THE GROUP of businessman and former
senator Manuel B. Villar, Jr. is expanding its retail operations to complement
its real estate venture.
Mr. Villar told reporters on Saturday that MBV Holdings Corp. -- his
vehicle for retail business -- is looking to open more home appliance shops
under the “AllHome” brand and convenience stores under the “All-Day” line.
“We are putting around four to five
big AllHome formats next year -- the warehouse type,” Mr. Villar said on the
sidelines of the opening of Vista Mall Paseo de Andalucia in San Fernando,
Pampanga.
‘FILIPINO NEEDS’
MBV Holdings will end the year with
five “smaller” AllHome shops this year, each with an area of around 3,000
square meters (sq.m.) and costing around P60 million to build, Mr. Villar said.
Bigger AllHome shops with an area of
around 10,000 sq.m. cost P300 million to build.
He declined to identify prospective
locations for the new stores.
Mr. Villar said the company is also
rebranding its Finds convenience store into a new shop called All-Day.
“We are confident that we will end the
year with about 100 branches; we have 80 now,” Mr. Villar said.
“Hopefully, next year, we want to
double the number under the All-Day convenience store format.”
All-Day will compete with local
franchises 7-Eleven and Mini Stop, which dominate the convenience store market
in the country.
Mr. Villar said All-Day will
capitalize on the “Filipino brand and Filipino needs.”
Given its flagship property business,
Mr. Villar said he has “no choice” but to go into retail business.
“In the case of AllHome, I thought it
would be logical to go into this business because it fits Vista Land,” he said.
“[W]e have a lot of communities and we saw the need for this kind of stores.”
Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc., the
country largest home builder, is present in 63 cities and municipalities in the
country under the brands Camella, Crown Asia, and Brittany, according to the
company’s Web site.
Mr. Villar said MBV Holdings is open
to other retail formats, including supermarket and drug stores.
He did not rule out the possibility of
listing MBV Holdings on the stock exchange once it becomes a key player in the
retail market.
Mr. Villar said the company will
likely increase its current P1-billion authorized capital stock next year. --
Cliff Harvey C. Venzon
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