Indonesian department store chain Matahari has recorded strong results in the first quarter, with an 82.8 per cent growth in net income.

Matahari’s net income totalled 82.2 billion rupiah (US$8.4 million), compared with 45 billion rupiah in the first quarter of 2012.

Strong results were driven by growth of the company’s target customer segment, increased disposable income and improvements in merchandise offerings.

Matahari operates 118 stores in 57 cities in Indonesia and is planning to open an average of 15 new stores a year for the next three years.

The company says it continues to have a positive outlook on trading for the balance of the year, seeing continued top line growth driven by the increasing disposable income within its targeted customer segment.