PriceSmart Inc (PSMT) is set to double its Jamaican store count in 2026 as it moves to open two new warehouse clubs in Montego Bay, St James and the other on South Camp Road in Kingston.

The Nasdaq listed company announced the news on Thursday when it published its full year 2025 results for the period ending August 31. PriceSmart Realty (Jamaica) Limited purchased a five-acre property in Montego Bay and plans to open the third warehouse club by summer 2026. PriceSmart (Jamaica) Limited will lease a three-acre property on South Camp Road to develop its fourth warehouse club which should open by autumn 2026. These new clubs would be PriceSmart’s 58th and 59th warehouse clubs once opened and will match the number of stores the retailer has in Trinidad & Tobago.

“Before I continue, I want to take a moment to acknowledge the impact of Hurricane Melissa on our team members, their families, and our members in Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and across the region. Our thoughts are with everyone affected, and we remain committed to supporting recovery efforts and ensuring the safety and well-being of our people and communities,” said recently installed PriceSmart Chief Executive Officer David Price, who noted that the Jamaican stores reopened on October 29, one day after the passage of the hurricane.

PriceSmart Realty (Jamaica) received approval from the National Environmental and Planning Agency (NEPA) on February 18 for the development of a commercial development at Sugar Mill Road, Ironshore, St James. The Jamaican subsidiary was subsequently approved by NEPA on June 17 for the construction of an office and commercial complex at 14 South Camp Road. PriceSmart’s third quarter (February to May) report revealed that it had six land purchase agreements in place at the time valued at US$22.5 million ($3.58 billion).

PriceSmart opened its first Jamaican location at 111 Red Hills Road in February 2003. The growth in sales pushed the company to develop a two-floor parking garage in mid-2018 to accommodate the traffic at the location. The company then spent US$20 million ($3.1 billion) to develop its Braeton Parkway, Portmore, location which officially opened in April 2022 as its 50th warehouse club. The floor space at the Portmore location was expanded by up to 20 per cent in late 2024, following robust demand for the company’s services. The company opened the PriceSmart Fresh Bakery at Shop 26, Bogue City Centre, Montego Bay, in June 2021 to serve the Western market.

Although PriceSmart doesn’t disaggregate the revenue figures for its Caribbean segment, the Jamaican market was lauded again by the company for a second consecutive year. Net merchandise sales from the two Jamaican stores increased 13.1 per cent for the 2025 period compared to the 2024 period where Jamaica had a 12.2 per cent increase in sales. The Jamaican Red Hills store had a 10.3 per cent rise in sales for the 2020 period and a 11.5 per cent rise in sales during 2019.

The overall Caribbean segment saw comparable net merchandise sales improve seven per cent to US$1.44 billion ($230.21 billion) with all markets experiencing positive net merchandise sales growth. Membership income for this segment increased 16 per cent to US$22.89 million ($3.65 billion) as the number of membership accounts grew five per cent to 506,125 accounts.

Even with a marginal rise in cost of goods sold and administrative expenses, operating profit for the segment grew 19 per cent to US$89.04 million ($14.20 billion). After accounting for finance expenses and taxes, the Caribbean segment’s net profit increased 16 per cent to US$65.35 million ($10.43 billion). US$39.49 million was spent as capital expenditure during the year on property, plant and equipment (PP&E). PriceSmart defines Jamaica, Dominican Republic, US Virgin Islands, Barbados, Aruba and Trinidad & Tobago as part of its Caribbean segment.

“In addition, during the first quarter of fiscal 2026, we expect to finalize implementing a new point-of-sale system, Elera, a Toshiba product, in all of our English-speaking markets in the Caribbean, and in fiscal year 2026 we will begin implementation in our Spanish speaking Central American markets. We believe with Elera we can achieve faster checkout times, improve employee productivity and enhance our payment option capabilities,” said PriceSmart’s 10K (annual report) filing.

PriceSmart expanding footprint

PriceSmart’s Trinidadian operations were able to complete three financing transactions in the fourth quarter which pushed long-term debt for that market up to US$70.43 million. One transaction involved a Trinidadian subsidiary issuing a privately placed bond in Jamaican dollars but indexed to the United States dollar for the equivalent of US$29.5 million. This bond has a 7.25 per cent interest rate and a four-year tenure.

Another transaction saw the Trinidadian subsidiary enter into a four-year cash secured syndicated loan agreement for US$20.5 million with US$15 million denominated in USD and US$5.5 million denominated in Jamaican dollars but indexed to the United States dollar. This loan carries a 7.25 per cent interest rate.

The Trinidadian subsidiary also borrowed US$15 million that is indexed to the Trinidad and Tobago dollar. This is a three-year loan with a 11.50 per cent interest rate. Although PriceSmart was able to reduce its balance of TTD below the US$70 million equivalent mark, it still had US$59.7 million worth of TTD that it could not readily convert to hard currencies.

PriceSmart entered into a US$10-million loan agreement denominated in Guatemalan Quetzales (GTQ) to partially fund the Quetzaltenango warehouse club in Guatemala which opened in August 2025. The company also entered into a US$12.5 million loan to fund the purchase of its new San Diego, California headquarters. The first loan has a duration of 15 years with an interest rate of 7.60 per cent while the second loan has a 10-year tenure with an interest rate of 5.72 per cent.

PriceSmart adapted its Panama distribution centre to handle cold merchandise during the first quarter of the 2026 FY while setting up a new dry distribution centre in Guatemala. The company is also set to open PriceSmart-run distribution centres in Trinidad and Dominican Republic during the 2026 financial year. This is on top of the company’s new warehouse club in La Romana, Dominican Republic which should open in spring 2026. PriceSmart will also be opening a distribution centre in China during the first half of 2026 which should reduce landed costs, lead times and improve working capital.

Following the July announcement that it would explore Chile as a new market, PriceSmart incorporated PriceSmart Chile SpA, hired a general country manager and signed an executive agreement for a prospective club site. Price noted in Friday’s earnings call that they’re moving quickly and managing key factors such as permitting and construction. An August 25 article by Diario Financiero noted that PriceSmart had registered more than ten brands in the country and that sources noted that there would be three stores in the first phase by the company.

All these developments were a positive for PriceSmart which grew consolidated revenue by seven per cent from US$4.91 billion to US5.27 billion, largely due to the growth in net merchandise sales to US$5.15 billion. Membership income grew 14 per cent to US$85.57 million as total membership accounts grew six per cent to 2.01 million, with 17.9 per cent of members being Platinum.

However, PriceSmart’s operating expenses grew at the same pace to US$5.04 billion, resulting in operating profit rising by just five per cent to US$232.51 million. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation grew six per cent to US$320.68 million. Higher finance costs along with taxes resulted in the company’s net income rising by six per cent to US$147.89 million with an earnings per share of US$4.82.

Total assets increased 12 per cent to US$2.27 billion with PP&E valued at US$996.28 million and cash and cash equivalents rising 93 per cent to US$241.02 million. Total liabilities and shareholder’s equity was US$1.02 billion and US$1.25 billion, respectively.

PriceSmart’s stock price dipped seven per cent on Friday to US$114.94, giving the company a market capitalisation of US$3.53 billion. The stock remains up 24 per cent year-to-date with a 52-week high of US$125.40.

PriceSmart will open two new Jamaican clubs in 2026.