Higher consumer spending lifts Puregold earnings

GROCERY operator Puregold Price Club, Inc. has expanded its earnings last year by 16% to P6.75 billion due to increased consumer spending.

In a regulatory filing, the listed operator of Puregold and S&R stores said its net sales last year stood at P154.49 billion, up 9% from in 2018.

Making up the bulk of the pie were sales from Puregold stores (77%), and the remainder came from sales in S&R shopping warehouses and pizza stores (23%).

Same store sales growth, or the growth of sales in existing stores, stood at 4.6% for Puregold and 8.3% for S&R.

In a statement, the company attributed its improved performance last year to the increase in minimum wage in 2018 and the low inflation in 2019, which drove up consumer spending.

The group had 436 stores at the end of 2019, comprising 380 Puregold stores, 18 S&R shopping warehouses and 38 S&R pizza stores.

With the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the company said it plans to enhance its mobile application to allow remote shopping in more stores in its network.

“The company plans to offer online grocery shopping to 100 Puregold stores from the current 40 stores in our Puregold Mobile App by end of 2020 as we expect changes in consumer shopping behavior due to the COVID-19 situation,” it said in the statement.

While quarantine measures are starting to relax, the company noted consumer behavior may still be affected, and travel will continue to be constrained post-lockdown.

“Puregold will… continue its expansion program by opening 25 new Puregold stores and (opening) two S&R membership shopping warehouses in 2020. This will provide our shoppers better convenience especially now that travel is limited due to quarantine,” it said.

Shares in Puregold at the stock exchange slipped 15 centavos or 0.32% to P46.35 each on Wednesday. — Denise A. Valdez