SSI Group to bring foreign brands to PH market

By: Doris C. Dumlao - 10 years ago

SCREENGRAB from ssigroup.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines — The newly listed specialty retailer SSI Group is bringing three foreign brands to the Philippines and rolling out its e-commerce platform in line with expansion plans for the year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday, SSI said it had acquired the Philippine franchise rights to these brands: Hamley’s, the iconic British toy retailer; C. Wonder, a luxury US brand that retails women’s clothing, personalized gifts, stylish accessories and home décor; and, Salad Stop, a popular Singaporean chain serving fresh salads and wraps.

SSI also announced that it would start online retailing under the name SSI Life.

Through the website ssilife.com.ph, SSI said it would make many leading brands in its portfolio available online beginning November 15. The website will initially sell products under the brands Marks & Spencer, TWG, Oliviers & Co, Payless Shoe Source, Nine West, Aerosoles, Bass, Superga, Steve Madden, MBT, OkaB, A/X Armani Exchange, Replay, High Sierra, Samsonite, Beauty Bar and MakeRoom. More will be made available using the online retail platform the following months.

“The Philippines is one of the world’s fastest growing Internet markets and we expect this growth to further escalate over the next few years as disposable income and broadband penetration continues to increase,” SSI president Anton Huang said in a press statement. “We are the only e-commerce participant that is able to implement an omni-channel approach where our bricks and mortar stores will complement the on-line shopping experience of our customers and vice- versa.”

SSI believes that selling selected products online will be part of the retail landscape over the long term especially for some of the specialty products distributed by SSI. As such, SSI wants to be among the first movers in e-commerce among the country’s top retailers.

On the other hand, the acquisition of the three new brands for distribution to the Philippine market is in-line with SSI’s 2014 growth strategy.

“These new brands are a valuable addition to our portfolio allowing us to continue to broaden the range of products we are able to offer to Filipino consumers. Hamley’s is SSI’s first venture into specialty toy retailing while Salad Stop is an exciting addition to our specialty food portfolio. C. Wonder, on the other hand, is an up and coming brand that we expect will resonate with Filipino shoppers,” Huang said.

SSI has seen its store network grow to 690 stores covering more than 122,000 square meters as of end-September. As of end-2013, it had only around 98,000 sqms of selling space.

The group expects to end this year with 740 to 750 stores selling its core brands, excluding those to be rolled out under a partnership with Ayala Land like FamilyMart and Wellworth.

In December, SSI will also open the first Philippine stores of Coretfiel, a leading Spanish retailer of stylish men’s and women’s accessories, and Reiss, an affordable luxury brand from the UK specializing in modern and design-led women’s apparel and accessories.