Wellcome facts for kids
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Native name
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惠康
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| Supermarket | |
| Industry | Retailing |
| Founded | 1945 |
| Headquarters |
Hong Kong
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Number of locations
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280 (Hong Kong) |
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Area served
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Hong Kong |
| Parent | DFI Retail Group |
Wellcome (Chinese: 惠康; Jyutping: wai6 hong1; pinyin: Huìkāng) is a big supermarket chain. It is owned by a British company called Jardine Matheson Holdings. This company owns Wellcome through its DFI Retail Group part. Wellcome is one of the two largest supermarket chains in Hong Kong. The other big one is ParknShop.
DFI used to run Wellcome supermarkets in the Philippines and Taiwan. In Taiwan, they were called Ding Hao (Chinese: 頂好; pinyin: Dǐnghǎo). DFI also has other supermarkets across Asia. These include Market Place, Cold Storage, Hero, and Giant.
Contents
The Story of Wellcome
Wellcome started in 1945. It is the oldest supermarket chain in Hong Kong. Since 1964, Dairy Farm International Holdings has owned Wellcome completely. This happened after Wellcome joined with another supermarket called Dairy Lane. Wellcome has about 5,000 staff members. They work in more than 240 stores. Over 14 million customers shop there every month.
How Wellcome Began
Wellcome was started in 1945 by Mr. Wu Chung-Wai, Mr. Lau Lim, and Mr. Ko Yin-Yu. Their first store was on Ice House Street in Central, Hong Kong. This shop sold special imported items. These included wines, biscuits, canned food, and drinks. Wellcome was also the first supermarket to offer home delivery. About 600 customers used this service daily by ordering in person.
New Ways to Shop
In 1964, Dairy Farm (now DFI Retail Group) bought Wellcome. Wellcome was the first to bring "self-service" shopping to Hong Kong. This meant customers could pick items from shelves themselves. They did not need staff to help them get products. In 1973, Wellcome was the first to sell pre-packaged rice.
Growing and Innovating
In the 1980s, Wellcome started its own brand called "No Frills." This brand offered over 300 products at very low prices. Wellcome also became the first supermarket to use EDI technology. This helped them run their stores more efficiently. Wellcome expanded to Taiwan and bought Ding Hao supermarket there.
On October 23, 1998, Wellcome opened its first 24-hour store. It was on Great George Street in Causeway Bay. Wellcome also launched another brand called "First Choice." This brand had over 1,000 items. Their prices were 20–30% lower than other international brands. It became a well-known brand in Hong Kong.
In 1998, Wellcome opened a large "Wellcome Fresh Food Centre." It cost HK$400 million and was 161,000 square feet. In the 1990s, Wellcome Hong Kong was the first to use the UPC system. This made payments faster and easier. Between 2004 and 2008, Wellcome opened more stores.
Special Offers and Stores
In 2000, Wellcome started a "Vote For Your Favourite Brand" campaign. Soon after, they opened a superstore at Tuen Mun Town Plaza. This Wellcome superstore offered "one-stop" shopping. It combined a fresh food market and a grocery store in one place. Wellcome also began a "double refund" offer. They promised the lowest prices. If a customer found a lower price elsewhere, Wellcome would double the difference back.
In January 2003, Wellcome opened its Stanley store. This store was special because it was inside a 100-year-old building. This building used to be the old Stanley Police Station.
Changes in Other Countries
In 2014, Wellcome Taiwan faced issues regarding some ingredients. In 2020, Carrefour bought Wellcome Taiwan. In the Philippines, Wellcome stores became Robinsons Easymart. This happened after Robinsons Retail bought Rustan's Supercenters.
Wellcome's Own Brands
Private Labels
Wellcome supermarkets sell products from DFI's own brands. These are called Meadows and Yu Pin King.
Wellcome Superstore
The first Wellcome Superstore opened in 2000. Today, there are 31 superstores across Hong Kong. These stores have a wider range of products. They are chosen to fit what local people want.
Wellcome Fresh
In 2021, the Wellcome Superstore in The Belcher's changed its name to Wellcome Fresh.
Market Place
DFI also runs other supermarkets in Hong Kong. These include Market Place (which used to be called Marketplace by Jasons), 3hreeSixty, Jasons ichiba, and Oliver's The Delicatessen.
