in its interest income as a result of the city's deep economic slowdown.
The operator said the concept store, Towngas Avenue, in the city's shopping hub was created to promote quality living. Divided into two parts, the store includes a retail section selling Towngas products and accessories for the kitchen and bathroom, and a restaurant/cafe featuring an open kitchen with seating for up to 90 people. The restaurant employs six chefs specialising in Western and fusion cuisine. It also offers a fine wine list.
Towngas marketing and communications manager, Terence Lee, said: "Towngas wants to encourage customers to flame cook at home. We put on demonstrations by the chefs to teach people. So while customers are enjoying a fine meal, they can also watch the chefs prepare their meals live via several LCD screens."
Lee said Towngas had been promoting flame cooking for the last 23 years and had been running cooking centres for 25 years. "But we found that many people do not have the time to take two or three hours out of their day to attend a class. With our new store, people can come in for lunch or dinner at the cafe and learn how to cook during their meal," Lee added.
The store also features two self-cooking areas for tables of six or 10 in the cafe. Customers can entertain privately either with one of Towngas' chefs to help out or by cooking their own dishes. Ingredients are prepared in advance, giving people an opportunity to experiment with flame cooking.
The store also features several works of art by Hong Kong sculptor Norman Ko. Said Lee: "Art is a big part of quality and contemporary living. All the sculptures are commissioned by us and tailor-made to the theme of gas appliances."
Towngas is looking to diversify its business and move away from just gas sales. "Apart from our core business of selling gas and gas appliances, we are now providing merchandise like bath and beauty products, and kitchen supplies. The cafe is also a new revenue generator and since the open kitchen uses Towngas appliances, it also serves as a demo of our products for customers," said Lee.