Global House announces expansion in the region

Siam Global House has announced its intention to expand to the Philippines in 2024. The Thai retailer will open its first two Philippine stores in the capital region of Metro Manila, according to the company.

This concrete announcement was preceded by careful planning. Global House previously formed a joint venture with the Cosco Group - the Philippines' top supermarket chain - thereby gaining a foothold in the country of 110 million people. The resulting company, Global House Philippines Inc., is 55 per cent owned by the Thai powerhouse. The Philippines' home improvement industry was expected to have grown 8.9 per cent annually to 385 bn Philippine pesos (EUR 6.6 bn) by 2023.

Apart from preparing for its Philippine entry, Global House also plans to expand its presence on its home turf and in the markets it currently serves. The company, which ended 2022 with 77 branches, plans to open seven new stores in Thailand this year, eight next year, and nine in 2025 so as to have 101 stores by the end of the period.

In Cambodia, Global House has one 14 000 m² outlet in Phnom Penh operated by Global House Cambodia, which is 55 per cent-owned by the Thai company. A second branch is set to open in Battambang this year, five years after the company entered the country.

In Laos, where Global House International, its 50-50 joint venture with Siam Cement Group, holds a 34 per cent stake in Souvanny Home Center, a store will be added to the seven existing ones in the fourth quarter of this year, while In Myanmar, where Global House International owns 30.33 per cent of Pro1 Global Co., two stores will be added this year to the 11 it had in 2022. The first of these is set to open in the first quarter, and the second, in the capital city of Naypyidaw, to launch in the last quarter. The company is looking to add three more stores in Myanmar by 2025.

In Indonesia, Catukarda Depot Bangunan, a company in which Global House International holds a 22 per cent stake, will add two new stores this year to the twelve it had as of the end of 2022.

Global House's regional expansion started in 2015, when it ventured into Laos. In 2018, the company entered Myanmar and Cambodia. It penetrated Indonesia in 2021 and formed the Philippine joint venture in 2022.

As its operations have been developing, one of its competitors in Thailand is looking to increase its footprint in the home market this year. DoHome Public Company Ltd. told investors that it plans to add three large stores this year to end…