RRHI eyes up to 120 new stores

GOKONGWEI-LED Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. (RRHI) expects sustained growth across its businesses this year as it ramps up an aggressive expansion strategy by launching up to 120 new stores nationwide.

“We are looking to accelerate our store rollout program and target [opening] 100 to 120 net new stores across the Philippines,” Chairman Lance Gokongwei and President and Chief Executive Officer Robina Gokongwei-Pe said in a joint statement on Friday.

“We will continue to improve store efficiency as well as increase the share of premium and imported products to further underpin margin expansion,” the joint statement said.

RRHI closed 2023 with a 27.7-percent decline in net income to P4.7 billion from P6.6 billion in the previous year. However, its performance rebounded in the first quarter of this year with a profit of P5.2 billion, more than seven times the P683 million booked in the same quarter in 2023.

As of end-March this year, the retailer had 2,399 total stores operating, which consist of 756 food segment stores, 1,072 drugstores, 50 department stores, 224 Do-It-Yourself outlets and 297 specialty stores. Its network also includes more than 2,100 franchise stores of The Generics Pharmacy.

Amid persistent headwinds, the RRHI executives expressed optimism that the company could sustain its “positive trajectory in 2024, where we expect all our formats to see continued steady growth.”

“Guided by our time-tested retail blueprint that emphasizes customercentricity, we intend to remain agile and responsive, ensuring that our products and services constantly evolve in tandem with changing market dynamics,” they said.

RRHI also affirmed its commitment to offering excellent products and services while taking proactive environmental measures for its businesses.

“Together, we hope to continue to make a difference to the people and communities we serve as we create a more sustainable future,” the company’s top officials added.

The company’s share price rose 1.33 percent to P38.00 each on Friday, while the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index finished down 0.47 percent.