Poh Kong has no plans to expand abroad

Poh Kong Holdings Bhd, Malaysia's largest jewellery retail chain, has no plans to expand its business overseas as import duty on gold will make it difficult to compete with other players.

Poh Kong Executive Director Ermin D.M. Siow said although China was a big market for the commodity, it was almost impossible for them to tap into the region as import duty imposed on gold would "kill" them.

"At the moment, we are still comfortable locally. The local market still has room for improvement.

"In fact for Sabah, Sarawak and some east coast markets, we are not there yet," he added.

Siow said the company planned to venture into Sabah and Sarawak by next year as part of its expansion plan.

"We also tap on big departmental and super market chains. When we think that the market has potential, we will set up our outlets there and we don’t open stand alone stores anymore.

"Stand alone store is not easy because the shopping trend now is for "all under one roof and we also have to be mindful of security aspects," he added.

He said at present, Poh Kong had 104 stores and, on average, the company opened between four and five new outlets every year at an investment cost of between RM3 million and RM5 million per outlet.

This year, Poh Kong will organise road shows to promote several of its in-house brands besides offering online promotions through the facebook and online store, Rakuten Malaysia, aimed at attracting younger customers.