Mega Home looks to borders

Mega Home looks to borders

Chain plans to open 20 stores by 2018

Mega Home Center Co, the chain seller of home and construction materials, is keen to expand its branches in border provinces to cash in on flourishing border trade and special economic zone (SEZ) activity.

Supornsri Naktanasukanjn, the company's chief operating officer, said it aims to open 20 branches by 2018, including four this year with an investment cost of 400-500 million baht per location.

"The existing Mega Home stores in Tak's Mae Sot and Nong Khai are now well known and popular with local customers and people from Myanmar and Laos," she said.

"Our new branches should be situated in communities close to industrial estates or special economic zones, or where the traffic flows."

Founded in late 2013, Mega Home operates four stores in Pathum Thani's Rangsit, Tak, Nong Khai and Chon Buri. A fifth store in Prachin Buri's Kabin Buri is scheduled to open in May. New stores in Min Buri, Bangkok and Sa Kaeo's Aranyaprathet will open in August and October, respectively. The eighth store is being planned.

"There are many supporting factors in Kabin Buri, which has industrial zones such as 304 Industrial Estate and Rojana Industrial Park," said Ms Supornsri. "We expect the new store in Aranyaprathet will see massive demand from Cambodian customers."

She said Mega Home was also interested in having a presence in Mukdahan, which had been chosen as one of six provinces to develop new SEZs.

Mega Home expects its sales to surge by 43% to 4 billion baht this year. It reported sales last year of 2.8 billion baht, outpacing its target of 2.5 billion.

The company forecast its sales would rise to 10 billion baht by 2018 once it reaches 20 branches. By that time, Mega Home expects to have a 7-8% market share of the country's home and construction materials wholesale sector, which is worth 135 billion baht annually.

Mega Home Center is a unit of SET-listed Home Product Center Plc, the operator of HomePro hardware stores.

HomePro reported consolidated revenue last year of 51.2 billion baht, up 19.6% from a year earlier. It posted net profit of 3.31 billion baht, up 8.16%.

"HomePro focuses on the high-end segment and retail, while Mega Home covers the mid to low-end segment, including wholesale for contractors," said Ms Supornsri.

HMPRO shares closed Friday on the SET at 8.15 baht, up five satang, in trade worth 119 million baht.

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