T GALLERIA by DFS, Saipan re-opened Friday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by company and CNMI officials.
Among those who entered the store for the first time since it closed two years ago due to the Covid-19 pandemic were Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez, Marianas Visitors Authority Board Chair Viola Alepuyo, MVA Managing Director Priscilla Iakopo and Commonwealth Ports Authority Board Chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds.
They were accompanied by Richard Gustafson, managing director of the DFS Group in Mid-Pacific, Japan and Korea.
E-Land Micronesia, for its part, provided a team of entertainers from the Pacific Islands Club to perform at the reopening ceremony.
Besides PIC, E-Land Micronesia also manages Kensington and Coral Ocean Resort.
A crowd of customers — locals and tourists from Korea — enjoyed the reopening offers and promotions that T Galleria prepared to welcome them back.
At least one-third of the store is ready to accommodate customers while T Galleria prepares to open the rest, hopefully, in the next couple of months, Gustafson said in an interview.
T Galleria will now be open daily from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Biba!
“A very big welcome back, a very big Biba DFS, Biba Saipan!” said Gustafson who became emotional as he delivered his remarks during the reopening ceremony
He said the night before, during a meeting between management and employees, “We lit a candle and we talked about the significance of the light — the warmth, the endurance, the sign of hope, and how fitting that is for the island of Saipan, the people that live here, that make this island home…. They share a spirit of resilience, the spirit of getting through anything and getting to a better day.”
He added that DFS is thrilled to see the store reopen and help get community members back to normalcy while having fun shopping.
Milestone
The governor, in his remarks, thanked DFS for inviting him to the reopening ceremony.
“Over two years ago,” he said, “the pandemic brought upon tremendous and unprecedented challenges [on] our tourism industry and economy…. We went through…protocols as the pandemic progressed, and our local businesses had to adjust the way they operate. For some, the pandemic’s effects on our tourism industry resulted in tough decisions that had to be made.”
However, he added, “today marks a milestone in our journey…with the reopening of a focal point of our tourism district. T Galleria is a business that caters to both visitors and our community alike, and I am sure the employees of T Galleria, and our community, are happy to see that it is now reopened.”
“We are on a path of recovery,” the governor said, “and we are all in this together. After more than two years, we are seeing the return of our tourism industry. We are seeing a return of our economy, and we all play a part in these successes.”
“I want to thank T Galleria and all employees and stakeholders for their determination to open your doors again for our visitors and our community. Congratulations on your reopening,” the governor said.
First step
Gustafson said the reopening of T Galleria is not purely an economic decision. It’s more of “someone’s got to take the first step,” he added.
He recalled that when they closed T Galleria two years ago, it was just like, “see you in a few weeks” kind of closure. They thought that the Covid-19 pandemic was something that would go away soon in a tropical environment.
“We were very naive. We did not expect that we would close very long,” he said.
The entire world and the entire industry he said, were really surprised and devastated by the virus.
He said DFS monitored the recovery forecasts, getting updates on a weekly and monthly basis regarding airline flights — which airline was going to fly and re-start the travel industry.
But there was no good news for a very long time, he added.
Then, late last year, he said, South Korea started allowing its people to travel. However, DFS did not see enough travelers whose arrival could allow the store to reopen.
But in February and March of this year, “we started to see a very different trend, and April was very healthy looking,” he said.
It was still a hard decision to make, but someone’s “got to take the first step” and when people started taking the first step then other industry partners may start taking their first step, too, Gustafson said.
Without flights, there will be no travelers, without travelers, there are no travel packages and without travel packages, there is no retail, he added. “Someone’s got to go first,” he reiterated, adding that DFS is creating partnerships across the industry, including with Japanese companies and Korean travel partners to help revive the tourism industry.
Duty Free Shoppers Japan, MidPac & Korea Managing Director Richard Gustafson, second right, cuts the ceremonial ribbon with Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, center, Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, right, DFS Consumer Marketing Manager Keiko Nakayama, 2nd left, and former DFS Saipan President Marian Aldan-Pierce at T Galleria by DFS in Garapan on Friday.
Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, second left, with DFS Japan, MidPac & Korea Managing Director Richard Gustafson, left, MVA Managing Director Priscilla Iakopo and 2021 Miss Marianas Savannah Lyn Delos Santos.
The sales staff members of T Galleria are ready for the store’s reopening.
