Inside Track
Metro Retail Stores Group Inc. (MRSGI) recently hosted the MVP Appreciation and Retail Awards Night with over 600 retail suppliers, vendors and partners in attendance. Toasting to their success are (from left) Metro chairman and CEO Frank Gaisano, MRSGI director Margaret Gaisano Ang and Metro chief operating officer Arthur Emmanuel.
Over 600 supermarket and department store suppliers along with key players in the banking and finance, mall developers, telco, realty and construction industries gathered in the Metro Valued Partners (MVP) Appreciation and Awards Night held last March 26 at Valkyrie at The Palace in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.
“We want to show our business partners that we are a business-friendly community and we really appreciate how they have contributed to our economic health as well as the growth of our stores,” shares Metro Retail Stores Group chairman and CEO Frank Gaisano.
The MVP Awards in two categories, namely Supermarket and Department Store, were handed out during the event. The awards for Economic Performance, Service Level, In-store Event Initiative, Best Concessionaire Partner and Supplier of the Year were conferred on top suppliers in recognition of their outstanding contributions as retail partners of Metro.
Metro hosts this annual event dedicated to its retail partners, not only to toast to their success together, but also to jointly welcome the next chapter in Metro’s story. “It is also our way of telling them that we would like to continue this partnership as we move forward and aggressively expand the company,” Gaisano said.
Metro started in 1982 as a two- story department store and supermarket in Cebu City. Today, Metro is recognized as a premier homegrown retailer in Cebu and has established its presence in key cities in the Visayas, North Luzon, South Luzon and Metro Manila.
In its 34 years of retail operations, Metro has evolved into a company adopting multiple store formats: Metro Department Store, Metro Supermarket, Super Metro Hypermarket and Metro Fresh ’n Easy Neighborhood Store.
Forging formidable alliances, which is one of Metro’s core values, was highlighted in the MVP Night. “This appreciation night is different because we have also invited the financial sector. We are partners with a lot of mall developers and this is what distinguishes Metro from other key retail players,” said Gaisano. “We are flexible. We are proud to have cemented partnership with the most reputable mall developers in the country today, namely Ayala Land, Inc., Megaworld Corp. and Filinvest Land, Inc.
Gaisano further stressed the importance of solid relationships: “Everything we do is based on relationships. And I believe Metro has always had good relationships with its retail partners and MVP Night is a celebration of it.”