• Top Picks: Sumber Alfaria Trijaya and MAP Aktif Adiperkasa. We visited several new lifestyle and home improvement players, especially those selling beauty products, which gained substantial traction. We note that Aspirasi Hidup Indonesia (ACES) is aware of this trend and opened Ataru to compete with such players. However, we believe it needs stronger innovation to strengthen its grip in this segment, particularly with women and the younger generation in the long term. Maintain NEUTRAL.

• Nitori opened its first outlet in Indonesia in July at Central Park, one of Jakarta’s more prominent malls. While it managed to attract positive interest, we need to monitor Nitori in the long term. We think the store size is narrower and offers less product categories and variety when compared with ACES’ Ataru. Our observation noted that Nitori has a c.20% overlap with ACES’. Product pricing is largely similar between them. However, Nitori does sell furniture products not available at ACES. Its bedding products managed to gain traction due to their N-Cool features, which are designed to provide a cool and comfortable sleeping experience, particularly when the weather is hot. We do have concerns over Nitori’s products supply chain, though, as the company has run out of selected items for several weeks now.

• Seeing continued awesome interest post KKV’s changes to Oh!Some. The ambience and product offerings have been largely similar when compared to previous store under the KKV name. Beauty-related products have gained the limelight, becoming the most crowded section inside the store – and Ataru has tried to follow suit. Oh!Some has been aggressively promoting the store – even placing banner in spots inside Central Park. Moreover, it has put higher emphasis than before on products that have Disney characters (eg Donald Duck and Lilo & Stitch) to entice younger consumers

• Unrelenting revamps by Miniso. Along with collaborating with several characters – eg Barbie and Sanrio’s stable – the company has opened Miniso Pink to target younger women. Miniso already has 19 stores under this concept as at early April. It recently opened Miniso Land – in Central Park – which it claims is the world’s biggest Miniso store. Traffic has been strong, even during weekdays. More beauty products are sold under this concept along with more entertainment – eg a photobox, nail art counters, etc. Also, it has forged collaborations across several popular characters – eg Barbie, the Sanrio stable, Minions, Toy Story, etc – to sell its products.

• More players joining in. Based on our channel checks, KKV and Mr Toys – part of Mr DIY (MRDIY MK, BUY, TP: MYR2.40) group – might open stores in Indonesia. They are liaising with the licensing authorities, given Indonesia’s more restrictive import regulations. We also note the other stores mentioned above are maintaining their aggressive expansion plans vs ACES at 15-20 new stores in 2024.

• Maintain TRADING BUY for ACES. We believe it has positive impacts from several initiatives, better Boom Sales offerings, and increasing new stockkeeping units or SKUs that should sustain its performance, especially in 2H24. Nonetheless, we have long-term concerns on ACES owing to the rise in new players in the lifestyle segment, which might heat up market competition. We also remain vigilant on the regulatory landscape ahead with regards to imported products, given ACES’ high number of imports from China.

Source: RHB Securities Research - 5 Sept 2024