Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd (DFI)(SGX: D01) is a pan-Asian retailer that operates 9,700 retail outlets consisting of hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores and health and beauty stores. The group has a presence in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong and China and employs over 230,000 people.

DFI has grown over the years to become a powerful force in retail, as it expands its retail brick-and-mortar presence. The group has Giant (hypermarkets), Cold Storage (supermarkets), 7-Eleven (convenience stores), and Guardian (health and beauty stores) as its core brands, while also operating Maxim’s food and beverage outlets in Hong Kong, IKEA home furnishing stores in Taiwan and Indonesia, and Starbucks coffee chain in Macau.

However, in the last couple of years, DFI has faced headwinds and challenges to its business, both in the form of increased competition from other brick-and-mortar retailers as well as e-commerce. With rising rental and