SINGAPORE - Media OutReach Newswire - 15 April 2026 - Ahead of Eid al-Fitr, demand for staple goods typically rises. To help communities access essential items at more affordable prices during Ramadan, Asian Agri organised its annual Affordable Premium Cooking Oil Bazaar from 2 to 17 March 2026 in three provinces across North Sumatra, Riau and Jambi provinces. Through this initiative, approximately 30,000 litres of cooking oil were distributed to communities in 100 villages surrounding its operational areas.
In North Sumatra, Asian Agri, through one of its business units PT Supra Matra Abadi (PT SMA), distributed a total of 4,500 litres of premium cooking oil in 16 villages across three regencies: Batu Bara, Labuhan Batu and South Labuhan Batu. These efforts helped eased the burden of rising prices during the festive period. Through the bazaar, residents were able to purchase Camar-brand cooking oil at affordable prices, with a limit of two litres per person.
Asian Agri's North Sumatra Regional Head, Herman Sembiring, said the cooking oil bazaar is part of the company's annual Ramadan initiative aimed at delivering direct benefits to surrounding communities.
"Through this initiative, we aim to help communities access essential goods at more affordable prices ahead of Eid al-Fitr. This reflects Asian Agri's commitment to its 5Cs business philosophy — doing what is Good for the Community, Country, Climate and Customer, and only then will it be Good for the Company — by delivering contributions that can be directly felt by the community," he said.
This initiative also received support from local governments as part of a collective effort to maintain the affordability of essential goods, particularly ahead of the holiday season.
"The South Labuhanbatu Regency Government is committed to ensuring that communities have access to essential goods at affordable prices, allowing people to observe Eid al-Fitr with greater comfort and peace of mind. This Ramadan low-cost bazaar is one of our collective efforts to support that goal, including through collaboration with PT Supra Matra Abadi," said Fauzi Hutagalung, Head of the Industry and Trade Office of South Labuhanbatu.
In total, Asian Agri, a member of the RGE group of companies founded by Sukanto Tanoto, distributed approximately 30,000 litres of cooking oil across three provinces this year: 6,000 litres to 20 villages in North Sumatra, 12,500 litres to 41 villages in Riau and 11,300 litres to 39 villages in Jambi.
Hashtag: #RGE #AsianAgri #CSR #Community #Eidal-Fitr #Ramadan #CookingOil #Indonesia
https://www.asianagri.com
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About Asian Agri
Founded in 1979, Asian Agri is one of Indonesia's foremost companies in crude palm oil production, managing over 100,000 hectares of oil palm plantations and employing over 20,000 people.
As a pioneer of the Indonesian Government's Smallholder Transmigration Core Plantation Programme (PIR-Trans), Asian Agri has partnered with 30,000 scheme smallholders in Riau and Jambi, who collectively manage 60,000 hectares of oil palm plantations. The company also fosters partnerships with independent smallholders to enhance their welfare and drive socio-economic growth.
Committed to sustainable practices, Asian Agri upholds a zero-burning policy and implements plantation best management practices to help smallholders boost productivity, increase crop yields, and improve supply chain traceability while supporting their journey towards certification. Asian Agri's mills leveraged advanced technology and self-generated green energy to minimize greenhouse gas emissions.
Asian Agri's plantations, as along with their scheme smallholder plantations, are full Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) certified, underscoring the company's commitment to responsible and sustainable palm oil production.
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HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach Newswire - 22 June 2026 - AS Watson Group has launched AS Watson brand lab, a data-driven brand creation and scaling platform designed to systematically identify, develop, and grow brands across its global retail ecosystem. Built on the company's integrated O+O (Offline plus Online) capabilities, extensive distribution network, and deep consumer insight from over 180 million loyalty members, the platform transforms how brands are brought to market - enabling both the creation of new propositions and the rapid scaling of brands across multiple markets with speed, discipline and consistency.
AS Watson Launches brand lab to Turn Retail Scale into a Data-driven Brand Growth Engine
The initiative formalises capabilities the Group has been building internally, combining data-led demand identification, integrated distribution, and execution across more than 17,000 O+O stores in Asia and Europe.
Over the past two years, AS Watson has introduced more than 4,800 new brands and brand extensions across its network, underscoring the scale of its brand development activity.
From Incubation to Execution
AS Watson brand lab departs from traditional incubator models by embedding brand development directly within AS Watson's retail ecosystem.
Rather than incubating brands ahead of their market entry, the platform operates inside the market, using real-time customer data, shopping behaviour and category dynamics to inform development decisions.
Dr Malina Ngai, Group CEO of AS Watson, said the model reflects the company's structural advantage. "We don't wait for brands to find the market - we build them where demand already exists, and scale them through our ecosystem."
A Systemised Growth Model
At the core of AS Watson brand lab is an integrated operating model linking insight, creation, distribution, demand activation and scaling.
The platform leverages AS Watson's over 180 million loyalty members and O+O capabilities to accelerate brand selection and commercial execution.
A Structured Pathway to Scale
Brands within AS Watson brand lab are supported through a structured growth pathway, progressing from early-stage validation to regional scaling and category leadership.
At each stage, brands receive differentiated support across insight, distribution, marketing activation and investment, ensuring resources are focused where the greatest growth potential exists.
This staged approach enables AS Watson to systematically build, scale and prioritise brands, improving success rates while maintaining disciplined capital allocation.
Focus on High-Growth Segments
AS Watson brand lab will prioritise product segments including Asian beauty trends (K-beauty, J-beauty, C-beauty), ingredient-led skincare, health and wellness products and elevated personal care - areas where consumer demand continues to evolve rapidly.
The Group expects the platform to strengthen its ability to build proprietary and exclusive brands while improving speed-to-market and capital efficiency.
Proven Brand Scaling in Action
Early outcomes demonstrate how AS Watson brand lab translates insight into accelerated growth - not only by shaping brand development, but by scaling brands rapidly across markets through its integrated O+O ecosystem.
Across multiple categories and geographies, the platform has enabled brands to move from targeted market entry to multi-market expansion with speed and discipline:
COSRX (K-Beauty)- By combining COSRX's innovation-led skincare expertise with
AS Watson's extensive retail footprint and deep consumer insights, the partnership has accelerated international expansion and broadened consumer reach. This illustrates how the platform converts strong brand propositions into sustained category growth across markets.
&honey (J-Beauty) - Leveraging its distinctive product positioning alongside
AS Watson's regional scale, &honey rapidly expanded beyond its home market, rolling out across multiple Asian markets within a short timeframe. This demonstrates the platform's ability to systematically scale proven domestic leaders into regional brands.
e.l.f. Cosmetics (US) - Through partnership with AS Watson, e.l.f. has extended its community-led, value-driven model across Europe, translating strong brand engagement into measurable market penetration. The example highlights how consumer-centric brands can be amplified through local market execution at scale.
essence (Germany) - The expansion of essence across multiple markets, including exclusive partnerships, reflects how purpose-driven brands can achieve consistency and reach when supported by integrated distribution and retail insight. This underscores the platform's ability to build sustained brand relevance and loyalty across diverse markets.
Across these examples, brands have scaled through a consistent model - combining data-led selection, integrated distribution, and coordinated market execution - demonstrating how AS Watson brand lab functions as a repeatable engine for brand growth, from market entry through to regional scale.
Scaling a Repeatable Engine
AS Watson brand lab positions AS Watson to leverage its retail footprint not only as a distribution channel, but as an engine for brand creation and scaling.
The initiative signals a shift from opportunistic brand sourcing towards a structured, repeatable growth model, reinforcing AS Watson's ability to scale brands with speed, discipline and consistency while driving long-term portfolio value.
AS Watson continues to engage with selected brand partners and emerging brands aligned with its focus areas, with further information available through its official
AS Watson brand lab platform (https://www.aswatson.com/asw-brand-lab)
Hashtag: #ASWatson
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About AS Watson Group
Established in 1841, AS Watson Group is one of the world's longest-standing and most recognised retail companies with roots in Asia. Today, the company operates over 17,000 stores across 12 retail brands in 31 markets, employing 130,000 people globally. This makes AS Watson Group the largest international health and beauty retailer in the world.
In the fiscal year 2025, AS Watson Group reported revenue of over US$26 billion. The company's technology-enabled O+O (Offline plus Online) platforms serve over 6 billion shoppers annually, seamlessly integrating physical and digital retail experiences.
AS Watson Group supported over 180 charitable and non-profit organisations every year, dedicating over 40,000 hours of volunteer work to serve over 370,000 people in need in our operating markets.
AS Watson Group is also a member of the world-renowned multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, which has four core businesses - ports and related services, retail, infrastructure and telecommunications in over 50 countries.
Please visit www.aswatson.com/our-company/o-and-o-strategy/ for more information.
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