FairPrice Group and Ant International Partner to Digitalise Travel and Retail Experience in Singapore, Launching the First-of-Its-Kind Cheers Mini-App

FairPrice Group (FPG), Singapore’s largest retailer, today announced a strategic partnership with Ant International, a leading global digital payment, digitisation, and financial technology provider, to expand international payment acceptance across its outlets and launch the new Cheers Mini App on Alipay, an Alipay+ partner. The new Mini App is a dedicated virtual concierge for Chinese tourists in Singapore, designed to guide and support them throughout their visit from pre-arrival to pre-departure.

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The partnership supports the needs of mobile-savvy travellers, who are increasingly travelling more independently and spending more at local supermarkets, convenience stores and local F&B. It will also enhance travel and retail experiences for Chinese visitors by helping them discover, navigate, and enjoy local finds at over 180 Cheers stores across the island. Cheers is the convenience store arm of FPG, and the first convenience store in Singapore to collaborate with Alipay+ to launch a dedicated mini app on its partner’s payment platform.

Additionally, more than 500 FPG outlets, which include supermarkets, convenience stores, pharmacies and local food courts, will now be able to accept cross-border mobile payments from 18 Alipay+ international partners. Alipay+ is the global wallet gateway of Ant International, currently connecting 18 international e-wallets and bank apps - representing travellers from 12 countries and regions - to merchants across Singapore, including FPG.

Vipul Chawla, Group CEO, FairPrice Group shared that Alipay's existing availability in Singapore (Alipay SG¹) and standing as a platform that Chinese consumers know and trust enables Cheers to seamlessly deliver discovery, transactions, and rewards to tourists.

“As the nation’s largest retailer, FPG is deeply committed to making every day a little better for those we serve. Our convenience banner Cheers is key to how we keep things easy on the experience for our customers, and we are incredibly excited to kick off this first-in-Singapore partnership with Alipay+ to redefine retail for Chinese tourists.”

The strategic partnership reflects FPG’s vision to become the most admired retailer in Asia by making convenience seamless and smart, especially for one of Singapore’s largest inbound tourist segments - in 2024 alone, Singapore saw more than three million visitors from China². Across international travellers, Singapore ranks as the top 10 global destinations, based on Alipay+ data in 2025.

“We are very proud to support FairPrice Group, the iconic Singaporean retail leader, to expand its mission for everyday citizen wellbeing and community prosperity through transforming tourism and consumer experience for one of the world's most beloved destinations,” said Peng Yang, CEO of Ant International. “AI-powered digitisation tools of Alipay+ will help our partners obtain and engage consumers in richer, more imaginative and safer ways. We look forward to a long and exciting journey with partners like FairPrice Group to unlock more local and regional growth opportunities.”

Cheers stores are located at key tourist touchpoints – including Changi Airport, major hotel districts, and Singapore’s most popular attractions – ensuring that Chinese tourists have a reliable one-stop shop for everything from travel essentials and snacks to exclusive Singapore souvenirs at locations across the island.

From discovery to checkout, the Cheers Mini App on Alipay provides an end-to-end experience tailored for Chinese travellers. The app supports tourists through all key stages of their trip:

• Pre-arrival: The Cheers Mini App can be found on the Alipay Singapore homepage, and provides recommendations by category, popularity, and availability in stores so travellers can plan shopping lists even before boarding their plane
• Arrival: Visitors can get an in-app voucher for a complimentary bottle of FairPrice Coconut Water (330ml)³ upon completing simple in-app tasks after arrival
• During their stay: Tourists will receive location-based recommendations throughout their stay for products available in nearby Cheers outlets, and can participate in exclusive challenges to unlock special deals and win prizes
• Pre-departure: A curated catalog of over 500 products, including popular snacks and souvenirs, is available with a wishlist function and store mapping for convenient gift purchases and pick up before the journey home

To further embrace and welcome Chinese visitors, Cheers has also provided training in basic Mandarin to staff at 30 selected Cheers stores. Staff in these outlets will be able to deliver Mandarin greetings and essential phrases to Chinese tourists, ensuring a more familiar and easy shopping experience.

To elevate every visitor’s stay, 30 Cheers stores — located near Singapore’s most popular tourist spots — have been stocked with travel essentials and a dedicated Singapore souvenir shelf featuring local favourites like chilli crab paste, salted egg fish skin, durian candy, and bak kwa. These stores ensure tourists can find what they need, when they need it, with ease.

The Cheers Mini App on Alipay is live and ready to welcome Chinese tourists travelling to Singapore. To learn more, visit cheers.com.sg/Alipay.

About Cheers

With over 180 outlets islandwide, Cheers & FairPrice Xpress provide consumers with fresh groceries and staples, as well as Ready-to-Eat options for those who need to grab and go. Services such as card top-up, parcel delivery and more are also available to help customers meet their daily needs in one place, anytime.

About FairPrice Group

FairPrice Group was established in 2019, bringing together four entities - FairPrice, Kopitiam, Foodfare and Link - with the purpose of making every day a little better by keeping daily essentials within reach for all. FairPrice Group strives to optimise the resources of all four social enterprises and leverage their respective strengths to put customers first, provide better value for all and to make everything about food easy. By being easy on the wallet, experience and planet, FairPrice Group exemplifies its commitment to making every day a little better for all.

With an extensive network of close to 570 touchpoints, FairPrice Group seeks to provide an integrated array of products and services, from groceries, ready-to-cook, and ready-to-eat offerings, to on-premise meals, food take-aways, and a rewards programme that delivers personalised and delightful experiences.

For more information on FairPrice Group, visit www.fairpricegroup.com.sg.

About Alipay+

Ant International's Alipay+ is a unified wallet gateway with cross-border payment and digitisation services that help connect global merchants to consumers. Consumers enjoy seamless payments, a broad choice of deals and the convenience of digital services using their preferred payment app/e-wallet while travelling abroad. Many small and medium-sized businesses already use Alipay+ digital tools to enhance efficiency and achieve omni-channel growth.

¹ Alipay SG enables the use of Alipay for payment at participating Singapore merchants and businesses.
²https://www.stb.gov.sg/about-stb/media-publications/media-centre/singapore-achieves-historical-high-in-tourism-receipts-in-2024
³ Voucher redeemable at any Cheers outlet in Singapore.

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