SM’s Alfamart nears 2,500-store milestone

MANILA, Philippines —  Alfamart Philippines, the SM Group’s minimart business, looks to reach the 2,500-store milestone this year as it continues its aggressive network expansion to provide more shoppers with the convenience of a neighborhood store.

“We have over 2,300 stores at present. We’ll probably end the year with 2,500,” Alfamart Philippines chief operating officer Harvey Ong told The STAR.

Ong said Alfarmart is looking to add at least 200 new stores this year, with  store expansion still focused within Luzon.

“Of course it gets more challenging now because we’re everywhere already. It’s not like before when there are so many sites to choose from. Eventually, we’ll get to Visayas and Mindanao, we just don’t know when,” Ong said.

“We want to make sure we saturate first the opportunities in Luzon because we don’t want to spread ourselves too thin. So (we will wait) when the right time comes,” he said.

Alfamart Philippines is a joint venture between SM and Alfamart, one of the leading retailers with more than 21,000 mini-marts in Indonesia.

As part of SM’s retail food business, Alfamart blends the convenience of a neighborhood store with the breadth of a supermarket.

The minimart chain offers a wide assortment of products catering to daily needs including a selection of basic groceries, SM Bonus products, fresh and frozen goods, snacks and personal care items at reasonable prices.

Since inaugurating its first store in the country in June 2014, Alfamart has successfully expanded across 11 provinces, including Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Rizal, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Bataan, Pangasinan and Zambales, as well as in key cities in Metro Manila.

Alfamart has also commenced its franchising program to provide micro, small and medium enterprises the opportunity to grow alongside its nationwide expansion.

Ong said the group welcomes more competition in the local market, especially the rise of hard discount stores like DALI and O!Save.

“It’s always after the same wallet, so whether it’s a big store or small store, if it’s in your area, it’s another option for the shoppers. We’re a different business model. We have a wider range of assortment so I think it depends on the need of the shoppers,” Ong said.

“I’m still bullish because the population is still growing, the economy is still growing. I think the pie will continue to get bigger. It’s big enough for everyone to share. And having competition is good. It forces you to become better.  At the end of the day, it’s good for the shoppers,” he said.