LUCIO CO INFUSING ALLIED BUSINESS INTO PUREGOLD

Puregold Price Club Inc., through its subsidiary S&R Membership Warehouse, is beefing up its portfolio with the planned purchase of an affiliate retailer and wholesaler of grocery items.

In a disclosure on Monday, the listed company said that S&R owner and operator Kareila Management Corp. had approved the acquisition of PSMT Philippines Inc., which is also owned by the family of Lucio Co, for P112.5 million.

“As PSMT is also owned by the Cos, the acquisition could be a boost [to] brand equity and the move could add more synergies for the group, among others,” Regina Capital Development Corp. head of sales Luis Limlingan told the Inquirer.

“Given that consumption has still been strong in the country despite the global headwinds, it still seems lucrative to expanding retail,” he added.

The retail conglomerate currently has 513 stores across the country. These include 443 Puregold stores, 22 S&R warehouses and 48 S&R New York Style quick-service restaurants.

With more people now going out after two years of lockdowns, the retail firm improved its net income by 13 percent to P6.5 billion in the January to September period. It was also driven by “organic expansion of the group’s grocery retail outlets, strategic cost management and sustained strong consumer demand.”

Third quarter net income even climbed by 30 percent with the resurgence of business activities and consumer confidence.

“As mobility and confidence grew in the face of headwinds caused by inflation and commodity supply pressures, total traffic to all stores increased by 12 percent versus the same period last year,” the group said earlier.