Richard Pieris in major expansion drive

Shirajiv SIRIMANE

Richard Pieris and Company is having a good financial year and will end year with a profit in the excess of Rs 3 billion. Retail sector had been one of their best performers.

Chairman, Richard Pieris and Company Arpico, Sena Yaddehige in an interview with the ‘Daily News Business’ said that all sectors performed up to expectations excluding the plantation sector where high wages were still an issue. “The weages have been steadily increasing by around 60 percent over the last two years and is a growing concern,” he said.

Due to the success in the retail sector Arpico is planning an aggressive expansion drive in the retail business and have plans to move to the North East in a big way.

The chairman said that they are planning to invest Rs. 2 billion in two years for expansions in the retail sector.

Outlining his plans he said that they want to expand into the leasing industry and are currently looking for an overseas partner preferably from Australia.

“The diversification with regard to insurance has been very successful and the acceptance the company received were overwhelming. The main reason for this is the proven reputation and track record of Arpico and the trust people have towards Arpico for several years,” he said.

The insurance industry still has tremendous potential since only around 12% of the population and 27% of the labour force had been covered.

Expressing his views on short term plans for the company he said that they are also looking for a 250,000 square feet warehouse in Colombo mainly to increase efficiency in both their import and export business.

“Our furniture business is a Rs. 3 billion operation while the retail business too is growing. In addition the company also exports tea and we need large warehousing,” he said.

Commenting on the leisure sector he said that the company is very keen to have their foot print in the industry as well. “We want to enter the hospitality industry in a big way for a long time and had expressed our interests to acquire Hotel Cey Sands, Bentota which too was owned by Ceylinco Group and also the Confifi Hotel,” he disclosed.

He said that as a matter of principle they are not keen to pay more than the market value for any ‘deal.’ “We earn the hard way and uphold transparency all the time maintaining an open book,” he said.

Yaddehige added that shareholders are also a primary concern of them and would keep on giving them more returns.