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Bigboxx.com, Hutchison Whampoa's wholly owned on-line office-supplies subsidiary, is aiming for market leadership within 18 months, according to chief operating officer Stephen Winterhalder.

  The company, which started a trial operation with eight firms two weeks ago, hopes to launch by July, focusing on medium to large corporations in traditional office areas.

 'It is a highly fragmented market with many companies selling a few products.' Mr Winterhalder said.

 Bigboxx.com will at first offer about 5,000 products, ranging from office stationery and computer accessories to detergents and bulk food. It will later expand into ticketing, book-delivery and dry-cleaning.

 Mr Winterhalder estimated that employees spent an average of HK$200 a month on office supplies, and the average gross margin was about 20 per cent.

 'We are here to provide efficient and cost-saving solutions to office managers,' he said.

 Its main clients are likely to include Hutchison Whampoa's various subsidiaries, which together have about 30,000 employees in Hong Kong.

 Other target clients will be large corporations, government institutions, schools and hospitals.

 A minimum of HK$300 per purchase will be set.

 Although an on-line system will be provided, Mr Winterhalder expects 90 per cent of purchases will come from traditional ways of doing business - telephone and salesman.

 'It takes time to change consumer behaviour. That's what we get from the ParknShop experience,' he said.

 When ParknShop was asked to explore on-line opportunities last September it came up with the office-supplies market.

 Asked how this business model was similar to that of AdMart, an on-line door-to-door shopping delivery founded by Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, Mr Winterhalder said Bigboxx was a 'much more targeted business'.

 Bigboxx.com has purchased 10 delivery vans, with an option to buy 10 more. However, Mr Winterhalder said delivery would eventually be contracted out.

 The company aims to expand into Japan and Taiwan in the next three to four months, most likely through local distribution partners. It plans to spend US$60 million in two years to expand into a regional business.

RETAILING 



Hutchison aims high with office-supplies unit Bigboxxx.com