Ambiguous Taipa promotion raises unanswered questions

A temple in Taipa Village

A temple in Taipa Village

An Asia-based public relations agency, Petrie PR, has announced the launch of a promotion of Taipa’s retail and restaurant sector in a bid to showcase the MSAR’s non-gaming attractions, representatives told the Times.
However, there are likely to be other, legitimate though undisclosed, interests at stake.
The agency announced on Thursday that Taipa Village Destination Ltd has launched the promotion under the slogan “Taipa Village: Authentic Macau,” which will simultaneously target Macau locals and tourists from across Asia, but mainly target those tourists from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore.
“Taipa Village strives to be a new landmark in Macau by offering a perfect alternative to the city’s casino resorts,” said Pamela Chan, Senior Marketing Manager at the company. “As a destination brand, it represents our vision to grow the awareness of Taipa Village while preserving and protecting the unique heritage of the area.”
The statement, which was released to the press, implies that the project to “grow awareness” of Taipa and “preserve and protect” the historic village is not related to any commercial interests.
Taipa Village Destination Ltd is a subsidiary organization of Sniper Capital Group – a real estate investment company with a self-described “particular focus and presence in Macau” that also holds assets amounting to more than USD550 million (according to Bloomberg) and ownership of the London Stock Exchange-listed Macau Property Opportunities Fund.
When asked if the intention behind the promotion of Taipa was linked to real estate interests, a representative of Petrie PR insisted that it was not. She told the Times that the company’s intention was to “protect and develop the area [of Taipa]” and was driven by “a partnership program with local retailers and restaurants.”
“Macau seems to offer only the gaming side [in its tourism offerings], but we want to help promote the non-gaming side where you can experience the authentic Macau,” she added.
The representative was not able to confirm whether the MSAR government is involved in the project before press time. Were this to be the case, a lack of commercial motivation for the project would be reconcilable.
Taipa Village Destination Ltd’s website offers more clues.
Regarding the company’s commercial interests, Taipa Village’s website states that it possesses “extensive experience in retail and F&B [food and beverage] business development.”
“The company seeks to focus on ongoing F&B, retail and mixed-unit concept development in Taipa Village in terms of self-run businesses, joint ventures and tenant acquisition; possessing extensive experience in asset acquisition, development and re-development projects in Macau; [and] offering retail opportunities in prime locations,” it adds.
The website also marks a distinction between what is referred to as “Tapia Village Destination Ltd” and the “Taipa Village Cultural Association,” the latter of which has the mission “to preserve, promote and develop this landmark neighborhood.”
A representative of Sniper Capital Group, the parent organization, told the Times that the promotion is intended to promote eatery units owned by the group in Taipa Village, such as the Portuguese-style restaurant “António.”
After persistent questioning, he admitted that “the promotion can push real estate values higher […] that is one of the reasons [behind the promotion],” but refused to say anything further. Daniel Beitler

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