Hong Kong (SAR), China

Customer Experience Excellence report 2022

As Hong Kong (SAR), China continues to battle Covid-19, innovative, digital-first brands are topping the table when it comes to customer experience. It’s been a turbulent year since the fifth wave and some changes to customer behaviors are here to stay.

These customer behavioral changes present Hong Kong brands with core customer challenges in the coming years. Customers want brands to align with their values and they want this while enjoying a seamless omnichannel customer experience. At the same time, brands are facing the challenge of competing with digital advancement across the market. Customers now have access to more choice and take time to conduct research online to find a brand that suits them.

The non-grocery retail sector tops the Hong Kong CEE rankings this year, in part because the Hong Kong Government’s Consumption Voucher Scheme to encourage consumer spending has put the sector under the spotlight. The luxury retail and hotel industries have also proved surprisingly resilient to the effects of the pandemic and some highly regarded brands are thriving despite the many challenges faced in the past two years. Last year’s top performing brand, the five-star Mandarin Oriental hotel, continues to outperform the market in all Six Pillars, especially in Time & Effort, Integrity and Empathy. Similarly, luxury fashion brand Chanel has had a strong year, and leads the market by 13% in Time & Effort and Resolution.

Another brand in the spotlight is Apple Store, the highest-ranking brand for customer excellence in this year’s Hong Kong market. It has outperformed the market average across all pillars – most significantly across Time & Effort (7.54) by 11% and other pillars at least by 9%.

ESG is a topic of great importance in Hong Kong (over 70% of survey respondents expressed their willingness to pay extra for products and services from brands whose actions align with their values). We have seen the Apple Store address these customer sentiments in its shift to more sustainable practices. For example, customers can benefit from Trade-In services through both retail and online stores, where Apple takes back legacy models and recycles them responsibly, offering a discount on the newer device as an incentive for customers to opt for a trade.

Apple also provides great pre-sale and post-sale support, both in-store and online. As explained by a survey respondent, retail colleagues are proactive and tend to leave a good impression even if customers do not make a purchase: “The overall shopping experience in Apple was positive. Staff are all willing to answer my enquiries even I am not making a purchase. They give a professional answer and are quite helpful.”

Although Hong Kong continues to be affected by Covid-19, a return to pre-pandemic normalcy has begun and customer experience leaders have strategically focused on providing the best omnichannel experience while emphasizing their brand’s ethics, values and social responsibilities

Sean Ren
Director of Strategy and Operations Consulting for
Financial Services, KPMG in Hong Kong (SAR), China