Puregold sees sustained growth in 2nd half

MANILA, Philippines — Puregold Price Club Inc., the flagship retail chain of businessman Lucio Co, expects sustained topline growth in the second half after strong revenues propelled the company’s earnings to a double digit increase in the first semester.

The listed grocery retailer posted a net income of P4.95 billion in the six-month period ending June, up by 12.5 percent from P4.4 billion in the same period in 2023.

This was driven by an eight percent improvement in revenues to P98.5 billion from last year’s P91.2 billion.

The company’s revenue expansion was complimented by the slight improvement in gross margins for both Puregold and S&R.

Puregold said it continues to see a buoyant trajectory in topline growth for the second half.

In the first half, the company experienced positive same store sales growth of 1.9 percent from Puregold stores, driven by higher traffic and 2.4 percent growth from S&R Warehouse clubs as a result of higher ticket size.

It opened 12 new Puregold stores, two S&R Membership Shopping Warehouses and one S&R New York Style quick service restaurant (QSR) in the first half.

As of end-June, Puregold had a total of 581 stores nationwide, composed of 498 Puregold stores, 28 S&R Membership Shopping Warehouses and 55 S&R New York Style QSRs.

Puregold has earmarked P8.1 billion this year to support its store network expansion.

Of the amount, P3.8 billion will be used for the development of four S&R Membership Shopping Warehouses and six S&R QSRs, while P2.4 billion has been allotted for 30 new Puregold stores.

It has likewise earmarked P1.4 billion for maintenance capital expenditures, solar projects and IT upgrades, while another P500 million will be used for logistics.