D’One Mart’s humble beginnings to profitable 24-hour retailer
LABUAN: From humble beginnings, local grocery retailer D’One Mart has grown into a profitable 24-hour shopping mart on this duty-free island.
Started in 2005 with only one lot at the Lazenda shophouse downtown, a staff of 12 and RM2 million annual turnover, it now occupies eight double-storey lots, with 78 staff and a whopping RM20 million turnover as of last year, before the island’s oil and gas sector began slowing down.
Like many of its competitors, D’One Mart considers information technology as a competitive advantage rather than an expense, and it was one of the earliest local supermarkets to use WhatsApp and Facebook to promote its products.
Managing director Datuk Seri Mohd Alias Abd Rahman said D’One Mart, after operating for 13 years as a 24-hour convenience store, plans to expand nationwide with a new partner.
“We do not mind if there is a new injection of capital from the new partner to see D’ One Mart expand to other towns or villages in the country, with the same business concept of 24-hour operation,” he told a press conference after the D’One Mart open house here yesterday.
Mohd Alias said D’One Mart has expanded into a shopping mart offering a wide range of goods including Ikea and Korean kitchen appliances, furniture, clothes, electrical appliances as well as home decor and hardware products.
“We are trying to optimise our business operation and space, as we have converted part of our premises into a food and beverage cafe,” he said.
Mohd Alias, who is also Labuan Malay Entrepreneurs Chamber of Commerce (DUML) president, said D’One Mart always gives priority to local residents for job openings.
He said D’ One Mart’s business operation and activities are unaffected by the rise of new convenience stores and hypermarkets and changes in shopping habits.
“We have regular and loyal customers who choose D’ One Mart as their grocery mart, as we have built customer loyalty through our Kad Ceria loyalty programme over the years, and our prices are not much different despite operating 24 hours,” he said.