Unperturbed by the alert status of the Covid- 19 scare, Samsung Malaysia is going ahead with the Galaxy S20 shopping mall road show from March 6-8 that will be taking place in various states in the country.  Despite the health ministries advice on congregating in large public spaces or be exposed to large gatherings, the South Korean phone maker is not backing down on the scheduled campaign.

The World Health Organisation has just raised its alert level from Risk to High Risk and could declare Covid-19 as pandemic. Which would allow global health agencies to ask governments to shut down schools, reduce outdoor movements and restrict travel. More than 64 countries have reported cases on the virus with the latest being Greece and Iran.

Here in Malaysia, the spread is vastly under control with a total of 29 cases reported thus far out of which mostly were foreigners. Local contagion is at zero or minimal. Samsung just launched its Galaxy S20 flagship, first of the anticipated launch events for the year by the company. Most of the smartphone manufactures were looking forward for the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona to showcase their latest 5G devices but were forced to hold back after the event was cancelled due to worries of Covid-19. Huawei chose to take the global device launch to UK while most makers decided to put off to a later date.

South Korea is one of the most badly hit by the virus outside China, travel bans have been imposed from anyone coming or entering the country. US has placed restriction on travel there as it starts to grapple with daily reports on cases and its first death. Samsung will be tested for its resilience, global retail sales is at an all time low, peoples sentiment are depleted and not many are thinking of changing their phones for now. Malls are seeing a massive drop in footfalls pressuring operators to waive rental for retailers who are witnessing a dip in sales by nearly 70%. For the first time, MidValley had its concourse area vacant during weekends with no promotional gambit occupying.

But Samsung Malaysia is betting on its fans and the weakened competition to gather sales for its new series. Not sure if Malaysian’s will be betting their health to queue in a large mall or just opt for online purchasing if they really desire the S20.

For those interested, the roadshows will be held in Midvalley, Queensbay Mall Penang, Mid Valley Johor, East Coast Mall Kuantan, Imago Shopping Mall KK. Galaxy S20 series are priced between RM3599 to RM4999.