Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Asia's Blue Skies Beckon

David Nelson, the Asia Managing Director of US-based Horizon Group Properties, Developers and owners of Factory outlet shopping centres, discusses: 

- Distinction - factory outlets versus conventional retail outlets 

- Why typically farther out, not centrally located 

- Horizon has 10 retail developments in the United States and one JV project with a local partner in China- making Horizon a US expert though not necessarily an Asian one

- What distinguishes the Asian / Malaysian factory outlet game from the US one :

Similarities? Differences? Strategies? 

- Mainstay deputy chairman Terry Teo has said it has about 16.19ha of land in Sepang that it intended to develop. Will Horizon be part of those plans? 

- Sepang is Horizon's first investment in Malaysia: details

- Financing structure 

- Owned - managed - percentage 

- Brands

- Success metrics  

- Future - rollout - plans - timetable 

- Gross margins were great prior to delisting - but net was horrible: you were a lossmaking concern. Which factors were most to blame? 

- How sure are you that these concerns will not hurt the Malaysian operation? 

- Expectations: Malaysian operations for revenues, net profits, margins. 

- Turnaround - path to profit - expectations - timetable.