Sun Life posts 681% jump in sales in 7 months

Sun Life Financial Plans, Inc., (SLFP) the pre-need unit of the Sun Life Group of Companies, reported a 681 percent jump in sales in the first seven months of the year, driven by intensified marketing efforts.

In a statement, SLFP said sales from January to July 2006 reached over P420 million, giving it a market share of close to 30 percent.

Total sales of the country’s pre-need firms hit P11.2 billion during the period under review, a marked decline of 16 percent decline from P13.4 billion the previous year.

SLFP president and chief executive officer Lorenzo Tan said with the strong performance, the company "is well on its way towards achieving the corporate goal of reaching the industry’s top spot."

Among the goals Tan had outlined since assuming office about 15 months ago was to bring SLFP’s businesses, including pre-need, to the top spot in their respective business categories within the next five years. "The way our pre-need business is growing, we might get to our goal earlier than scheduled," he said.

Actuarial experts are projecting that SLFP would attain leadership position by the end of the year after consistently recording triple digit growths in the past 12 months.

SLFP’s exceptional performance was attributed to "a highly successful marketing campaign that effectively supported the company’s traditionally strong sales force."

To further increase its market share, the SunLife Group is eyeing the C and OFW (overseas Filipino workers) markets and is in the process of reinventing some of its products and services to cater to the needs of these new target groups.

The SunLife Financial Group is a leading international financial services organization providing a diverse range of wealth accumulation and protection products and services to individuals and corporate customers.

Tracing its roots back in 1865, the SunLife Group has operations in key markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China and Bermuda.

As of end-March this year, the Sun Life Financial group of companies had total assets in excess of $400 billion Canadian dollars.