Retail chain SM will help its footwear affiliate SM Simply Shoes reach a total of 100 stores across the Philippines by the end of next year.
SM Simply Shoes has 24 outlets since opening in September 2014, and aims to reach its 60th store by the end of this year, says SM assistant VP Elizabeth Nathalia Tinio.
She says the shoe store targets emerging cities and towns while the main SM malls serve the metropolitan cities and sell more expensive branded footwear.
SM has also set a target to reach 75 stores by next year.
Four Simply Shoes stores have opened already this year, in Kabankalan and Victorias in Negros, in Boracay in Aklan, and, this week, in the new CityMall in Tagum, Davao del Norte. It plans more stores in Bulua, Cagayan de Oro City, inside MinPro Mall in Zamboanga, inside CityMall in Dipolog City, in Lam-an, Ozamis City, and in Surigao City.
Simply Shoes offers affordable shoes and bags and carries 20 brands including SM’s Parisian brand and Solemate.
“The shoe industry in the Philippines is growing by 5 to 10 per cent every year,” says Tinio.
Simply Shoes’ stock comes from suppliers in China as well as from Filipino shoe manufacturers in Marikina.
