APTRA Summer in the City networking event.

A fund-raising initiative for Smile Train was launched at the annual Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA) Summer in the City networking event in Hong Kong.

APTRA announced that it will match the full amount raised, dollar for dollar, at the event, which took place at Duddell’s restaurant in Central on 21 August.

Established in 1999, Smile Train is the world’s largest cleft-focused organisation, which has supported safe and quality cleft care for more than two million children to date.

Guests at the networking event included representatives from the Airports Authority of Hong Kong, major brands in spirits, tobacco, fashion, beauty and lifestyle, and retailers including Avolta, DFS, Heinemann and King Power.

Guest speaker Anson Bailey, Head of Consumer & Retail at KPMG Asia Pacific, shared highlights from a new report The Future of Seamless Commerce in Asia Pacific, including insights on the variances in consumer preferences for digital and physical retail engagement across major countries.

APTRA announced that it will match the full amount raised at its summer networking event, dollar for dollar.

“With such a large travel retail community in Hong Kong, it’s always a pleasure to gather everyone together before the busy autumn period gets underway,” said Sunil Tuli, APTRA President and Group Chief Executive, King Power Group (Hong Kong).

“It was also fantastic to welcome other APTRA members who had flown in to Hong Kong to join us.

“We are extremely grateful to Pernod Ricard for providing the cocktails and champagne for the evening and to everyone who donated funds to Smile Train.”

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