Blade targeting Alabang for next one-stop-shop location

Blade President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Tan said that the brand is targeting Alabang as the likely location for its next one-stop-shop.

“Most likely, the next branch will not be in Visayas or Mindanao. Most likely sa bandang Alabang kasi marami ding may pwesto dun sa South — dapat magkaron din daw tayo (Most likely the next branch will not be in Visayas or in Mindanao. Most likely it will be in Alabang because there are several shops there in the South and we were told we should have one there),” Tan told Zigwheels Philippines.

Blade recently opened its 50th store, which also happens to be a one-stop facility for all things mobility. And through it, the company aims to enter the Philippines’ mobility industry and provide solutions not only for automobiles but also for motorcycles and bicycles.

Located in Mindanao Avenue, Blade’s newest branch also has a service bay to attend to the preventive maintenance service needs of various types of vehicles, whether it rides on two or four wheels.

Explaining that putting up a store that offers solutions to almost all types of vehicles, Tan noted: “I’m almost certain na nasa future natin ito. We just have to take it step-by-step because operating and building a one-stop-shop takes a lot of capital. Lahat nang mga naipon naming pondo nilagay namin sa Timog Avenue. After that, nakaipon kami ng konti, itinayo naman namin itong Blade Mindanao Avenue (I’m almost certain that it’s in our future. We just have to take it step-by-step because operating and building a one-stop-shop takes a lot of capital. All the funds we saved, we put in our Timog Avenue branch. After that, we saved a few more and we established Blade Mindanao Avenue).”

“Very very capital intensive kasi para gawin ito, kaya wala nga actually gumagawa nito. Una, kung aircon lang paguusapan sampung aircon na yung nandun sa kabila — kuryente palang talo ka na. So, we need to make it operate profitably, ikalat natin sa mga maraming customers, markaron din ng staple family of customers. Then, it will be a template to operate the next branch (To do this is very capital intensive, that’s why nobody does this. First of all, if we talk about air conditioning, we already have 10 units in the other store — your electric bill could hurt your business. So, we need to make it operate profitably and spread the word to many customers so we can have a staple family of customers. Then, it will be a template to operate the next branch), added Blade’s head honcho.

Photos from Blade and Juan Paulo Papa

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Blade’s 50th store to usher brand into mobility industry