Concepcion Industrial makes PSE debut

MANILA, Philippines - Homegrown appliance maker Concepcion Industrial Corp. (CIC) completed its listing in the local bourse yesterday, making it the eighth and last firm to go public this year.

Moving forward, the 50-year-old company is banking on partnerships and the introduction of new products to cater to increasing residential and business demand for appliances, its top official said.

Shares of CIC, which raised P1.949 billion through an initial public offering (IPO), slipped 0.58 percent or 15 centavos to P25.85, below the IPO price of P26.

“I can’t control the sentiments of this market...When people see we have a very good company, a management staff that is able to deliver, the valuation will follow,” CIC CEO Raul Joseph Concepcion said in a briefing after the listing ceremony.

In the next few years, the company is confident of posting growth given its market leadership, he said.

“Growth has been very encouraging especially in the last two years,” Concepcion said, adding that nine of 10 consumers don’t have airconditioners while six of 10 don’t have refrigerators.

For the commercial segment that accounts for 30 percent of sales, the expansion of casinos, restaurants, malls and urbanization is boosting demand, he said.

“Over the foreseeable future, it is more of our ability to cope up and deliver products rather than market demand,” Concepcion said.

CIC, through Concepcion-Carrier Airconditioning Co., signed yesterday a deal with Midea Electric Trading (Singapore) Co., Pte. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singaporean appliance giant Midea Group.

“This agreement with Midea allows us to expand our business to other white consumer goods like ovens, microwaves, cooking ranges, electric fans, washing machines and products we don’t carry today,” Concepcion said.

CIC can now handle the distribution of products of the Midea Group in the Philippines.

CIC corners 36 percent of the local airconditioner market and 26 percent for refrigerators. Of its business, 72 percent is derived from airconditioners and the remaining 28 percent is accounted for by refrigerators.

In the first half, its profits barely rose to P238.9 million from P238.6 million a year ago while net sales rose 10.7 percent to P3.76 billion from P3.4 billion.

Sales will be driven by the growth of the middle class, particularly the first-time buyers of airconditioners and those looking for energy-efficient replacements, Concepcion said.