CRC POWER RETAIL SEEK 100% GROWTH

Suthisarn Chirathivat, President for CRC Power Retail Co., Ltd.
and Power Buy Ltd.

CRC Power Retail Co, the operator of the HomeWorks and Thai Watsadu hardware and construction materials chains, plans to spend 8 billion baht to double its sales and outlets over the next three to four years.

President Suthisarn Chirathivat said the company would start speeding up expansion next year with the opening of three to four new outlets, compared to only one outlet a year in the past, because the market was becoming more competitive every year. Therefore, it wants its business to reach an economy of scale as fast as possible.

The company now has bine outlets of HomeWorks and Thai Watsadu and the number will double to 18 over the next three to four years while total sales would also double to 7 billion baht.

"We want to have a total of 80 stores for HomeWorks and Thai Watsadu in the long term, the same as our competitor HomePro has," he said. "We are ready for new experiences in this market and we look to expanding our stores in other countries in the future."

There is huge potential for CRC Power Retail to expand its business. According to Kasikorn Research Center, the market growth of the construction materials business will continue in both Bangkok and upcountry. The market worth 307 billion baht has averaged 20% annual growth over the past five years.

Mr Suthisarn said the company planned to open four new stand-alone stores next year (two each for Thai Watsadu and HomeWorks). The first branch will be built on a 40-rai plot near Ikea on the Bang Na-Trat Highway next March, and could be either a HomeWorks or Thai Watsadu.

A HomeWorks would cost 1.3 billion baht to develop and a Thai Watsadu store 900 million.

"With strong players such as HomePro, HomeWorks, Global House, Index Living Mall and Ikea (due to open next year), the competition is getting more intense every year," he said.

This year, the company plans two Thai Watsadu stores with the first one already opened in Bang Bua Thong in the first quarter.

The first Thai Watsadu store received a good response with sales of about 70 million baht per month. The second branch will be opened on Sukhaphiban 3 in December and create 300 new jobs.

CRC expects sales of 3.5 billion baht this year, up 25% from last year, with a 30% sales bump in 2011.