Boulevard Holdings banks on Boracay reopening to boost sales performance
BOULEVARD Holdings, Inc. (BHI) is banking on the reopening of tourist destination Boracay Island this month to improve its business, after posting declines in its sales performance during the island’s six-month rehabilitation.
In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Thursday, the listed firm, which operates Friday’s Boracay Beach Resort, said sales dropped by 51% in the four months ending September to P11.5 million, versus the P23.6 million generated in the same period a year ago.
Sales in September alone however managed to rise 15% to P4.32 million, compared to P3.75 million seen in the same month last year.
BHI earlier said the closure of Boracay will lead to foregone revenues of P6.5 million from April to October, in addition to some P35 million set to be spent on fixed costs and expenses for the upkeep of the resort for six months.
The company also lost P22 million in cancellations of advanced deposits from customers in China and Germany after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) announced the island’s closure.
The DENR has scheduled a soft opening for the island on Oct. 15, with a full reopening on Oct. 26. It is likewise limiting the number of tourists in the island per day to 19,000, with daily tourist entry capped at 6,405, with the assumption they will only stay for two to three days.
BHI expects the island to become more enjoyable to both local and international guests once Boracay reopens, saying that it hopes for a balance of economic and development sustainability in the island. The company said the widening of main roads from Cagban Jetty Port to the island’s main areas will also reduce traffic, thereby improving guest satisfaction. This is further expected to boost tourist arrivals.
“The company expects improved business and to reap the rewards back to the 1980 resort environment that tourists fully access the beach front,” BHI said. It also expects the local government to continue its efforts to rehabilitate the island moving forward.
BHI swung to a net loss attributable to the parent of P1.77 million in the nine months ending February, versus an attributable profit of P2.02 million in the same period a year ago. Revenues meanwhile went up to P79.37 million, 11% higher year-on-year.
Shares in BHI dropped by 1.64% or 0.1 centavos to close at six centavos apiece at the stock exchange on Thursday. — Arra B. Francia