Sands China determined to support and encourage local SMEs

Recognising committed suppliers with outstanding service and providing encouragement to local small and medium enterprises, Sands China Ltd. celebrated their achievements on December 4th with back-to-back ceremonies at The Venetian Macao. The 2020 Sands Supplier Excellence Awards were held directly following a ceremony honouring the 7th and 8th intake of local SME suppliers to graduate from the Sands Procurement Academy, enabling a unique and valuable opportunity for graduates to gain inspiration by witnessing the successes of some of Sands China’s suppliers.
“Each year, the Sands Supplier Excellence Awards recognises the outstanding performance and unrelenting efforts of all our partners who remain steadfast in walking side-by-side with Sands China. Our company’s determination to continue investing in Macao during such difficult times remains unwavering, and we sincerely appreciate the key role our major partners have played in the company’s business and strategy,” said Dr. Wilfred Wong, president of Sands China Ltd.
In its eighth year, the Sands Supplier Excellence Awards acknowledges the cooperation and services of suppliers, with winners selected by a judging committee of Sands China executives.
Kenny Cheung is the chairman of the board of China Travel Service (Macao) Ltd., this year’s Corporate Culture and Sustainability winner. Cheung said that together with Sands China, they are fulfilling their corporate social responsibility. At the peak of the epidemic period, CTS cooperated with carrying out the strategies and epidemic prevention requirements of the SAR government and Sands China. CTS has been operating up to 40% more shuttle bus shifts to take employees to and from work with peace of mind, and to ensure that Sands China – and Macao as a tourist city – both continue to operate as usual.

“We are thankful to Sands China for giving us many opportunities over the years,” explained CY Liu of Cyberbox-Chic, winner of the Innovation Award. “Even with the instabilities of the pandemic, Sands China continues supporting smaller suppliers like us. They provide different financial support plans and have also continued both big and small orders, and we really appreciate that. The award we got today will serve as a great reference of our company and our service in the future.”
Eva Ng, managing director of MACEXPO, said: “I was remarkably moved by the support of the Sands China team while I was organising the Sands Shopping Carnival. This was the biggest-ever shopping carnival in Macao, with 518 booths. The challenges included the short 3-month preparation time and the need to balance the epidemic prevention measures with the effects it would have on the event. It was important and necessary to ensure strict compliance with the government’s epidemic prevention guidelines and requirements, and we were very happy to see the event attract over 100,000 visitors in three days.

The three-day Sands Shopping Carnival also supported the Macau SAR government’s Consume for the Economy initiative and provided a free business platform for local SMEs and Sands retailers amid the pandemic period, creating a weekend destination for local residents and tourists. Of the 54 graduating local SMEs from the 7th and 8th intake of the Sands Procurement Academy, 19 were exhibitors at the Sands Shopping Carnival.
Co-organised with the Macao Chamber of Commerce and the Macau Productivity and Technology Centre (CPTTM), the Sands Procurement Academy promotes the development of local SME suppliers by sharing business knowledge and skills. The academy’s goal is to help the SMEs gain experience and capacity for working with large-scale international corporations like Sands China, targeted at small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), micro-enterprises, Macao young entrepreneurs, and “Made-in-Macao” enterprises.
“Although I’m not yet a Sands China supplier, I’m honoured to be invited to participate in the Sands Procurement Academy, said Erica Leong, an academy graduate from local enterprise S&E Handmade. “I have learnt more about the procurement and logistics operations of large companies, like Sands China. I now understand that cooperating with large companies requires continuous self-enhancement and the gaining of more experience in order to meet companies’ requirements, and that’s what I will work on.”
Another graduate of the programme, Chan Kuok Ieng of Shun Xin Workshop said: “The training enabled me to better understand the operations of many major departments of large enterprises. The procurement knowledge learned in class is not only useful for applying to business operations, but also for daily life. Quality inspection, for example, is not only important for corporations and their procurement, but the practice can help protect the rights and interests of individual consumers as well when doing things like shopping.”
The Sands Procurement Academy is a first-of-its-kind industry training concentrating on practical knowledge for participating SMEs; graduates of the programme have given very positive feedback on the impact to their businesses. Since the founding of the academy in 2017, nearly 240 suppliers have enrolled in the programme and 226 have graduated.

Kenny Cheung
CTS

CY Liu
Cyberbox-Chic

Eva Ng
MACEXPO

Chan Kuok Ieng
Shun Xin Workshop

Erica Leong
S&E Handmade

2020 Sands Supplier Excellence Awards:

Corporate Culture & Sustainability: China Travel Service (Macao) Limited
Cost Management: Wai Hung Hong Decoration and Design Company Ltd.
Project Delivery: Peter Silling & Associates Hotel Interior Design Limited (PSA) and Sundart Engineering Services (Macau) Limited
Innovation: Cyberbox-Chic Industries Ltd.
Quality Management: Yuet Tung Shipping Company Ltd.
Service Excellence: Man Heng Decoration and Furniture Engineering
Small Medium Enterprise (SME): Macexpo Exhibition Co., Ltd.