Bata to open 60 new stores this year

JAKARTA (JP): PT Sepatu Bata, partly owned by Dutch firm Lagfin B.V., plans a major expansion program despite the country's ongoing economic uncertainty.

Sepatu Bata president G.L. Zanacco said here on Tuesday that the company would open 60 new retail outlets in the country's major cities this year as part of the expansion program.

In addition, the company will expand the production capacity of its existing factories, he said, adding that Sepatu Bata has allocated about US$1 million to finance the projects.

"So far, we've opened 23 new Bata shops during the first quarter of this year," Zanacco told a media briefing.

Also attending the briefing was Thomas G. Bata, chairman of the board of directors for the Canada-based Bata Limited.

Zanacco said that, despite an unfavorable business climate resulting from the worsening political situation, the company was still confident of achieving growth this year.

"While other investors are afraid to come here, we maintain our operation and are even continuing to expand our business for future years," he said.

Zanacco said that through the expansion projects the company aimed to increase its net sales by 20 percent to Rp 441.64 billion this year.

The company booked significant growth in net sales to Rp 368.04 billion last year, a 28 percent increase from the Rp 286.72 billion it recorded in the previous year.

The company sold around 12.3 million pairs of shoes in 2000, a 10.71 percent increase compared to the previous year's sales of around 11.11 million pairs.

The significant growth in sales also generated a 25 percent increase in net profit to Rp 63.32 billion last year, up from 1999's net profit of Rp 50.39 billion, Zanacco said.

About 90 percent of Sepatu Bata's footwear products are sold in the domestic market with the remaining 10 percent exported.

The company's export markets include Italy, Germany, France, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands, England, the United States, Australia and Canada. It also exports shoes to neighboring countries such as Malaysia and Singapore. (03)