Ian Gibbons, the Chief Executive Officer of the UK-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC), recently met with His Excellency Mr Ng Teck Hean, the High Commissioner of Singapore to the United Kingdom. The meeting marked a significant step towards enhancing the bilateral relationship between the UK and ASEAN, with a particular focus on Singapore.

Ian Gibbons, Chief Executive Officer of the UK-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC), recently returned from a trip to Singapore encouraged by positive insights on the region's economic landscape. In a LinkedIn post, Ian highlighted the talent and dynamism of Singapore and the broader ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region and emphasised UKABC's engagement with key organisations including The ASEAN Secretariat and ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) to drive economic growth and investment opportunities.

Singapore offers food and beverage brands a unique opportunity to communicate with consumers directly as the average Singaporean social media user is savvy and highly engaged online. Nikki Carr, Social Media Coordinator at Incite, shares her thoughts on the characteristics of Singaporean social media users based on her experience developing social media programs for clients in the market.

Singapore presents great opportunities for food and beverage brands, but with only a small number of retail banners dominating the grocery landscape in Singapore, surviving and growing in the Singapore market requires a strong collaboration between brands and their local importers and distributors. When appointing a local partner, there are many factors to consider and Will Gordon, Commercial Director at Incite, shares his top three.

When looking at the probability of long-term success for a food and beverage brand entering Singapore, brands often forget that entering the market is not the prize; staying and growing over the long term is. Maintaining and growing grocery listings through diligent account management is critical to long-term survival. Hugo Morrison-Corley, Asia Sales Manager at Incite, shares his tips for account management in Singapore.

Singapore has formally ratified the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), becoming the second existing member to do so after Japan late last year.