Sands China Hosts Latest Back-of-House Roadshows for Local SME Suppliers

(Macao, July 22, 2019) – Sands China recently promoted two of its local SME suppliers at roadshows at Sands^® Macao, The Venetian^® Macao, Sands^® Cotai Central and The Parisian Macao, as part of Sands China’s Local Small, Medium and Micro Suppliers Support Programme.

The roadshows, which are regularly held at Sands China properties’ back-of-house team member areas, seek to provide additional business opportunities for local small, medium and micro suppliers, “Made in Macao” companies and Macao young entrepreneurs, in line with Sands China’s efforts to continually offer support to local SME growth and increase their procurement opportunities with large companies like Sands China.

Local SME suppliers Hui Ao Hellomacau Department Store and Supermarket Company Limited and Meng Kei Cheong Hong Company Ltd. offered over 200 of their products to Sands China team members at discounted prices at various times June 17-27, making close to MOP 343,000 in sales.

Hui Ao was established by a Macao young entrepreneur in 2015, and is a supplier of children’s products of various brands. Products include baby toys, shampoo, body cream, milk bottles, baby food, tableware and others. Sands China began doing business with Hui Ao in May, and has found that the local SME has items reliably in stock, with competitive pricing, prompt response to purchase orders and on-time delivery.

“Working with Sands China has been very good for our business,” said Jacob Siu, president of Hui Ao Hellomacau. “As an entrepreneur with a small company, working with a company as large as Sands China has provided us with a steady and reliable client, and that has given us a strong foundation for the growth of our company. And this roadshow has also been a great way for us to meet new customers and gain exposure for our brand.”

Meng Kei Cheong Hong, a micro enterprise, supplies Sands China with a wide variety of grocery items such as toiletries, snacks, tea bags, instant noodles, canned food, chicken powder and others. It joined Sands China’s invitational matching session in April 2017 and subsequently began supplying products to Sands China the following year.

Meng Kei Cheong Hong’s manager of marketing and business development said: “Attending Sands China’s invitational matching session ended up being a great decision on our part. It gave us a chance to speak directly with the right departments at Sands China, and that resulted in us becoming a supplier. Our opportunities for development have increased as a consequence of that, and participating in this roadshow has created further opportunities for our business to grow.”

Sands China’s invitational matching sessions give local SME suppliers a platform for presenting and demonstrating their products and services to potential users and buyers at Sands China properties, with the company’s full support. The initiative has the goal of enhancing communication between vendors and users and improving the procurement success rate.

Charlie Cai, vice president of procurement and supply chain for Venetian Macau Limited, said: “Working with local suppliers is a win-win situation. As an integrated resort operator, Sands China benefits from sourcing locally, which means we are able to receive goods and services promptly and are able to get a quick response if any issues arise. And on the part of the local SMEs, they benefit from working with an operation on a scale as large as ours, thereby raising their standards and systems, which then puts them in a better position to work with other large enterprises.”

Sands China regularly holds roadshows for its team members. They benefit SMEs by giving them access to direct business opportunities with customers, while giving Sands China’s team members a chance to enjoy discounted offers.

The company also recently stepped up its commitment to supporting local SME suppliers by launching a special financing programme for its local SME suppliers, in cooperation with six local banks.

Sands China’s Local Small, Medium and Micro Suppliers Support Programme was jointly announced in July 2015 with the Macao Chamber of Commerce. The programme is in line with the Macao government’s initiative to “buy local” and demonstrates Sands China’s commitment to supporting local enterprises as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility efforts. It is part of Sands China’s supplier relationship management strategy, which guides the company’s long-standing effort to support local suppliers, whom it views as its strategic partners.