Tycoon Henry Sy’s SM Department Stores and Hypermarkets have been ranked the third-best retail brand in Southeast Asia, according to Interbrand, the world’s largest brand consultancy firm.
In a presentation at the 22nd National Retail Conference on Wednesday, Jonathan Bernstein, director for brand strategy of Interbrand (Singapore), said the SM brand was valued at $934 million (or roughly P39 billion). This was derived at by analyzing the company’s financial statements, the role of the brand in affecting consumer choice and brand strength, which measured the company’s ability to deliver future earnings, he added.
Bernstein explained that SM ranked high because it remained “true to its core proposition of accessibility and convenience and innovating to appeal to a changing and expanding consumer base—for example, growing its SaveMore brand and embracing the digital space with its online gift registry.”
According to information from the Interbrand website, the SM Department Stores and Hypermarkets, part of the retail arm of one of Philippines’ biggest conglomerates, SM Investments Corp., had a network of 46 department stores and more than 140 grocery outlets across Metro Manila and various provinces, which “prove to be accessible and convenient to a growing consumer base.”