Diane Chiu has two passions in life: understanding people and feeding them. As you might imagine, this puts her in good stead for her work as marketing director of The Dairy Farm Company’s Wellcome supermarket brand. Chiu’s promotion last year - which saw her succeed Mark Garwood - came in time for her to welcome two new supermarkets to the group: ThreeSixty and Marketplace.
The additions have ensured that Chiu rarely finds herself at a loose end. Established in November last year, ThreeSixty is Hong Kong’s largest organic food retailer - but success is proving elusive in a market that lacks the enthusiasm for natural foods found in Europe.
Chiu remains optimistic, explaining that the brand is part of a long-term vision for a healthier Hong Kong. “It will take time,” she says. “Lots of people think healthy, but don’t act healthy. We want to change people’s lifestyles and put thought into action.” Chiu explains that as well as selling food, the store publishes a range of educational literature, including children’s books, and leaflets on topics ranging from wheat- and gluten-free diets to prenatal nutrition.
In contrast to her predecessor Mark Garwood, who was noted for strategic planning, an agency source describes Chiu as being more adaptable to change and having more of an “out-bound focus”. But how well premium brands such as ThreeSixty are able to perform in the context of Wellcome remains to be seen. With a 62-year history, Wellcome is well recognised in Hong Kong. However, many observers feel that it lags behind main rival Parknshop in terms of distribution, pricing, segmentation and advertising.
Unlike Parknshop, Wellcome does not operate its own loyalty card scheme. Instead Wellcome partnered with Octopus in 2005 to operate a rewards system that provides understanding of customer behaviour both in-store and in other areas such as fast food restaurants and children’s clothes shops.
The rationale behind choosing to operate on a common platform rather than initiate a direct loyalty programme is questionable, but Chiu considers the approach more effective as “customers will not feel as if they are being marketed to”.
The biggest challenge in marketing all four brands is consistency, says Chiu. While they all serve the same ultimate purpose their character and the customers they aim to attract are markedly different. “It is crucial to communicate the brands’ selling points honestly and unwaveringly, and to deliver what is promised,” she says. But is the critical marketing support there? Chiu works with two agencies on to avoid an overlap of communication styles: McCann Erickson for Wellcome and TBWA for ThreeSixty and Marketplace. “It’s important to treat agencies as team members, not as suppliers,” she says. “I share as much information with agencies as possible.”
She notes that while a shared vision with agencies is essential, insights from partners who are not directly connected with the food retail business are invaluable. “I’m too close to the business after 11 years,” she says. “I need a new pair of eyes and new opinions. Constant discussion is the key to improvement. Only in this way can you continue to come up with better ideas and solutions.”
Chiu declines to provide any examples of successful work resulting from this approach, stating rather vaguely that all campaigns go through the same process of brainstorming, challenging and compromising. This could be because Hong Kong has not seen much memorable advertising from Wellcome in recent times, despite a media spend that matched Parknshop in 2007, observers note.
As an agency source explains: “Wellcome’s position has to be reinforced and consolidated. And the relationship with consumers has to become closer through different touchpoints and channels in order to build a truly engaging brand.”
Chiu says that while inspiration comes from Europe, good marketing ideas have to be adapted to fit the local culture. She proudly explains how Wellcome helped rescue the much-loved Stanley police station from demolition by transforming it into a supermarket. The ensuing PR campaign significantly helped strengthen relations with local people. “Good ideas can be big or small,” Chiu says. “In the end, it all comes down to execution and clarity of vision.”
Diane Chiu’s CV
2006 Marketing director, The Dairy Farm Company (DFC)
2004 Group marketing manager, DFC
1999 Marketing development manager, DFC
1997 Marketing communications manager, DFC
1996 Customer relations manager, DFC
