Dennis Uy acquires FamilyMart

MANILA, Philippines — The local operations of Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart will soon be under the helm of businessman Dennis Uy after his retail fuel business, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., decided to acquire the convenience store chain’s entire stake from its current owners.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) and SSI Group Inc. said SIAL CVS Retailers Inc., FamilyMart Co. Ltd. and Itochu Corp. have entered into a memorandum of agreement to sell their 100 percent outstanding shares of Philippine FamilyMart CVS Inc. (PFM) to Phoenix Petroleum.

PFM is the official area franchisee of the FamilyMart brand of convenience stores in the Philippines. It has a network of 67 company-owned and franchised stores all over the country.

SIAL CVS Retailers, a 50-50 joint venture company between ALI and SSI, owns 60 percent of PFM, while Japanese companies FamilyMart and Itochu own 37.6 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

“We are proud to have introduced FamilyMart to the Philippines. Filipinos have really embraced the convenience store format and FamilyMart is well positioned as one of the top convenience store brands in the country,” SSI president Anthony Huang said.

“We are delighted that Phoenix Petroleum shares our vision for the continued growth of the FamilyMart brand in the Philippines. We believe that they have a robust platform for taking FamilyMart to the next level and will be excellent stewards of the brand moving forward,” ALI senior vice president Jose Emmanuel Jalandoni added.

In a separate disclosure, Phoenix Petroleum said its potential acquisition of the third largest convenience store brand in the country complements its retail fuel business which at present has 518 stations nationwide.

The firm said the purchase also marks its entry into the fast-growing domestic convenience retail market.

“Philippine FamilyMart has built a reputation for convenience and fresh, quality offerings. We are pleased to have it as a strategic addition to the group as we broaden our products and services and offer greater convenience to our customers,” said Uy, president and CEO of Phoenix Petroleum.

FamilyMart offers a range of products and services that include ready to eat or fast food items, convenience store items, auto-loading, bills payment, and ATM services.

It was brought into the country by the group partly owned by the Ayalas and the Tantoco family in 2012.

Phoenix Petroleum, meanwhile, is a leading independent oil company in the Philippines which is engaged in the trading and marketing of refined petroleum products, including LPG and lubricants, as well as operation of oil depots and storage facilities, hauling, and into-plane services.

According to the parties involved in the transaction, the acquisition will still be subject to the approval of the Philippine Competition Commission.

UBS AG Hong Kong Branch acted as financial adviser to the sellers in this transaction.