Years in Review: Annual Reflections on Businesses and their Future
As the end of the year approaches, many of us turn to reflecting on the year that has passed. Businesses all around the world do the same, though on a different cycle and for different reasons. Librarian Kevin Seet explores the interesting bits about company annual reports.
When I visited Japan in 2017, I discovered that their 7-Eleven outlets are home to many delicious house-brand snacks (branded as Seven Premium products). I wondered then why these snacks weren’t available in our own 7-Elevens in Singapore, since (I believed) they were the same company. To my delight, Seven Premium products appeared on local 7-Eleven shelves soon after.
Later I learned that although they have the same name, the 7-Elevens in Japan and Singapore were in fact separate entities, and it was a business partnership with the Seven-Eleven Japan company that brought the tasty treats to our shores. I discovered this while browsing the annual reports from the Dairy Farm International Holdings, the company that owns the 7-Elevens in Southeast Asia and China. Furthermore, I never would have guessed that in Singapore, Dairy Farm is also related to our Starbucks and Genki Sushi restaurants, since they own a major stake in Maxim’s Group, the parent company which in turn, owns the license to operate Starbucks and Genki Sushi in Singapore.
Many business decisions are typically made in the boardrooms and out of the public eye, mentioned only in corporate publications or industry news sites. The Singapore Exchange, however, requires all listed companies (companies listed on stock exchanges with publicly traded shares) to provide annual reports to their shareholders. These annual reports typically include financial audits and the business’s standing for shareholders on a yearly basis, which tend to be fairly dry and full of corporate jargon. To engage with their retail shareholders, these reports also include a visually appealing and easily digestible summary, explaining the major points of business for the year.
The Lee Kong Chian Reference Library’s Business collection holds annual reports deposited with the Singapore Exchange. As the librarian managing this collection, I have learned a lot about the companies operating in Singapore, including many of our home-grown brands.
For instance, did you know that Old Chang Kee has been a listed company since 2008, with overseas flagship outlets in London and Australia? Fraser & Neave (F&N) might be a familiar name, as it owns many beverage and dairy products on our supermarket shelves but it started as an aerated water business in Singapore in 1883. Did you know that it now also owns Times Publishing too, which operates the Times bookstores as well as the Marshall Cavendish publishing arms? That’s diversification for you.
Why would this be interesting to the non-investor or a member of the public? Our daily lives are interwoven with these major companies, whether we notice it or not. On an ordinary day, you might get breakfast from a Breadtalk bakery, visit a Sheng Siong supermarket and buy a Yeo’s drink, shop at a Frasers Centrepoint or Capitaland mall, eat lunch at a Koufu or Kimly foodcourt, and travel home via SBS Transit buses and trains.
These companies do business, and how they fare each year can affect our daily lives. Their annual reports can sometimes explain why certain price changes were made, why certain beloved products appeared on or disappeared from the shelves, or why an outlet had suddenly disappeared from our neighbourhoods.
These annual reports are also helpful tools for researchers interested in business heritage. Sharad Pandian, a Lee Kong Chian Research Fellow, was interested in the history of standardisation in Singapore. He referred to the annual reports of the Singapore Institute of Standards and Industrial Research (1973–95), the Singapore Productivity and Standards Board (1996–2001), and the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (also known as SPRING Singapore, 2002 onwards). Through his research, he uncovered an interesting story about the regulation of motorcycle crash helmets in Singapore.
It’s important for businesses and industries to keep track of their own progress. Their stories are interwoven with our lives as consumers and shoppers year after year. These annual reviews can engage us, keep us informed of upcoming changes, and help us to make sense of the past, especially for the brands and businesses that we hold close to our hearts.
Kevin Seet is a Librarian with the National Library, Singapore, where he oversees the Business, Science and Technology collections. His interests lie in the overlaps between science, technology and society. Besides managing the collections, his responsibilities also include developing content and providing reference and research services.
