Philippine Seven Corporation (PSC) – the franchise operator of 7-Eleven – is gearing up to open 500 new stores across the Philippines this year, with an estimated budget of approximately US$103M.
Lawrence De Leon, Finance and Accounting Services Division Head at PSC, said the company is encouraged by its sales performance and expects to end the year with 4,100 stores in the country.
“We’re already more than halfway there as we have already opened 270 stores by the end of the first three quarters,” he continued. “This year, most stores are in residential clusters since the pandemic changed consumer behaviour.”
Meanwhile, Jose Paterno, President and CEO of PSC, emphasised that the company is focused on expanding to branches outside of Metro Manila.
“The demand is outside. It’s also where the competition is. In Visayas and Mindanao, we’re the only ones with the logistics network,” he explained. “Visayas and Mindanao are a quarter of our total stores. We’re scrambling to build fast enough, looking for contracts, sending people out and hiring more people.”