Founded in 2003, ISCM has always remained at the forefront of promoting professionalism in shopping centre management with a special focus on advancing the discipline and driving developments for related industries in Hong Kong. In particular, we have over the years laid the foundation for shopping centre management practitioners across the city to seek and achieve professional and academic excellence through seminars, peer exchange sessions, as well as local and overseas study tours with a view to enhancing their competitiveness towards managing sustainability in pursuit of future development for the shopper’s paradise Hong Kong.

Now in its 11th year of operation, we look to strengthening collaboration efforts with local and overseas associations in an attempt to broaden horizons and sharpen professionalism for the wider industry. Every year, we and our members participate in the Council of Asian Shopping Centers (CASC) Annual Conference which is an extraordinary opportunity to learn the ropes from industry gurus across the Asia region.

The strategic alliance as a springboard forged between our Institute and local and international professional institutes has been instrumental in raising the bar for the industry. In 2005, for instance, our Institute signed a Memorandum of Intent on Property, Facilities and Shopping Centre Management with Department of Building and Real Estate, The Research Centre for Construction and Real Estate Economics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, RICS Asia Pacific, The Hong Kong Institute of Facility Management, The Hong Kong Institute of Housing and The Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors. In the coming years, we will continue joining hands and foster exchanges among various professional institutes.

To further our fulfillment of corporate social responsibility, we have stepped up our efforts in charity following our first-ever charity auction at the 2013 annual dinner. For example, we held a New Year Eve party for 20 children from low-income families in 2013 and have recently arranged a visit to apm for the students of Bishop Hall Jubilee School to learn the career prospect of the industry. We also take great pleasure in naming the children’s charity of Heep Hong Society as the beneficiary of our Anniversary Annual Dinner charity auction this year. To honour our social responsibility obligations, we will pursue to plough back resources into Hong Kong society, immersing the city’s underprivileged/minority groups in the communal joy at shopping centres while spreading positive energy to Hong Kong.

Propelling professional advancement and industry development shall remain our priority. To achieve this, we will continue to provide practitioners ample chances of continuous learning and peer exchange. In the past, we have organised study tours to local and overseas shopping centres such as those in Dubai and Thailand. A trip to Seoul in the coming May will prove especially popular among practitioners who are keen to learn about the latest trends in shopping centre management and F&B management from their overseas contemporaries.

In future, we will adhere to our role as a catalyst and continue to relay our intimate knowledge of the industry alongside our expert opinions as regards specific recommendations on the policy and measures for the planning and development of shopping centres. Nowadays, the retail and F&B sectors face myriad challenges. Shopping centres by and large will require better facilities to satisfy the needs of both tenants and their customers should they wish to uphold Hong Kong’s reputation as a shopper’s paradise for locals and visitors. In line with the theme of this year’s gala dinner: “Building for the Future”, we must all “Think Big Do Bigger” for the sustainable future of the industry and Hong Kong.

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Ms. Maureen Fung,

Founding Chairman