Retailers plan to tap capital market for funding

Retail businesses that have recently achieved growth strides are exploring the possibilities of listing on the stock exchange to access capital, according to the Philippine Retailers Association.

Learning more about Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) will be interesting for retailers as more and more retail businesses respond to challenges of expansion and maintaining stability,” Paul Santos, chairman of PRA’s 21st National Retail Conference and Stores Asia Expo (NRCE), said in a statement.

The IPO process is long, complicated and, by itself, an expensive exercise, Santos said. However, he added, having more capital through listing was a plus for most industries.

“But how appropriate is market listing for growing retail businesses?

What are the Philippine retail business’ unique attributes that may or may not for the moment fit the requirements for market listing? These are some of the matters that we intend our membership and conference participants to gain more insights on so they can plan and be guided along these lines if they decide to go the way of the bourse,” Santos said.

Many retail businesses are family-owned or -controlled. “As such, matters involving governance attributes under a publicly listed setup are areas that need critical and deliberate consideration,” Santos said.

The pros and cons of listing will be taken up when the retail industry holds the conference on August 9 and 10. Among the speakers are Hans Sicat, president of the Philippine Stock Exchange. He will tackle “IPO as a Strategic Tool to Grow Your Business” on the first day of the event at the SMX Convention Center.

The NRCE is the country’s largest retail industry gathering with more than 700 retail owners, suppliers, CEOs and top-level executives expected to attend.

To be held at the SMX Convention Center at the SM Mall of Asia, the conference is themed “Shopping. It’s More Fun in the Philippines—Taking Customer Experience to New Heights.”