Philippine Seven Corp., (PSC), the local franchise holder of global convenience store chain 7-Eleven, expects to end the year with 4,000 stores nationwide as the company continues to roll out more outlets.
PSC head of finance Lawrence de Leon said in a recent news briefing the company planned to open 400 to 450 stores this year.
The company inaugurated 170 stores in the first half of the year, expanding total store network to 3,940 stores.
“So, we are basically nearing the 4,000 store mark, which we expect to achieve sometime in the fourth quarter of the year,” de Leon said.
PSC said it would spend up to P4.5 billion to fund the store expansion and re-modeling of older stores. It said at least 60 percent of the stores opening this year are through franchising, while the remaining 40 percent would be company-owned.
PSC president and chief executive Jose Victor Paterno said the company was also looking to further expand its presence in the Visayas and Mindanao on high demand and increasing incomes.
“We are bullish on the growth of these regions,” Paterno said. “We want to move fast before rents go up.”
Paterno said this move would also decentralize the company’s growth as Metro Manila, which has been a resource of growth, has become congested. PSC has 552 stores in the Visayas and Mindanao.
Meanwhile, the PSC approved the declaration of 100 percent stock dividend to all shareholders as of record date Aug. 2, 2024 during its recent stockholders meeting. Payment date is Aug. 15, 2024.
The stock dividend came a few months after the company declared a hefty P7.2 billion in cash dividend, an accumulation of previous years’ performance.
“The increase in capital via 100 percent stock dividend was largely for the purpose of being able to give more cash dividends in the future compliant with Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulations,” PSC said.
