Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

From highlights to the recently concluded Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) annual congress to Malaysia and Thailand looking to enhance their cooperation to proper economic growth. 

Dr Mustafa Izzuddin, Senior International Affairs Analyst, Solaris Strategies Singapore gives us an analysis of those headlines and more. 

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You might have played Tamagotchi before, but for some of us who grew up in the early 2000s, we went for Neopets.

Founded in 1999, Neopets is an immersive, web-based pet game where we raise our virtual pets, collect free items under the Money Tree, and of course, haggle for goods with virtual shopkeepers and get chased off for making an unreasonable bargain. 

The online game was a hit back then. According to Mashable, the game saw 25 million users at its peak. A lot has changed since, and Mashable said the firm saw daily active users worldwide shrunk to just 100,000 by 2017. 

Some of the mini-games on the website have also become unplayable after the discontinuation of the Adobe Flash Software in 2020. 

Internally, the firm has also seen multiple changes to its ownership, from being owned by Viacom, the parent company of Nickelodeon, in 2005, to JumpStart Games in 2014, and thereafter by NetDragon after it acquired JumpStart Games.

And when JumpStart Games closed this June, the firm became independent after an undisclosed management buyout deal.

Its new management now wants to change things up by restoring minigames and doubling down on the use of intellectual property in merchandise. It wants to bring lapsed players back into Neopia, and capitalise on the nostalgia former users had for Neopets. 

But how sustainable is nostalgia as a value proposition, and will it be heyday again for Neopets?

On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Dominic Law, CEO, Neopets.

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As the 2023 F1 season came to a close, we look back on the campaign that was dominated by Max Verstappen - who clinched 19 of 23 race wins to seal an emphatic third world title. F1 Analyst Matthew Marsh is in the hot seat to give us his hot takes, including his pick on best & worst in class for the year.

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South Asian fashion is having its moment in the sun, shaping and embracing current global fashion trends.

From textiles to patterns and beading, South Asian style has been a significant presence in the industry, inspiring designers worldwide with its rich heritage.

But what about its presence here in Singapore? Samia Khan, Founder, Studio Mèlange shares how her platform is bringing the best of Indian designers to Singapore and South East Asia.

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Singapore stocks opened weaker today, following overnight losses on global markets.

In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.2 per cent to 3,079.31 points after 50.7 million securities changed hands in the broader market.

In terms of companies to watch today, we have Sembcorp Industries, after the energy group yesterday announced two separate agreements to acquire wind assets in China and India for a total consideration of S$200 million. 

Elsewhere from more on the banking sector in Singapore and Sats filing notice of three straight years of losses, more corporate headlines remain in focus.

Also on the table today – economic data points to watch out for in the US this week including the latest PCE price index numbers.

On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian sat down with Jeremy Tan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tiger Fund Management for more.

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A surge of respiratory illnesses related to flu, respiratory syncytial virus and other infections has been sweeping across some parts of China and mainly infecting children, as the country experiences its first full winter since easing COVID-19 restrictions.

What do we know so far about the mysterious pneumonia outbreak in China? And how will China respond to the outbreak?

Dr. Oh Ei Sun, Senior Fellow, Singapore Institute of International Affairs explains. 

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Social media platform TikTok has initiated a transformative shift in our media consumption habits, revolutionizing the way hyper-curated entertainment is delivered to users.

So how can OTT providers adapt to evolving consumer behaviour among the younger demographic?

Charley Thomas, Director of Solutions Engineering, Content Delivery & Cloud Computing Specialist, Edgio shares how OTTs can stand out amidst TikTok’s exponential growth.

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Fei Siong Group is perhaps most famously known for its brands of bak chor mee or minced meat noodles. 

After all, the company that started in 1995, has since grown to become a casual dining and quick service restaurant company with over 150 outlets across 19 brands, with most of them serving your typical hawker fare.  

But do you know Fei Siong actually operates the Popeyes chain of restaurants in Singapore? 

In fact, the firm inked an exclusive franchise deal with Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Asia-Pacific in 2022 to develop and run new Popeyes in Singapore. 

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Asia-Pacific, for context, is owned by Restaurant Brands International or the company behind Burger King and Tim Hortons.

The agreement marks Fei Siong Group’s first venture into the fried chicken quick service restaurant industry. Question is, why did Fei Siong decide to make its foray into the fast food business? 

Meanwhile, the firm said it plans to “refresh and modernise” Popeyes outlets across Singapore by revamping storefronts, introducing new menu items and adjusting recipes to better suit the Asian palate. But what can we expect on this front?

Also, Fei Siong Group is also looking to have 50 outlets in Singapore within the next 10 years, but what is the basis behind the expansion plan?

On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Jedrick Tan, CEO, Fei Siong Fast Food (Popeyes PL Singapore). 

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The Premier League resumed after the FINAL international break of the year, and boy was it worth the wait! From Arsenal going top, to City and Liverpool dropping points. Spurs doing spurs things, and Garnacho doing Rooney things, the weekend had it all! Tune in as we recap what went down!

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Did you know that Singapore is the world’s sixth largest consumer market for watches? Boldr has quite the interesting story, having been started by a Singaporean on Kickstarter in 2016 and growing into a renowned indie watch brand especially in the US market ever since. 

So how did Boldr work with PayPal to grow its US market presence? 

Leon Leong, Founder, BOLDR Supply Co. & Pooja Sanan, Head of Sales, Southeast Asia, PayPal shares the story. 

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