Thailand now third-biggest 7-Eleven site

Bangkok Post: Business

• Published: 29/06/2010 at 12:00 AM
• Newspaper section: Business

Thailand has become the world's third largest operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores, beating Taiwan for the first time.

Suvit Kingkaeo, senior deputy managing director of CP All Plc, the local operator of 7-Eleven, said there were about 5,500 outlets in Thailand.

Taiwan ranked third globally last year with 4,000 stores. Japan tops the list with 12,000 and the US has over 6,000.

CP All still sees potential in the convenience store segment, which it expects to grow by 10% in the first half of the year, said Mr Suvit.

''We will keep up our expansion with an additional 450 to 500 outlets to be added each year,'' he said.

''We expect the number of total stores will reach 7,000 within 2012, ranking No. 2 to replace the US.''

Sales of CP All in the first half are expected to grow by 10% despite recent political unrest. The company said it would add 500 new outlets this year, half of which have already been opened.

Mr Suvit said 7-Eleven's performance was slightly affected by the May unrest. Five stores were torched during the May 19 riots and are still closed for renovations. However, sales at outlets in downtown Bangkok increased by 20% as people shopped closer to home when the curfew was imposed.

He said he was still optimistic about the outlook for Thai retailing this year. The overall business will grow by 10% because consumer confidence and spending have improved rapidly in the past month. Moreover, upcountry customers are now earning better incomes due to the rising price of farm products, encouraging them to spend more.

''If there are no further political problems during the rest of this year, I'm confident that the shopping momentum will continue to increase,'' he said.

Both local and foreign retail chains are continuing with their expansion plans. The modern trade segment is worth about 400 billion baht, of which convenience stores account for 20%.

Shares of CP All closed yesterday on the Stock Exchange of Thailand unchanged at 28.75 baht, in trade worth 125.03 million baht.