The Link’s first fresh market enhancement, Tai Yuen Market has been serving Tai Po district for over 30 years, providing residents with daily necessities. To bring back good memories of the past 30 years for residents, tenants and the community, The Link has launched the “Thirty Years of Tai Yuen” Wall of Fame at Tai Yuen Market. The large-scale wall decoration showcases the contrast between the current enhanced state of Tai Yuen as well as the local stories with human touch.

 

The unveiling ceremony was held in Tai Yuen Market today (6 Feb), with Mr Andy Cheung, Chief Financial Officer of The Link Management Limited, and Mr Sunny Cheung, Chief Executive Officer of Octopus Cards Limited as officiating guests. Tenants in Tai Yuen Market also witnessed this memorable moment.

 

The Link invested $95 million to enhance Tai Yuen Market. Improvements include re-layout for more open and transparent environment, newly installed independent ventilation system and underground pipelines for specific trades. Residents are hired as Customer Service Ambassadors. Around 90% of tenants have installed Octopus payment facility, providing more convenient and cleaner transaction process for customers. The enhancements help increase the competitiveness of tenants, and improve shopping experience for customers. Tai Yuen Market has won the Environment Excellence Award of the Asian CSR Awards 2011, organized by the Asian Institute of Management.

 

Mr Andy Cheung, CFO of The Link, said the cooperation with Octopus has contributed to the success of the Tai Yuen Market enhancement project. "To help tenants of traditional fresh market to enhance competitiveness, and embrace the new trend of electronic payment, and further improve customers’ shopping experience, The Link partnered with Octopus to help interested tenants install the required hardware and software and provide them with training. Nearly 90% of the tenants have already installed Octopus payment system. Usage of Octopus also recorded steady growth in the past four months since installation.

 

"The Link is considering encouraging the use of electronic payment in more of its fresh markets. The next pilot is Oi Man Market, which is now undergoing renovation. We will soon introduce the related hardware and software of electronic payment to tenants and have discussions with them to understand their needs and gather their views." Mr Cheung said.

 

Mr Sunny Cheung, CEO of Octopus said, "Octopus is committed to enabling the public to use electronic payment service in more aspects of their daily lives. We are pleased to introduce Octopus into fresh market together with The Link. We received overwhelming support from tenants and customers in Tai Yuen Market since the service was first introduced in October 2011. We believe as a convenient and clean payment method, Octopus will become more and more popular in the future. We will work in tandem with the The Link’s initiatives in enhancing fresh markets, and introduce suitable Octopus facilities for use in fresh market environment.

 

Compared to November 2011, the number of Octopus transactions and transaction amount in Tai Yuen have increased in December 2011 by 6 times and 4.5 times respectively. The figure has been on the rise, reflecting that Octopus’ popularity and its effectiveness in raising operational efficiency for tenants.

 

The Link will continue to bring about improvements at Tai Yuen Market and grow and improve together with the tenants, breathing new life to the traditional fresh sector.