ROBINSONS Retail Holdings Inc. (RRHI) on Wednesday said that it would shut No Brand, a specialty Korean grocery business introduced in 2019, as part of efforts to streamline its portfolio and focus on higher-performing retail formats.
In a disclosure on Wednesday, the Gokongwei-led retailer said it would gradually wind down operations and close all 11 No Brand stores by the end of June this year, marking the end of a partnership with South Korea’s Emart, which owns the No Brand label.
Robinsons Retail brought No Brand to the Philippines in 2019 through a master franchise agreement with Emart, operating dedicated stores nationwide that offered private label products positioned as affordable alternatives.
The company said the closure was aligned with a broader strategy to simplify operations and concentrate on formats that deliver “strong and sustainable returns.”
No Brand’s contribution to Robinsons Retail’s overall sales was said to be negligible at just 0.2 percent annually. It also “constitutes a very small portion” of total assets and as such Robinsons Retail said the closure would not have a material impact on its financial performance.
“Furthermore, No Brand’s 11 stores are immaterial relative to RRHI’s network of more than 2,700 company-owned stores,” the company said, which includes 157 Robinsons Supermarkets, 159 Robinsons Easymarts, 38 The Marketplace and 16 Shopwise outlets, 415 Uncle John’s convenience stores and over 2,100 franchised TGP drugstores as of the end of last year.
“The decision reflects evolving consumer preferences and how customers are choosing to shop across our retail formats,” Robinsons Retail President and CEO Stanley Co said.
“Our focus remains on meeting customer needs by providing relevant assortments in the most appropriate formats,” he added.
Robinsons Retail Holdings shares were steady at P39.25 each on Wednesday amid a 1.82-percent gain for the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.
