Fruitas optimistic, opens more stores in 2024

FRUITAS Holdings Inc., the leading operator of multi-format food and beverage stores, recorded net income of P113 million in 2023, representing a 37-percent increase from the P82 million it booked in 2022 on record revenues.

Fruitas said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Tuesday that revenues reached an all-time of P2.47 billion in 2023, up 37 percent from P1.8 billion in 2022.

The net margin remained steady at 4.6 percent.

“The impressive financial performance of Fruitas Holdings in 2023 underscores our capability to deliver an exceptional outcome for all of our Fruitas brands,” said Fruitas president and chief executive Lester Yu.

Yu said the recent acquisitions of Ling Nam and Fly Kitchen also boosted the group’s performance in 2023.

Yu said the group would focus on its e-commerce business to adopt to evolving consumer preferences and market trends to sustain the company’s growth.

“We are enthusiastic about our future growth as we embark on expanding our presence in strategic locations and enhancing our product offerings to better serve our customers,” Yu said.

The growth in revenues was led by Balai ni Fruitas, which operates bakery chain Balai Pandesal and Fruitasgroup, which manages several brands.

Gross profit went up by 42 percent to P1.5 million in 2023, while gross profit margin reached 60.5 percent, up 2 percentage points from last year’s level due to production efficiency improvement, sales price increase and entry into higher-margin product categories.

The company had a total of 817 stores across its over 30 brands in its portfolio. It opened 44 stores last year. Jenniffer B. Austria