The new Rustan’s Cebu was formally launched last Friday as a department store complex with three floors of retail space at the Ayala Center Cebu offering more luxury and international lifestyle brands.
Donnie Tantoco, president of Rustan’s Commercial Corp., said they have “quadrupled the size of the store.”
“It allowed us to bring in more categories. It carries 870 brands and these brands can now carry the full range (of their products). It has wider aisles, bigger fitting rooms and more gift-wrapping stations,” he said in a press briefing before the grand launching.
The company is also studying the opening of another branch at the South Road Properties, said RCC chairperson and chief executive officer Zenaida Tantoco.
Donnie said he sees a lot of potentials here but “we always looks out at where our partners are going,” apparently referring to Ayala Center Cebu.
At the moment, he said they want to focus on the current location and make sure that every Rustan’s customer “has a very good experience.”
“We will expand as long as we do not compromise that (customer experience),” he said.
“We’re known for luxury, beauty, fashion. We stick to our strength. If we see a critical mass, we study. We want to be part of a community and not just (go into) business,” he added.
For the grand celebration over the weekend, the new Rustan’s Cebu added local flair as it showcased Inspired Living designs by prominent Cebuanos at the home décor department on the third floor.
The new store now has three floors with a total retail space of 10,000 square meters compared to its previous home of 2,500 square meters.
Rustan’s Supermarket, which was launched last year also in Ayala Center, occupies 4,500 square meters.
The luxury retail store expanded its active wear section after Donnie noted that more customers in Cebu are more active.
Asked about the difference between the Cebu market and the Metro Manila market, Donnie said, “Cebu is a discerning market and value conscious. We need to make sure about the price quality but the value has to be there.”
He said it is harder to get Cebuanos to buy on impulse.
“But the beauty is that when you have their trust, they are loyal,” he said.
Zenaida, for her part, said “Cebuanos love the finest.”
“Some brands do better here than in Manila. Yes, Cebuanos like luxury but they like it subtle, not extravagant. It is more of inner luxury than outer luxury,” Donnie added.
Rustan’s Cebu was established here 34 years ago along Gen. Maxilom (Mango) Ave. It moved to Ayala Center Cebu years later.
Former ambassador Bienvenido Tantoco, Sr., family patriarch, was also in Cebu for the grand launch.