Hong Kong (21 December 2007)

The cosmopolitan shopping experience that has become a TASTE sensation across Hong Kong has just got even more exciting, with the opening today of the biggest and best TASTE store yet.

At the East Point City in Kowloon East, the new TASTE store brings our promise - of a retail experience that's so much 'More Than Food' - to a whole new group of shoppers.

'The TASTE concept launched in 2004 has been successful in attracting vast numbers of discerning and cosmopolitan Hong Kong consumers in other parts of the city,' said TASTE Managing Director Philippe Giard.

'Now, in Tseung Kwan O, we see young professionals and middle-income families looking for international flavours, the finest quality, healthy and organic produce, and homewares that fit with their international lifestyle.'

The new TASTE store at East Point City covers more than 55,000 square feet, and offers more than 30,000 different products.

'This is the place they come not just to fill up their fridges, but to complement their lifestyle,' said Mr Giard.

Highlights of the new TASTE East Point City store include:
•	Gateau Roule, a Japanese-style cake baked using the only machine of its kind in Hong Kong. The cake, sold by the slice, is a metre-long roll cooked on a huge steel rod, which shoppers can see while it's baking.
•	Hanamasa-brand products - more than 130 items, from snacks and drinks to cooking sauces and noodles - exclusive to Hong Kong from Japan's Hanamasa stores.
•	One of the biggest range of organic produce in Hong Kong, including organic wine, organic baby milk, organic Australian beef and organic cleaning products.
•	A sushi and sashimi bar where chefs will prepare the fish you choose, to order.
•	A selection of more than 20 rare fruits, such as extra large Korean Strawberries, extra large Fuyou Persimmon, New Zealand blueberries, Italian Golden Kiwi...etc.
•	A vast range of healthy ingredients and snacks, including a buffet-style selection of Natural Corner dried fruits and nuts.

And because TASTE is always More Than Food, the new East Point City store, as in other TASTE stores, has a huge range of homewares. There is a quality selection of kitchenware, tableware, bathroom accessories and other household items, including toys and stationery.

Mr Giard said: 'We are delighted to be launching TASTE here at East Point City, providing an exciting shopping destination for people with a TASTE for fine food and cosmopolitan living.'

About TASTE

TASTE, a new member of A.S. Watson Group (ASW), is a new generation of lifestyle food stores that provides customers with "More than Food" shopping experience by adding fun and excitement to their daily grocery shopping. It aims to become the first choice food store for Hong Kong's increasingly sophisticated and health-conscious modern urban consumers by enriching their tastes and lifestyles. Located in Festival Walk, the first TASTE store was open in November 2004, and features more than 25,000 quality food items sourced from around the world.

ASW, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa Limited, with a history dating back to 1828 has evolved into an international retail and manufacturing business with operations in 36 markets across Asia and Europe. Today, the Group operates over 7,800 retail stores, provides a full range of beverages from bottled water, fruit juices, soft drinks to world's finest wine labels, and employs more than 98,000 staff worldwide.

-ends-