Fruitas Holdings, Inc., the Philippines’ leading food and beverage kiosk operator, is allotting up to P270 million for capital expenditures this year as it gears up for a strong rebound in 2021, building on the momentum seen in the second half of last year.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Fruitas said it has set a 2021 capex budget of P240 million to P270 million.
Of this amoung, P150 million will be allocated for network expansion, P70 million to P100 million for acquisitions and development of new concepts and P20 million for commissary expansion.
Fruitas said it is also reviewing opportunities to acquire potential targets and expand abroad, initially within Asia, but intends to pursue these in a disciplined manner.
It is also continuing to fine-tune existing processes, from site selection to sales delivery, to improve margins.
“We had a temporary setback in terms of operating results in 2020, but we were able to successfully execute numerous initiatives to broaden product breadth and client reach,” said Fruitas Holdings President and Chief Executive Officer Lester Yu.
He noted that, “There are still abundant opportunities to generate growth and improve margins. Our stronger footing post-pandemic makes us confident about 2021.”
Fruitas said revenues in the fourth quarter of 2020 increased 60 percent compared to the third quarter of last year, after registering 90 percent quarter-on-quarter revenue growth in the third quarter of 2020.
Fruitastargets to add at least 100 kiosks and 70 community stores to its network in 2021. This will boost its network to about 1,100 kiosks and 100 community stores by the end of the year.
The increase in kiosks will come from both additional locations for its existing brands and new kiosks for its emerging concepts.
Fruitas will expand community stores beyond Metro Manila to include key cities in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
The firm also expects to launch at least two new concepts as early as in the first quarter of 2021.
Fruitas said it is in discussions with potential product partners to onboard additional items to sell through its network and distribution partners to widen the sales channels of Fruitas products.
The enhancement of its delivery channel continues, with plans to expand delivery beyond Metro Manila and Cebu in the near-term.
Certain community stores will formally be designated as delivery hubs to shorten turnaround time.(James A. Loyola)