By Leslie Venzon
MANILA, (PNA) — Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. (RRHI), the seventh company to go public this year, will use bulk of the P27 billion to P32 billion proceeds from its initial public offering (IPO) to put up 400 more stores nationwide.
Bach Johann Sebastian, RRHI Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, said the company aims to have a total of 1,400 stores by end-2014.
“We have already sites for 250 (stores). Of the nearly 400 stores, more than half is accounted for by convenience stores and drug stores,” he told reporters after the firm’s investors’ briefing.
Sebastian said most of these stores will still be located in Metro Manila and Luzon, as they are also scouting for sites in Visayas.
Vice Chairman and Director Lance Gokongwei said Visayas remained an underserved market comprising only 10 percent of their total number of stores, although it shared 40 percent to the country’s total population.
Sebastian believes that their “smaller footprint” stores comprising drug stores and convenience stores will mainly drive the company’s store counts.
RRHI, the second largest multi-format retailer in the Philippines, has six main business segments: supermarkets, department stores, do-it-yourself stores, convenience stores, drug stores and specialty stores.
General Manager Justiano Gadia said that apart from expanding in provincial areas with focus on second tier cities, the firm intend to expand into new retail segments and to further enhance same stores growth.
Meanwhile, RRHI will sell to the public 484.75 million shares, including over-allotment options, for P55 to P66 a-piece.
“We are confident about the price,” said Gokongwei.
The company will kick off international roadshow on October 15 to 24 to woo investors for IPO.
It will be conducted in Hong Kong, Singapore, London, Scotland, New York and Boston.
The final price will be determined on October 24.
Maybank ATR Kim Eng Partners Inc. serves as the sole domestic underwriter for the issue.
Listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange is set on November 11.
Travellers International Hotel Group and tugboat operator Harbor Star Shipping Services Inc. will also proceed with their IPOs this month.
Philippine Business Bank, Asia United Bank, Del Monte Pacific and AG Finance went public earlier this year.