The Macao Institute for Tourism Studies (IFTM) said in a statement yesterday that students in its Tourism Retail and Marketing Management Programme have carried out an industrial project to help Red Market and the Macao Fishmongers Association Red Market branch get “practical experience”.
The Red Market, according to the statement, is currently undergoing a 24-month-long reconstruction and maintenance work, with a temporary market operating on Rua Marginal do Lam Mau since March 29.
The statement noted that businesses at the new location create just 10 to 20 percent of the amount of business they did previously and are experiencing financial losses daily, the association’s Chairman Kwan Vai Meng said.
To improve on the situation, Entrepreneurship course leader Fernando Lourenço, the statement added, led students to research and develop ideas through an industry analysis of over 30 wet markets or well-known marketplaces (local, regional and international) to get “significant insights”.
Around 200 interviews were then conducted in the Red Market and its temporary wet market; neighbourhoods by students to collect consumers’ opinions and intentions, as well as to identify potential challenges. The students also worked in teams to create marketing strategies and campaigns, and designed the temporary wet market’s exterior and interior “to enhance its attractiveness”.
The statement said that “valuable research, data, knowledge and ideas” were given to the Red Market and the association.
The statement added that there are several study outputs and strategies that can be used and examined to help the 127 small businesses to survive the current economic climate, which can also be used to influence Red Market’s design with better features.
This undated handout photo recently provided by the Macao Institute for Tourism Studies (IFTM) shows students researching and proposing ideas for the Red Market business development.
