On February 1, the 2018 Burns Night & the first China-Scotland Business Awards ceremony was held in Glasgow, the UK, where Sanpower Group and House of Fraser (hereinafter referred to as HOF) won the first China-Scotland Business Awards. It is a high recognition of the two winners’ fruitful achievements in investment and trade in China and Scotland and their promotion of sustainable business development and exploration of sustainability-oriented business models in the two regions. Peter Hearsey, Executive Director and Director of Legal Affairs of HOF, accepted the award at the ceremony. 

 

 

 

This is a business award set by the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) which aims to show the progress and achievements of trade and investment between China and Scotland. It has attracted the participation of a large number of outstanding international enterprises, and received close attention from the Chinese Embassy in the UK and the Chinese Consulate General in Scotland.

 

 

Award presentation

In 2014, Nanjing Cenbest, a listed company affiliated to Sanpower Group, acquired HOF, a time-honored department store company founded in Glasgow 169 years ago. After the acquisition, HOF has completed the upgrading and maintenance of warehouse hardware, online management system, e-commerce platform system, and renovation of multiple stores, and it is committed to the sustainable development in the UK. In August 2017, HOF UK’s first green and sustainability-oriented store opened at Rushden Lakes, contributing to environmental protection and ecological balance. 

In addition to business investment in the UK, Sanpower Group has been concerned about the economic and cultural exchanges between China and the UK, and promoted people-to-people cultural communication between the two countries, which has received wide praise. In 2016, Sanpower Group and HOF jointly renovated and maintained the Chinese Pagoda at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, adding important meaning and value to Sino-British cultural exchange in the new era and building a bridge for people of the two countries. HOF UK has prepared the Dog Year-Themed Showcase Exhibition in 7 stores of 4 cities during the Spring Festival of 2018. By that time, 7 HOF stores in London, Belfast, Manchester and Glasgow will have their showcases decorated with rich Chinese characteristics and festive cheer, letting Chinese style flourish in the UK.

 

HOF store with Chinese elements at Oxford Street, the UK

In 2016, Sanpower Group introduced HOF into China, and opened two flagship stores successively in Xinjiekou, Nanjing (top business district in China) and Xuzhou, Huaihai Economic Zone. This is not only a successful introduction of foreign advanced model of concrete retail by Sanpower Group, but also builds a broad retail platform for Scottish products to be sold in China and for Chinese products to enter Scotland.

Guided by the Belt and Road initiative, Sanpower Group seeks transformation and development through the approach of "Let Future Define Future”, and focuses on the industries of new consumption and new health, thus seizing strategic opportunities in globalization. At present, with respect to the new health industry, Sanpower Group has acquired businesses in umbilical cord blood stem cell (UCBSC) storage, gene testing, cellular immunotherapy, senior care, medical institutes and other areas, constructing a health industry ecosystem featuring “Nurturing life; Curing the sick; Nursing the elderly”. It is foreseeable that Sanpower Group and the UK will have broader space for cooperation in the future.