Datuk Gary Yap Keng Fatt (left) and Datuk Andrew Lim Tatt Keong (right) (pic extracted from Singapore Sunday Times article)
PETALING JAYA: Macrovalue Sdn Bhd is doubling down on store refurbishments, technology upgrades and curated retail concepts, as it bets on differentiation to stay ahead in Malaysia’s increasingly crowded supermarket sector.
Macrovalue is the owner of the Cold Storage, Giant and Mercato chains in Malaysia.
The company’s co-founder Datuk Andrew Lim Tatt Keong said to appeal to today’s consumers, supermarkets must adapt quickly to shifting preferences, noting that stores need “a personality” in order to stand out and win customer loyalty.
Lim explained that a store’s “personality” is determined by the store managers and store colleagues and also shaped by the lifestyle and rhythms of its surrounding community, with layouts, product mixes and ambience customised to reflect neighbourhood preferences.
“The feel-good factor is critical for shoppers today and is what keeps customers coming back. The ability to stay agile is key to maintaining operational resilience, especially amid rising cost pressures and competition.
“A lot of effort goes into renovating and refurbishing our outlets to create a better lifestyle experience for our customers,” he told StarBiz.
Macrovalue was founded by Lim and Datuk Gary Yap Keng Fatt in 2022, who own the company equally. In 2023, the company acquired GCH Retail (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd – the operator of Cold Storage, Giant and Mercato in Malaysia – from DFI Retail Group.
The company is geared up for expansion across the country
“The Klang Valley is still open, but we are also looking at secondary towns and under-penetrated areas such as Alor Setar and Sungai Petani. There are still many parts of the country where we have yet to penetrate,” Yap said.
Last week, the seventh Cold Storage outlet opened in Ipoh, at Sentra Mall Ipoh, marking its return to Perak. Besides the seven Cold Storage outlets, the group also has 100 Giant and Mercato stores in Malaysia.
Yap said premium formats such as Cold Storage and Mercato deliver higher margins, while Giant caters to lower to middle-income shoppers, allowing the group to cover a broad segment of the market.
However, he noted that the sector remains demanding, with tight margins and a fast-moving operating environment that requires swift decision-making.
Nonetheless, Lim noted Malaysia’s large and geographically dispersed population means the market cannot be served by just one or two players, leaving room for multiple formats and operators to coexist.
“It is very different from a small, dense market like Singapore,” Lim said, noting that retailers here need to cater to diverse communities and price points.
To stay competitive, Lim says Macrovalue has “retired the enterprise resource planning system like the Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing (SAP) and the more expensive platforms” in favour of newer, more affordable processors that better support real-time decision making and inventory control.
The company is also in talks with a major food-delivery partner in Malaysia to enable grocery deliveries, which Yap said is expected to roll out “very soon” by the second quarter of next year.
“Consumer behaviour has changed. Increasingly, people are doing everything from their home, expecting convenience at the push of a button,” he said.
The Cold Storage, Giant and Mercato operations in Malaysia are expected to generate more sales revenue looking ahead. Following the takeover of GCH Retail, Macrovalue has returned to profits since 2024.
