More Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia (KR1M) 2.0 to be opened

PUTRAJAYA: The Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism expects more Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia (KR1M) 2.0 outlets to be opened when it is officially relaunched by the middle of next month.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said, compared to its predecessor, Mydin which had intended to open at least one KR1M outlet in each 222 parliamentary constituencies, the companies being engaged should be able to open as many KR1M outlets that they can sustain.
"The ministry is currently engaging with more than 10 companies to assess their capabilities to operate KR1M 2.0 and provide fair pricing.
"Unlike before, we want them to open 1,000 or even up to 2,000 KR1M 2.0 outlets if possible.
"All we want is that the companies that will be given the responsibility to handle KR1M will be able to carry out the trust properly.
"The Government is always ready to provide them incentives," he told reporters after attending the ministry's monthly meeting here, yesterday.
Hamzah further said the Ministry will be engaging petrol station owners in an effort to market the five essential goods under the KR1M 2.0 label.
"We are engaging with Petronas among other wholesalers to supply essential items such as rice, sugar, flour, cooking oil and LPG under the KR1M 2.0 label," he said.
In an effort for KR1M 2.0 to be successful compared to its predecessor, Hamzah said products will simply be labelled with the KR1M 2.0 stamp rather than "simple repackaging".
"For instance, the condensed milk brand Dairy Champ.
"When it was repackaged with a white-coloured paper and sold at KR1M outlets, people were not so keen on it.
"The repackaging gave a poor impression and that is what we want to change.
"We will not remove the original packaging but stamp the KR1M 2.0 label on it instead," he said.
The exact launch of the KR1M 2.0, next month, he added will be decided by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak.
The KR1M stores were launched in 2011 as a government-backed initiative to mitigate rising costs of living.
Mydin which had operated the KR1M chain, was responsible responsible for the stores, its products and systems.
However, in July Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had taken them to task for allegedly selling basic goods at above prices and instructed the ministry to terminate the contract to operate KR1M.