A.S. Watson Group wins the Sustainable Business Award and also the most prestigious honour Sustainable Leadership Award organised by World Green Organisation, recognising our commitment and concerted efforts in forging a sustainable business in workplace quality, environmental protection, operation practice and community engagement.
FORTRESS collaborated with the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society once again this summer, visiting elderly living alone in Kwai Fong and Tai Wo Hau. Bringing FORTRESS home appliances including fans and rice cookers, 35 volunteers and their children found giving time to senior citizens a meaningful way to end the summer holidays.
Bringing together the top retail formats operated by A.S. Watson Group, CKC18 is the latest shopping concept store creating a premier shopping and lifestyle hub in Central, Hong Kong.
FORTRESS organised an Elderly Fun Day at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal Park for 20 senior citizens from the Eastern District. Volunteers and participants enjoyed a happy Saturday morning together, practising towel exercises, strolling around the park, and indulging in a delicious lunch at a Chinese restaurant. To cap off a meaningful day, the elderly also received gift bags with hand-made cards written with personal messages from the volunteers.
Jointly organised with the Evangelical Lutheran Church Hong Kong, summer placement of FORTRESS Mentorship Programme was successfully held. Sixteen students from Assembly of God Hebron Secondary School went to six FORTRESS stores for a week of work placement, gaining experience in real-life workplace. Such experience has helped boost their self-confidence and familiarise them with the operation of retail sector.
Tang, the student intern, said she gained a new understanding of the retail industry, and learnt to be more proactive and positive when facing challenges, “I have to thank FORTRESS’ staff for their patience in answering my questions and from them I have learnt the importance of teamwork.” Chan thought that the placement was very meaningful, “I have understood more about the duties of a customer service consultant, including greeting guests and understanding their needs. This is a big breakthrough for me as I seldom talk to strangers before, but now I can!” And Law was very happy about gaining actual work experience, developing patience, and learning to respect customers.
The mentorship programme is one of FORTRESS’ signature CSR programmes that aims to enhance students’ understanding on retail industry and provide career coaching. In each school year, the programme moves to different districts to benefit more students.
For three consecutive years, A.S. Watson Group (ASW) and its retail brands in HK were awarded the Green Office Label in the Green Office Awards Labelling Scheme (GOALS) organised by World Green Organisation (WGO), to recognise for our commitment and achievement in implementing green practices within workplace. The group also clinched the Eco-healthy Workplace Label this year by fulfilling the criteria of eco-healthy workplace best practices. Six awards were received this year, for A.S. Watson Group, A.S. Watson Industries, Watsons, PARKnSHOP, FORTRESS and Watsons Wine.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of MoneyBack, a member reward programme under A.S. Watson Group which was launched in 2007. Entering its 10th anniversary, the Group hosted a celebratory event today and presented to the public the brand new image of MoneyBack. It also announced the launch of the first-ever MoneyBack mobile app which enables members to manage their accounts more conveniently at anytime and anywhere. “Share More, Enjoy More” is the key of the new MoneyBack, members can now share points with family and friends, or let others know about a good deal they found in MoneyBack mobile app with a few clicks. Members can also get more personalised product information and shopping offers which are given out based on their shopping preference.
Every year, FORTRESS partners with the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society to organise an “Elderly Care Summer Visit”. FORTRESS gives away various home appliances such as fans, rice cookers and electric kettles to singleton or low-income elderly people in Hong Kong. Our volunteers visit their homes and offer tips about how to use the appliances safely.
A.S. Watson Group was recognised once again for our commitment and concerted efforts in forging a sustainable business development, by winning the “Sustainable Business Award” for the second straight year.
The “Sustainable Business Award 2016” was organised by World Green Organisation, which measured Hong Kong corporations’ achievements in building quality working environment, working towards environmental protection, conducting business responsibly and involving the community effectively.
There were eleven winners this year, with A.S. Watson being the only company from the health & beauty retail sector.
Since 2015, FORTRESS and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong jointly organised a career mentorship programme for secondary school students, allowing them to gain valuable insights into the retail industry through various activities including store and warehouse visits, interview workshops and job placements.
As one of the signature CSR programmes of FORTRESS, the mentorship programme moved to different districts each school year to benefit more students.
