(5 November 2009 – Hong Kong) New World Department Store China Limited (“NWDS” or the “Company”; Hong Kong stock code: 825), one of the largest owners and operators of department stores in the PRC, is pleased to announce that the 18 contestants of Southwestern Region Semi-Final of “The 1st NWDS Spokesperson” Contest have been selected after the designation of the 6 representatives of the Northern Region Semi-Final on 1 November. The Southwestern Region Semi-Final will be held on 22 November 2009 at Chengdu New World Department Store. Champion, 1st runner-up and 2nd runner-up of the male and female group of this semi-final will strive for the championship of “The 1st NWDS Spokesperson” Contest in May next year.

After the successful completion of Northeastern Region Semi-Final and Northern Region Semi-Final in September and October respectively, the followed-by Southwestern Region Semi-Final is preparing underway with enthusiastic responses received. Over 4000 VIP members of NWDS from Chongqing, Kunming and Chengdu applied for the contest. Applicants firstly attended in-store interview for catwalk show, self introduction, talent performance and interaction with interviewers etc. to exhibit their distinctive personal attributes, whilst interviewers evaluated applicants according to their appearance, conversation, body shape, ability to react, special talent, fashion sense and character & style.   There were a number of superior applicants who carried various unique styles. In line with the anniversary celebration of the three stores of NWDS in the Southwestern Region*, a tailor-made “Final Contest of Store” was held outdoor of the three stores on 31 October to engage final judgment, enlivening the pervading mood of the contest.   After passing through fashion shows and Q&A sessions, 9 male and 9 female contestants have been chosen.

The 18 contestants will receive a series of training before the semi-final which   focus on etiquette learning conducted by lecturer of Chengdu etiquette school, fashion mix & match technique coached by chief personal image artist in Chengdu, dance training instructed by a choreographer of Chengdu TV station and talent performance taught by vocal music teacher of Sichuan music school.   The training aims to fully equip contestants to showcase themselves during semi-final as well as overcome the challenges of dancing, talent show, Q&A session, swimsuit & evening costume catwalk show in the contest, facilitating them to exhibit personal charisma and deliver the theme of “New Character” of the contest.

There will be in-store customer voting and online polling for the contest with voting period starts from 6 November 2009 to 20 November 2009. Customers can cast their votes during the voting period at the designated polling station at the three stores of NWDS in the Southwestern Region*. VIP members take part in the polling with purchase at store during the voting period can enjoy double bonus points of their purchase while platinum VIP members can receive triple bonus points. Besides, the general public can also vote for their favorite contestants through the polling website platform at Sohu (http://women.sohu.com/s2009/nwds) during voting period. In-store customer voting and public online polling will account for 20% of the total rating of the Semi-Final respectively. At the scene of Southwestern Region Semi-Final, there will be notary to monitor the counting of votes in order to enhance fairness of the contest.   

Mr. Adrian Cheng, Executive Director of NWDS, the Chief of this rebranding program said, ‘Southwestern Region Semi-Final received huge response and attracted plenty of quality applicants, the 18 contestants who have their unique characteristics, are the elites among the applicants.   It is believe that the contestants can fully deliver the new image of “Enriching Lives ． Enhancing Character” of NWDS to the public. In addition, the large amount of outstanding applicants indicates our VIP members are fond of pursuing trendy commodities and high-quality living. The three specially designed VIP clubs under the rebranding program, “Perfect House Wife Club”, “Smart Lady Club” and “Platinum Style Club”, provide tailor-made services for our member to experience the excellent offers and privileges from NWDS. This further proves the development of the rebranding program is on the right direction and we strive to become the role model for the industry in China.’

The three department stores are Chengdu New World Department Store, Chongqing New World Department Store and Kunming New World Department Store.

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