Shwapno, the largest retail chain in Bangladesh, posted the biggest growth in turnover in the last financial year, driven by higher sales through its e-commerce platform and teleservice amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Turnover rose 18.7 per cent year-on-year to Tk 1,375 crore in the last financial year that ended in June. It was Tk 1,156 crore in the previous year, according to the recently published annual report of ACI Ltd, the owning company.
This was the highest growth of the retail chain since its inception in 2008.
“Our e-commerce and teleservice helped us increase turnover during this period,” said Sabbir Hasan Nasir, executive director of ACI Logistics, which operates Shwapno.
Its franchise expansion outside Dhaka has continued, helping it register the record sales growth whereas some competitors suffered de-growth.
“Shwapno employees were motivated to work hard as they did not see any job cut. Moreover, their increment was given despite the hard time brought on by the pandemic,” Nasir said.
Shwapno has roped in several partners to deliver groceries and other everyday essentials at the doorsteps of customers.
The superstore chain has introduced its own home delivery through teleservice for the customers who prefer direct communication with the stores rather than through online platforms. It helps it make deliveries to 11,000 customers every month, according to the directors’ report of ACI Logistics.
Shwapno express outlets have kept their stellar growth, serving about 14,000 customers daily.
The e-commerce platform is growing in terms of orders and user base and makes deliveries against more than 30,000 orders each month.
The private-label brands of the chain clocked a 71.7 per cent increase in the number of products in its assortment and a 9.7 per cent year-on-year sales growth.
Through all of these initiatives, Shwapno netted record-breaking sales of Tk 151.8 crore in June last year. It made operating profit in July 2020 and in the months of May and June of 2021.
Presently, it operates through more than 200 outlets.
With 52 newly opened express outlets, Shwapno has continued extending its footprint outside Dhaka and now has a presence in 31 districts, giving it a 49 per cent market share in the segment.
However, ACI Logistics incurred a loss of Tk 142 crore in 2020-21, albeit down 9.56 per cent year-on-year.
The lower finance cost helped the company narrow losses. The net finance cost fell 12.6 per cent to Tk 125 crore in 2020-21, according to the financial report of Shwapno.
“Shwapno has been making operating profits since the last quarter of 2020-21 and our projection is that it will log net profits from 2025,” said Nasir.
“As the operating profit is in the positive territory, the higher turnover will pave the way for us to make net profits in the coming years.”
– With The Daily Star input
