By James A. Loyola
Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc., a member of the Gokongwei group of companies, is allotting P3.5 billion from capital expenditures this year from P3.1 billion in 2017 as it continues to expand the store networks of its various brands.
RRHI logo (photo courtesy of www.robinsonsretailholdings.com.ph)
In an interview after the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting, Robinsons Retail President Robina Gokongwei-Pe said the group has already spent P683 million in the first quarter of the year.
“We project to spend a total of P3 billion to P3.5 billion in capex for our planned organic store expansion this 2018," she said.
Gokongwei-Pe added that, "we’re opening 13 supermarkets, 3 department stores, 10 to 15 DIY stores, 20 to 30 convenience stores, 25 to 30 Southstar Drugstores, and 30 to 35 specialty stores for a total of around 100 to 120 new stores. This is on top of another 100 new franchise stores from TGP (The Generics Pharmacy)."
The capex is on top of acquisition of Rustans Supercenters, Inc. (RSCI) from Dairy Farm International Holdings, Ltd. Group of Companies for which RRHI will be issuing 191.49 million new shares.
Gokongwei-Pe said RRHI expects its same stores sales to grow 3 to 5 percent this year as the company expects to ride the tide of increasing consumer spending in the Philippines.
RRHI will also be launching new retail formats this year as it expands its footprint in the e-commerce segment.
"We are venturing into pet care retail from franchise agreements with pet lovers center of Singapore, the first store in the Philippines is scheduled to open in Robinsons Galleria by the third quarter of this year," she said.