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Puregold

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Puregold
Company typePublic
PSEPGOLD
IndustryRetailing
FoundedSeptember 8, 1998; 26 years ago (1998-09-08)
FounderLucio L. Co
HeadquartersErmita, Manila, Philippines
Number of locations
452 (2022)[1]
Area served
Philippines
Key people
Susan P. Co (Chairman)
Ferdinand Vincent P. Co (President)
Lucio L. Co (Director)
Revenue165.32 billion (2020)
7.34 billion (2020)
OwnerCosco Capital Inc. (48.58%)
Public (34.50%)
Others (16.92%)
Number of employees
12,170 (2023)[2]
Websitepuregold.com.ph Edit this at Wikidata

Puregold Price Club, Inc. or simply Puregold (stylized in all caps) is a chain of supermarkets in the Philippines trading goods such as consumer products (canned goods, housewares, toiletries, dry goods, and food products, among others) on a wholesale and retail basis. It currently has approximately more than 400 operating stores and over 20 food service stalls.[3]

History

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Interior of the Puregold Shaw branch along Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong
Puregold Calamba-Crossing branch along J.P. Rizal Street in Calamba, Laguna
Luis Co Chi Kiat Mausoleum, Manila Chinese Cemetery

Puregold owner Cosco Capital, Inc. is under the Luis Co Chi Kiat Foundation Inc. (LCCKFI), founded and registered on March 28, 2003, by the late Luis Co Chi Kiat's children. Luis L. Co, married to Susan P. Co, is the Chairman of Cosco Capital, Inc., Puregold, and S&R Membership Shopping.[1] Lucio Co grew up in Santo Cristo, Divisoria. His parents, Luis Co Chi Kiat (October 5, 1917 – July 31, 2002) and Co Lao Siok Hian (April 6, 1924 – September 4, 2014) who owned Atlantic Glassware store, are buried at the Luis Co Chi Kiat Mausoleum in Manila Chinese Cemetery.[4]

During the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Chinese-Filipino businessman Lucio Co, who owned the Alcorn Gold Resources Corporation (later renamed Cosco Capital, Inc.), initially focused on oil and mineral exploration and development. However, due to the increasing price of commodities, the company ventured out into the retail industry, which at the time, was dominated by retail giant SM.[5]

On September 8, 1998, Puregold Price Club was founded by Lucio Co and his wife Susan Co. Its first branch opened on December 12, 1998 as the anchor tenant of Liberty Center (now Mandala Park)[6] along Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong.[5]

In October 2011,[7] Puregold Price Club went public and was inaugurated as a listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange.

In 2012, Puregold acquired Kareila Management Inc., which owns S&R Membership Shopping and its six operating outlets through a 16.5 billion share swap, resulting in S&R becoming a Puregold subsidiary. In the same year, Puregold also acquired the Parco supermarket chain in a deal valued at around 760 million from the Gant Group of Companies, which operates 19 outlets. These outlets were converted into Puregold branches.[8][9] The shareholders of the retail chain Puregold have approved the merger of the other two operating units into the parent company, consolidating Puregold's supermarket businesses under the publicly listed supermarket operator.[10]

In February 2013, global investment firm Capital Group Companies (CGC) bought 5.4% total outstanding stock of Puregold.[citation needed]

In May 2014, Puregold formed a joint venture with Japanese convenience store chain Lawson under the name PG Lawson Inc. Puregold owns 70% of the venture and they opened their first branch in San Andres, Manila on March 30, 2015.[11]

In 2023, Puregold acquired 14 DiviMart supermarket branches, all in Luzon.[1][12]

CinePanalo Film Festival

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On March 16, 2024, Puregold had its first CinePanalo Film Festival awards, which featured 6 full-length films by filmmakers (₱2.5 million grant each) and 25 short films by student directors (₱100,000 grant each). The films were shown in Gateway Mall. The festival is aimed to "uphold education as catalyst in a film medium, for present and future generations."[13]

In the second 2025 Puregold CinePanalo, a ₱3,000,000 full-length film production grant will be bestowed upon each of 7 directors, aside from a ₱150,000 grant to each of 25 student short filmmakers. The Awards Night is set for March 19, 2025.[14]

Branches

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  • Puregold Guiguinto - opened in 2011
  • Puregold Jr. - Cruz
  • Puregold Malolos - (Malolos and Crossing)

References

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  1. ^ a b Merkado Barkada (June 22, 2023). "Puregold to acquire 14 DiviMart Supermarkets". Philippine Star. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  2. ^ "Puregold Price Club Inc, PGOLD:PHS profile - FT.com". markets.ft.com. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  3. ^ "PGOLD.PS - Puregold Price Club Inc Profile". Reuters. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  4. ^ "Lucio Co: Wealth, Business Empire, and Life Outside Work". esquiremag.ph. December 26, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Stories of Filipino Success: Lucio and Susan Co". Philippine Primer. April 27, 2017. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  6. ^ "Our Legacy | Mandala Park, Litton & Co., Inc". Litton & Co., Inc. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  7. ^ "Puregold IPO cited as 2011 Best Mid-Cap IPO by FinanceAsia". Philstar.com. February 13, 2012. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  8. ^ "Press release" (PDF). pse.com.ph. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
  9. ^ Lucas, Daxim L. (July 5, 2012). "Puregold buys Parco supermarket chain". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  10. ^ "Puregold consolidates supermarket businesses". BusinessWorld. November 23, 2012. Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  11. ^ "We have set to open the first LAWSON Store in the Philippines on March 30th". Lawson.jp. March 26, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
  12. ^ Rivas, Ralf (June 22, 2023). "Puregold acquires 14 DiviMart supermarkets". Rappler. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  13. ^ Almazan, Faye (March 18, 2024). "Take a look at the winners at the CinePanalo Film Festiva". GMA Integrated News. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  14. ^ "CinePanalo is gold". Daily Tribune (Philippines). June 10, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
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