Singer Bangladesh, a home appliance manufacturer and marketer, yesterday said it is going to invest Tk 680 crore to establish a new manufacturing facility to cater to the growing demand for home appliances.
Following the company’s disclosure, its shares closed 1.67 per cent higher at Tk 170 yesterday at the Dhaka Stock Exchange. Singer Bangladesh said its board approved a total budget of 71 million euros, which is estimated to be equivalent to Tk 680 crore, for establishing the new manufacturing facility.
The investment will be financed from internal sources and bank financing from both foreign and local sources.
“The proposed manufacturing facilities would cater to the increasing local demand with a competitive price and would also contribute to the company’s growth,” said Singer Bangladesh Ltd, which is owned by Retail Holdings Bhold BV, a concern of Arcelik AS, the largest home appliances company in Turkey.
Kazi Ashiqur Rahman, company secretary of Singer, said they would update investors whenever there is any progress.
The electronics and home appliance seller posted Tk 1,581 crore in sales in 2021, up from Tk 1,495 crore the previous year, despite losing sales opportunities due to the worsening coronavirus situation at the beginning of the second quarter.
“There were effectively no sales for 73 days in 2021 as the government declared countrywide lockdowns from time to time. Consequently, we missed the seasonal sales of summer, Eid-ul-fitr, and Eid-ul-Adha,” Singer said in its annual report.
Its operating profit declined 20 per cent year-on-year to Tk 130 crore in 2021.
Singer’s net profit dipped 35 per cent to Tk 51.8 crore in 2021 compared to Tk 80 crore the previous year, it added.
With 1,697 employees, Singer has 437 retail outlets and 1,092 dealers across the country.
