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The Stadium Sports Centre wants approval from the Vientiane Urban Development Administration Authority to promote the 25th SEA Games mascots in the lead up to the event, saying not enough people are familiar with the mascots and what they stand for.
The centre is responsible for distributing souvenirs and products promoting the games, and wants to promote the mascots to local and foreign visitors at major spots in central Vientiane .
The centre's manager Mr Viengsavanh Sengchanh told the press on Monday people might know a little from neighbouring media about the games, but the mascots had not received nearly as much attention as mascots in previous years.
The centre has allowed vendors from the provinces to bring products to sell in the run-up to the games.
Clothes have become popular products among customers, but the mascots were not attracting much attention because they had not been advertised well, Mr Viengsavanh said.
“The price of the mascots is reasonable. We sell small ones for 65,000 kip and big ones for 85,000 kip. I think most people don't know what they represent, while others are just buying them for their families in other countries,” he said.
Mr Viengsavanh said promotion of the SEA Games in some provinces was inadequate, and that people in Laos didn't even know the mascots existed.
“The games start in less than two weeks so we would like to see stalls and signs to promote the games,” he said.
The centre reported that products, including clothes, hats and other souvenirs, were being well received by shoppers from the central and other provinces.
Some customers told local press they thought the goods on sale were very expensive, with a normal shirt with a SEA Games logo priced at 50,000 kip, but the manager rejected the claim and said the shirt cost only 30,000 kip.
“Some businesses buy the goods from us and sell them at their shops for a higher price,” he said.
“Champassak is the leading province in which many of the SEA Games clothing is distributed, while people in Khammuan, Borikhamxay, Xieng Khuang and Luang Prabang provinces have also bought many items. But most of the items being sold aren't the mascots,” Mr Viengsavanh said.
He said the target for selling products, souvenirs and mascots was 30 million baht or more than US$900,000 (more than 7.6 billion kip).
Some of the goods were presented as gifts to the SEA Games Organising Committee but were not of high enough quality for distribution.
Mr Viengsavanh added that signs would help them to sell their products and achieve their target, in particular mascot sales.
By Souknilundon Southivongnorath
Vientianetimes
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
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Local companies are being sought to produce merchandise for sale during the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games to be held in Laos next year.
Companies wanting to produce merchandise branded with the SEA Games logos must first seek permission from Phetchampa Advertising Company, otherwise they will be in breach of copyright.
Eight foreign companies have already been granted these rights, but no Lao companies have expressed an interest in using the official SEA Games' logos.
Phetchampa Advertising is contracted by the government to organise sponsorship and marketing for the SEA Games and they can license companies to use the logos for a fee.
Company Director, Mr Khammoui Keomany, said the company was outsourcing the production of merchandise so it did not have to be involved in manufacturing or distribution.
Local companies had proposed manufacturing goods and selling them to Phetchampa Advertising for distribution, but the company is not interested in this.
“Granting permission for companies to use the logos, for a small fee, allows the event to generate income without us having to become involved in the production process,” he said.
“It is the responsibility of the company rather than the committee for any issues with product quality. We are not responsible for controlling the scale of production, so if the companies have surplus merchandise after the event it will not have any effect on our company.”
Those who have registered have enough experience to evaluate the market and how much merchandise they can sell, he said.
Mr Khammoui is also a member of the SEA Games Organising Committee. He said the fee for companies to use the logo was not too high and was not deterring local businesses. Instead, he attributed their lack of interest to insufficient marketing experience.
“We are working hard to convince local and foreign businessmen and companies to be sponsors, in order to promote the SEA Games to the outside world,” he said.
Mr Khammoui said there would be a large market for SEA Games merchandise because local people, tourists and athletes from the 10 participating countries would be interested in buying souvenirs at the event.
Businesses which have already been granted rights to use the logos include companies from Malaysia , Singapore and Thailand.
By Phonesavanh Sangsomboun
Vientianetimes
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
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photo: Standing Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad speaks at the Prime Minister's office.
The Lao National Sports Committee (LNSC) has accomplished the goals set for the previous three months of preparation for the 25 th SEA Games to be held in Vientiane next year.
At the Prime Minister's Office on Friday, the national sports committee held a meeting to summarise its work and plan its tasks for September to December.
Standing Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the 25 th SEA Games Organising Committee Somsavat Lengsavad and senior officials attended the meeting.
Mr Somsavat said Laos had been given a great honour in hosting the SEA Games. The event would serve to strengthen the country and boost solidarity.
He suggested the committee should set out clear plans for assistance and cooperation with other countries.
From September to December, the sports committee will cooperate with Singapore to prepare for the event.
The Vietnamese government will assist with the installation of IT systems and electronic equipment in the new football stadium and the indoor stadiums to be used in the games.
The national sports committee will hold a Miss SEA Games beauty pageant and will build a digital clock in Vientiane to mark the countdown to the games. The time will run from December 31 this year until the opening ceremony of the games in December 2009. The clock is to be sponsored by the Lao Brewery Company.
The Thai Tourism and Sports Ministry will spend about 21.3 billion kip (84 million baht) to renovate the national football stadium, tennis courts and the sports department's indoor stadium.
The ministry will also pay about 1.5 billion kip (6 million baht) towards the training of LNSC officials, as well as referees and athletes.
The committee will also receive assistance through cooperation with doping control staff from Vietnam and Thailand .
At the end of this year, the committee will open the sports training centre and athletes' accommodation in Vientiane , to be built with assistance from the Vietnamese government.
The Lao football, judo, karatedo, wushu, wrestling, pencak silat, swimming and diving teams are currently training in Vietnam .
Also in the past three months, committee officials improved their skills at the Lao-Singapore Cooperation Centre in June and planted 500 trees around the new football stadium.
In May, the committee held discussions on work plans for the games including accommodation, food, decoration of the city, tourism, traffic, telecommunications and other work.
The committee asked the Olympic Committee of Asia and the competition organising committee of the SEA Games to assist in running the games.
Athletes' accommodation is under construction at the National University of Laos, assisted by the Vietnamese government.
Last July, the committee visited Incheon district in the Republic of Korea , where district officials provided them with sports equipment worth more than 3.5 billion kip (US$405,000).
When Lao government officials attended the Olympic Games in China last month, they signed an agreement for SEA Games cooperation with the Chinese government in Beijing . The Lao wushu and shuttlecock teams will attend training in China ahead of the games.
Singapore helped with tourism promotion for the games last month. This month it will work on business communication for the games and next month plans to assist with hospitality management.
The new football stadium where the opening and closing ceremonies of the games will take place is 65-80 percent complete, the indoor stadium is 90 percent complete, the petanque field is 80 percent complete and the taekwondo court is 95 percent complete.
By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
Vientianetimes
Sunday, September 14, 2008
