myNEWS bets on mini-mart scene with SUPERVALUE brand

Malaysian convenience store myNEWS has entered the mini-mart scene with a new brand named SUPERVALUE to offer consumers with a greater choice of value-for-money fresh food and coffee, especially for those on the go. SUPERVALUE is available in seven locations nationwide: Kajang, Kepong, OUG, Alor Setar in Kedah, Malim Jaya in Melaka, Bidor in Perak, and Simpang Ampat in Pulau Pinang. The company also plans to aggressively expand the SUPERVALUE brand this year, offering convenience and comfort so consumers would not have to travel far or navigate through a parking lot as they would do at a hypermarket. 

MyNEWS’ spokesperson told A+M that the suburban areas were targeted because they required a more convenient mini-mart offering. It also plans to expand into similar neighbourhoods in the future and have about 20 stores by year end. The decision to launch SUPERVALUE has been in the works since last year amidst the pandemic. This came about as myNEWS sought for ways to offer customers diversified day-to-day basic household needs in neighbourhood committees.

SUPERVALUE will offer products including baby products, cooking ingredients, cleaning products, frozen food, and pet food, among others from brands such as PetPet, McCain, Sunflower, and Mr Muscle. Maru Kafe, a myNEWS brand that provides ready-to-eat meals, bakery and fresh food items are also available at all SUPERVALUE stores. At the same time, myNEWS has also launched frozen Delights, a new category that sells a variety of frozen foods to meet changing consumer trends. According to the spokesperson, SUPERVALUE targets family-oriented consumers who are seeking everyday household needs.

The pandemic has been a challenging period for several brands in the retail scene. That said, this did not stop myNEWS for pushing ahead with SUPERVALUE. When asked why the company chose to set up more stores during this trying period, the spokesperson explained that it believes and aspires to offer convenience in shopping for essentials.

To promote SUPERVALUE, myNEWS will implement a holistic 360 marketing campaign covering online and social media initiatives for targeted demographics, as well as PR and BTL. It will also rely on its myNEWS app and its loyalty programme to increase its competitive advantage.

Low Chooi Hoon, CEO of retail, said that with 25 years of experience in convenience retailing, the brand understands the need to continuously improve its relevance to its customers. Therefore, the brand seeks to evolve its business model to the changing lifestyle of its customers while offering convenience.

The launch follows myNEWS’s brand refresh in October last year, where it unveiled a new logo and tagline “Always Welcoming, Delightfully Surprising" to reinforce its brand positioning as the preferred convenience store in Malaysia. The brand also has plans to expand into East Malaysia in addition to its locations in the urban areas in Peninsular Malaysia.

Impact of pandemic on marketing plans

Like many brands, myNEWS also shifted focus to digital, social media and its app, and converted existing ATL plans to BTL and digital. The spokesperson added that it has also aggressively recruited and engaged its customers to become myNEWS members through the app. To date, it has over 300,000 members. 

In line with consumer trends, we have made adjustments to focus more than 60% of our marketing budget on digital initiatives. These adjustments have helped us reach out to a wider network of audiences while allowing us to be laser-focused on the objectives we would like to achieve through these initiatives.

Aside from that, the spokesperson said it has aggressively enhanced its myNEWS app to better serve customers, with more exclusive deals and promotions and the improvement of its system to ensure a seamless customer journey. It has also been encouraging cashless payments at stores through collaborations with e-wallet, credit and debit card partners, which includes exclusive campaigns to promote going cashless in its stores.

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