Soo Kee breaks new ground with Thai partner Aurora
The joint venture between Soo Kee Group and Aurora will see 20 outlets of bespoke bridal jewellery brand Love & Co open over the next 5 years across Thailand. Photo: Soo Kee
SINGAPORE — Homegrown jeweller Soo Kee Group entered into a joint venture with Aurora Design yesterday, marking its foray in Thailand with its bespoke bridal jewellery brand, Love & Co that offers a range of gold and diamond products.
The Thailand-incorporated venture between Soo Kee Group and Aurora will be set up with an initial paid-up capital of 30 million baht (S$1.2 million) where the companies will hold 40 per cent and 60 per cent stakes respectively.
Soo Kee plans to open 20 outlets over the next five years across Thailand, targeting the growing upper and middle classes of the country’s 68 million population.
“The sheer size of the country presents many untapped opportunities for the group and it is important for us to capitalise on these growth opportunities. The proposed joint venture is also in line with our growth strategy as we continue to widen our business network and strengthen our market position in the region,” said Mr Daniel Lim, CEO of the Soo Kee Group.
The Soo Kee Group is known in Singapore for its range of jewellery products retailed through Soo Kee Jewellery, SK Jewellery and SK Bullion. With support from Spring Singapore’s Capability Development Grant, the company launched Soo Kee Jewellery’s e-store in 2015 through which buyers can customise their diamond jewellery.
Using 3D-printing technology to produce wax moulds of the customised jewellery, Soo Kee has managed to shorten the turnaround time from three weeks to three days.
“This has helped us cut product R&D cost by about 50 per cent, given the three to four times savings in manpower. It helps us open up new avenues of growth besides enabling us to enhance the customer experience,” said Mr Lim.
The company has partnered Sarine Technologies to provide digital diamond display equipment at its Love & Co stores that enables customers to evaluate the diamond’s quality through comprehensive imaging and grading information.
This has helped reduce the number of shop visits that customers have to make before purchasing, and increased business by 10 per cent since its introduction in July last year. RUMI HARDASMALANI
