Following its acquisition of Carrefour’s Malaysian business, Japanese retail group Aeon is forging ahead with further plans for a stronger presence in southeast Asia.

Aeon says it will invest 30 billion yen (US$374.8 million) to open stores in Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia by 2014. It plans 20 in Vietnam by 2020 and last week held supplier meetings in Ho Chi Minh City as it prepares to open two supermarkets in the city.

“We are drafting a three-year growth strategy that includes the opening of new stores and investing in existing outlets. We have no plans to shut down any stores. Instead, we will be pumping in money to uplift the business,” said Aeon’s Asean business CEO Nagahisa Oyama.

The Japanese retailer, which bought Carrefour’s Malaysian operations for US$324 million, said the acquisition provides the group with the opportunity to expand its existing roots in Malaysia and further develop its Asean operations.

Magnificient Diagraph, which owns Malaysia’s Carrefour hypermarkets, will be renamed Aeon Big.

Aeon, which also operates financial services in the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia, expects sales to top 15 billion-17 billion yen (US$186.5 million – 211. 4 million) in its Asean businesses.

The company also affirmed continuing expansion in China despite territorial dispute between Japan and China.

GB