Supermarket operator MerryMart Consumer Corp. said Monday it expanded its footprint in the pharmaceutical distribution sector with the acquisition of a controlling stake in a major Quezon-based drugstore chain.
MerryMart said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it signed an agreement with Carlos Drugs-Lucena Inc. to acquire at least 67-percent stake in the pharmacy chain.
Carlos SuperDrug was founded in 1946 in Lucena City by the husband and wife team of Diomedes and Generosa Carlos. Carlos SuperDrug operates 27 branches.
“In addition to enhancing MerryMart’s range of pharmacy offerings, this transaction will give MerryMart greater market share in the region and increase its competitiveness whilst strengthening its supply chain as MerryMart continues to strive to deliver better value to its customers and stakeholders,” said MerryMart chief finance officer Hannah Yulo-Luccini.
Under the agreement, the management team of Carlos SuperDrug will continue to run the operations of the company in tandem with the MerryMart team.
“We are excited to soon work with the Carlos Group to further grow the business and at the same time welcome the Pharmacy DNA to the MerryMart ecosystem,” MerryMart chairman Edgar Sia II said.
“While the MerryMart Group continues on with its organic expansion, MerryMart will continue to keep its eyes open for merger and acquisitions opportunities in both the grocery and pharmacy space that would accelerate its growth to capitalize on the continued consolidation from traditional to modern retail in the Philippines,” Sia said.
The MerryMart group offers various grocery formats, including MerryMart Store, MerryMart Market, MerryMart Grocery, MerryMart Wholesale and Dark Groceries.
The company recently formed a new subsidiary MM Consumer Technologies Corp. with MBOX Smart Lockers as the first in its consumer technology portfolio to complement the ecosystem of the MerryMart Group.
MerryMart aims to have 1,200 branches nationwide with system-wide recurring revenues of P120 billion by 2030.
It plans to develop the MerryMart brand through company-owned stores and franchising. As of end 2020, the company had 25 operational branches.
The share price of MerryMart rose 4.02 percent Monday to close at P4.14.