Ginebra San Miguel Inc. (GSMI), the hard liquor unit of San Miguel Corporation (SMC), posted record net income of P1.67 billion in 2019, up 59% from the previous year. Consolidated revenues ended up 17% higher to P29 billion while operating income closed strong at P2.9 billion.
GSMI’s sales volume was also up 14%, its highest in nine years due to wider distribution coverage, along with the roll-out of its marketing campaigns “Pilipino Ako. Ginebra Ako.” for Ginebra San Miguel, “Lakas sa Magandang Bukas” for Vino Kulafu and “I Choose Mojito” for GSM Blue. Some say that the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) team has still provided that sales push being one of the more popular ball clubs in the land.
As a result, operating income for the first quarter fell 30% to P686 million compared to the same period last year. Consolidated revenues of P7.45 billion and gross contribution of P1.8 billion were also down from the previous year.
“Despite this, I am so proud of how our people stepped up to respond to the crisis. Throughout the quarantine period, GSMI was the first to repurpose its facilities, amid the liquor ban, to produce disinfectant alcohol and meet a pressing national need. These alcohol were donated for free to critical health facilities and local government units nationwide,” Ang said.
In March, GSMI shifted its operations from liquor manufacturing to the production of 70% ethyl alcohol. To date, GSMI has donated 1.3 million liters of alcohol to frontliners in hospitals and local government units nationwide.
“This pandemic will cast a long shadow, but we are optimistic as we continue to be grounded in our purpose of making lives better for the communities we serve. We’ve been through many more challenging times in the past and we believe we will come out of this crisis stronger, better. We will beat this pandemic together,” Ang added.
Photo Courtesy: San Miguel Corporation, San Miguel Corporation, pngimage.net,
