Fontana Pharmacy Limited celebrated a significant milestone on Saturday with the grand opening of its seventh store in the island in Portmore, St Catherine, marking a strategic move to bolster its presence in the Jamaican retail market.

The newly unveiled store spans 25,000 square feet, slightly smaller than its counterpart on Waterloo Road in Kingston.

“Since we opened in Kingston, Portmore has been pressuring us to open a store, so all I have to say is, guys, we listened, we are here, happy shopping,” Fontana’s Chief Executive Officer Anne Chang explained as the reason for the choice in the store’s location during the ceremony.

The grand opening coincided with the release of Fontana’s first-quarter financial results for the period ending September 30, 2023. The expansion efforts led to a surge in operating expenses, rising by 12.5 per cent to $522.3 million, up from $464.3 million in the prior year. The increase was primarily attributed to higher administrative costs associated with staffing to fortify the organisational structure. The Portmore store’s opening brought Fontana’s workforce to 500 employees, necessitating additional investment in recruitment, training, and addressing increased security and insurance rates. The balance sheet reflected the impact of the expansion, with property, plant, and equipment growing from $756 million to $1.3 billion.

Despite experiencing a decline in net profit for the quarter, dropping to $61.4 million, compared to the previous year’s $87.6 million, Fontana demonstrated a positive trajectory in gross profit, reaching $603.2 million, a 2.4 per cent increase from the $588.8 million recorded in quarter 1/2022. On the revenue front, the company showcased resilience, reporting $1.78 billion for the quarter, an 8.3 per cent increase over the $1.64 billion in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Fontana witnessed growth in key metrics, including transaction counts, average spend per customer, and prescription counts across all its locations.

Despite the decline in profits, Fontana remains optimistic about the future, expressing satisfaction with the initial response to the Portmore store’s opening. “We look forward to serving the Portmore community. We are confident that we will benefit from an increased customer base and economies of scale as we continue to grow our brand and footprint across Jamaica,” stated its report.