The 39th Annual General Meeting of Singer Bangladesh Ltd. was held on April 23, 2019 at the Singer Factory, Savar, Dhaka.
Dr. Fatih Kemal Ebiçlioglu, Chairman, Singer Bangladesh Limited presided over the meeting.
Mr Fatih Kemal Ebiçlioglu informed the meeting that Ardutch B.V., a subsidiary of Arçelik (a member of Koç Holdings, Turkey) acquired Retail Holdings Bhold B.V. on April 3, 2019. After the acquisition, Arçelik has become the ultimate beneficial owner of the Company.
“Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and it will further accelerate in the medium to long term. We will combine our global expertise, scale and knowledge with the strong market position of Singer Bangladesh equipped with its strong brand image, for further product developments to grasp the local market needs. Our mid-term target is to become the market leader in the major product groups," the company chairman said.
He also added that “2018 was a successful year for the Company with record sales in all key product categories. 2018 turnover increased by 24% to Tk 13.7 billion. Profit after tax increased by 23% to Tk 920 million, with earnings per share increasing at the same rate to Tk 12.0 per share.”
Members present in the meeting approved 30% stock dividend for the year 2018.
Singer Bangladesh Ltd. has purchased 16.17% share of International Appliances Limited (IAL) from Shanghai Sonlu Shangling Enterprise Group Co. Ltd. (10%) and from Sunman Corporation Limited (6.17%). As a result, IAL is now 100% owned subsidiary of Singer Bangladesh Limited.
The Singer Refrigerator was recognized in 2018 as the No 1 Refrigerator Brand in Bangladesh. This was awarded after various surveys conducted by A C Nielson, a world-renowned research firm along with Bangladesh Brand Forum.
In 2019 and beyond, Company has a plan to further increase of retail and dealer outlet to capitalize on the opportunities available in this fast growing and exciting sector.
The meeting was attended by a large number of members. Members also made their suggestions for the improvement of the Company.
-rmc//