MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Ayala Land Inc., the parent company of the FamilyMart convenience store network, is considering the franchising route to speed up expansion and improve its competitiveness versus the bigger operators, according to a Business Mirror report.

Jaime Ysmael, Ayala CFO, told the publication that the FamilyMart consortium is studying the mechanics of the franchising business prior to opening the convenience store chain to franchisees.

The chain’s ultimate profitability will be influenced by the store mix — franchised and company-owned — that will be achieved, yet the group is still figuring out the ideal mix of company-owned and franchised outlets.

FamilyMart is the Ayala group’s response to the growing prospects of the local retail sector, which is expected to experience a compounded growth of 7.7% between 2012 and 2017. The convenience store segment in particular has become one of the growth spots among big business groups in the Philippines.