If a new store in downtown Phnom Penh is anything to go by, Cambodian urbanites can’t get enough of Western-style supermarkets.
Demand proved too much for Big A Supercenter, which opened in Daun Penh district Friday, and many weekend customers were met with empty shelves and long lines at the check out.
But by Monday, things were under control, with new stocks shipped in and prompt service at cash registers.
Marketing Director Ham Wich said he hopes the store will carve out a niche for itself by selling high-quality goods at prices slightly below the city’s six other Western-style supermarkets.
Most of the goods are imported from Thailand, but fresh produce and meat are locally produced, he said.
Ham Wich hopes customers will be attracted by the store’s slick interior design and its central location on busy Monivong Boulevard. The store’s 48 employees underwent a month’s intensive training before Big A opened, learning about security, how to operate a cash register and basic service principles, Acting CEO Chan Sarun said Monday.
“They must always smile, and if the customers get angry, the staff must apologize, whether he is wrong or right,” she said.
Customer Keo Muy, 35, who runs an electronics-repair business from her own home, said the prices and quality of goods at Big A are comparable to Phsar Thmei, where she usually shops, but the supermarket is more convenient.
“And by the way, it has air conditioning,” she said, adding that she has shopped at Big A every day since it opened.
The four-story complex includes a fast-food hamburger restaurant, a bakery and a small bookstore. Plans are in the works to open a furniture and household equipment store on the second floor by next year. Other stores will follow, Chan Sarun said.
The project is a Thai-Cambodian joint venture, a spin-off from Thai supermarket chain Big C—but with a better name.
“‘A’ is for A-grade, A-number-one,” Chan Sarun said.
