President Chain Store Corp, (PCSC, 統一超商) which operates the nation’s largest convenience store chain, 7-Eleven, has reported record-high net income in the first quarter, supported by both strong operating and non-operating income.
The company posted NT$2.97 billion (US$106.25 million), or NT$2.86 per share, in net profit for the first three months of the year, up 46.9 percent from NT$2.02 billion, or NT$1.94 per share, a year ago, according to the company’s financial statement released on Monday.
The decision to sell all the stakes that it held in the first quarter of Muji.tw Co Ltd (台灣無印良品) helped generate a total of NT$1.02 billion in non-operating income for PCSC, the company said in a statement.
The strong sales performance of 7-Eleven during the Lunar New Year holiday, which saw revenue rise about 10 percent from the previous year during the same period, also drove up President Chain’s profitability in the first three months, the statement said.
Taiwan FamilyMart Co (全家便利商店), the nation’s second-largest convenience store operator, also saw its net profit grow 89.5 percent in the first three months compared with the same period last year.
REDESIGN
First-quarter net income totaled NT$205.92 million, or NT$0.92 per share, up from NT$108.65 million, or NT$0.49 per share, recorded a year ago, mainly on the back of store renovations at home and the closing of some loss-making outlets overseas, the company said in a statement.
“The company has seen more than 50 percent of the FamilyMart outlets renovated to the new style store, with larger space and more seats,” the statement said.
That has caused year-on-year growth of the same-store sales to reach 4 percent in the first three months, FamilyMart added.
FLAVOR OF THE MONTH
The two convenience store chains are engaged in a local soft-serve ice cream showdown for the coming summer.
President Chain sells soft-serve vanilla ice cream in about 600 7-Elevens and started serving chocolate ice cream on Wednesday last week.
FamilyMart, which offers soft-serve ice cream in about 700 shops, launched sales of green-tea-flavored ice cream at the end of last month, which helped daily sales double, compared with the average daily sales before the addition to the menu.
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