View source for DFI Retail Group

{{Short description|Asian retail company}}
{{Redirect|Dairy Farm|a farm where milk is produced|dairy farming|a building where milk is harvested|dairy}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2019}}
{{Infobox company
| name = DFI Retail Group Holdings Limited
| logo = DFI Retail Group.svg
| logo_size = 120px
| image = Devon House 2014.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| image_caption = The headquarters of the DFI Retail Group at Devon House, Hong Kong
| former_name = Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited (until 2022)
| type = [[Public company|Public]]
| traded_as = {{LSE|DFIB}}<br />{{SGX|D01}}
| company_slogan = 
| foundation = {{Start date and age|df=yes|1886}}
| founder = [[Patrick Manson|Sir Patrick Manson]]
| location = [[Quarry Bay]], [[Hong Kong]] (HQ)<br/>[[Bermuda]] (Legal base)<br/>Singapore (Legal base)
| key_people = {{ubl|
* Benjamin William Keswick (chairman)
* Scott Price (Group CEO)<ref>"[https://www.dfiretailgroup.com/investor-relations/leadership-team Leadership Team | DFI Retail Group]." dfiretailgroup.com, Retrieved on 2023-09-06.</ref>
}}
| num_employees = 200,000
| industry = [[Retail]]
| products = Food, health and beauty products
| owner = [[Jardine Strategic]] (78%)
| revenue = US$28.2 billion
| homepage = {{official url}}
}}
{{Chinese
| title = DFI Retail Group Holdings Limited
| t = 牛奶國際控股有限公司
| s = 牛奶国际控股有限公司
| j = ngau4 naai5 gwok3 zai3 hung3 gu2 jau5 haan6 gung1 si1
| p = Niúnǎi Guójì Kònggǔ Yǒuxiàngōngsī
}}

'''DFI Retail Group Holdings Limited''' (formerly known as '''Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited''') is a [[Hong Kong]]–based retail company with legal bases in [[Bermuda]] and Singapore. A subsidiary of the [[Jardine Matheson|Jardine Matheson Group]], it is a major [[East Asia|East]] and [[Southeast Asia]]n retailer involved in the processing and wholesaling of food and health and beauty products. [[Jardine Strategic Holdings|Jardine Strategic]], a publicly listed [[holding company]], has an attributable 78 percent stake in the firm.  It is [[Listing (finance)|listed]] on the [[London Stock Exchange]], with secondary listings on the [[Singapore Exchange]] (SGX) and [[Bermuda Stock Exchange]] (BSX).

The head office is located at Devon House in [[Taikoo Place]], [[Quarry Bay]], [[Hong Kong]].<ref>"[http://www.dairyfarmgroup.com/en-US/Our-Company/Our-Offices Our Offices] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211210112518/https://www.dairyfarmgroup.com/en-US/Our-Company/Our-Offices |date=2021-12-10 }}." Dairy Farm. Retrieved on October 2, 2016. "MANAGEMENT OFFICE 11/F Devon House, Taikoo Place, 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong" - [http://www.dairyfarmgroup.com/zh-HK/Our-Company/Our-Offices Address in Traditional Chinese] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629103137/http://dairyfarmgroup.com/zh-HK/Our-Company/Our-Offices |date=2017-06-29 }}: "香港鰂魚涌英皇道979號 太古坊德宏大廈11樓" [http://www.dairyfarmgroup.com/zh-CN/Our-Company/Our-Offices Address in Simplified Chinese] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629070222/http://dairyfarmgroup.com/zh-CN/Our-Company/Our-Offices |date=2017-06-29 }}: "香港鲗鱼涌英皇道979号 太古坊德宏大厦11楼"</ref>

As of 31 December 2020, the Group, its associates and joint ventures operated over 9,997 outlets; [[Wellcome]]/Food World (supermarkets), a controlling stake in [[Maxim's Catering]] ([[foodservice]]), [[Cold Storage (supermarket)|Cold Storage]] (supermarkets), [[Market Place by Jasons|Jasons Market Place/Market Place by Jasons/Jasons Food Hall]] (high end supermarkets), [[Hero Supermarket|Hero]] (supermarkets), [[Mannings]]/Guardian (health and beauty) stores; it also operates [[7-Eleven]] (convenience stores) throughout the region, and [[IKEA]] (home furnishings) stores in [[Hong Kong]], [[Macau]], [[Indonesia]] and [[Taiwan]].

The group and its associates and joint ventures operated over 9,997 outlets, employed over 220,000 people and had total annual sales in excess of US$28.2 billion.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=Dairy Farm 2020 Annual Report|url=https://ar2020.dairyfarmgroup.com/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509140331/https://ar2020.dairyfarmgroup.com/ |archive-date=2021-05-09 }}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:Old Office of Dairy Farm International Holdings.JPG|thumb|250px|right|Dairy Farm's old office in Pok Fu Lam.]]
[[Image:The Two Old Chowsheds of Dairy Farm, Hong Kong.JPG|thumb|250px|right|The old cowsheds in Pok Fu Lam, part of the [[Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts]] [[Béthanie (Hong Kong)|Béthanie]] campus.]]
[[Image:HK TheFringeClub.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Exterior view of the [[Old Dairy Farm Depot]], housing the [[Hong Kong Fringe Club]]]]

=== 19th century: Early history ===
Dairy Farm Company Ltd was set up in 1886 by Sir [[Patrick Manson]],<ref name="Sunzi1H">"[http://hkjo.lib.hku.hk/archive/files/8deeba7475f950a5f3938fc24f687bbe.pdf Hong Kong Hongs with Long Histories and British Connections]." Hkjo.lib.hku.hk, Retrieved on 2013-01-03.</ref> a Scottish surgeon, along with Sir [[Paul Chater]], Mr [[Phineas Ryrie]], Mr Granville Sharp, Mr WH Ray and Mr JB Coughtry, five other prominent Hong Kong businessmen.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Farmer |first=Hugh |date=February 26, 2019 |title=Dairy Farm Company |url=https://industrialhistoryhk.org/dairy-farm-company/ |website=The Industrial History of Hong Kong}}</ref> The company was created with three founding objectives: to improve the health of Hong Kong people by providing them with non-contaminated cows' milk, to breed a herd of imported dairy [[cattle]] locally to decrease the price of milk by half, and to realise profit for its shareholders.<ref name=":1" /> Manson purchased 80 Friesian cows from Scotland and a plot of land for his farm in [[Pok Fu Lam]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cheung |first=Catharina |date=March 9, 2021 |title=Hidden Hong Kong: A history of local Hong Kong dairy farms |url=https://www.localiiz.com/post/food-drink-history-hong-kong-local-dairy-farms-companies |website=Localiiz}}</ref>

In 1890, Dairy Farm built a low-rise brick and stucco building on [[Lower Albert Road]] in [[Central, Hong Kong|Central]] for use as a cold storage warehouse. This warehouse was later renovated and expanded in 1913 to include a [[dairy shop]], a room for [[Smoking (cooking technique)|meat smoking]], a cold storage room for winter clothes and residency for its manager. The building later evolved into the company headquarters until the company moved in the 1970s. The abandoned building was acquired by the [[Hong Kong Fringe Club]], a non-profit-making arts organisation in 1984, and has been carefully restored. This distinctive 19th century building, known as the [[Old Dairy Farm Depot]], is a well-known landmark in Central providing a wide variety of cultural activities and performances.

=== 20th century ===
In 1904, Dairy Farm began importing frozen meat and opened its first retail store at the Central District depot. The second Dairy Farm store was established on [[Nathan Road (Hong Kong)|Nathan Road]], [[Kowloon]] towards the end of the [[World War I|war]] in 1918. Amongst other things, this store provided fishing boats in Hong Kong with large amounts of ice.

In 1960, Dairy Farm and [[Lane Crawford]] formed a merged food retailing operations and renamed these supermarkets as Dairy Lane under Dairy Lane Limited. This joint business was undone by the acquisition of the [[Wellcome]] chain in 1964.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dianestormont.com/hktb/timeline-final.pdf.|title=Dairy Farm 1886–2006|website=Dianestormont.com|access-date=23 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220113746/http://www.dianestormont.com/hktb/timeline-final.pdf.|archive-date=20 February 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1972, Dairy Farm was acquired by [[Hong Kong Land]], a Jardines subsidiary. In 1986 Dairy Farm was relisted on the [[Hong Kong Stock Exchange]] after it was demerged from Hong Kong Land. Dairy Farm acquired a 50% interest in Maxim's at the same time from Hong Kong Land. The [[7-Eleven]] convenience store chain in Hong Kong and Singapore was acquired from Jardine Matheson in 1989.

=== 21st century ===
Since 1999, Dairy Farm has continued to expand its footprint by acquiring supermarket and other retail operations in Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. Notably, it also acquired [[IKEA]] Hong Kong, Taiwan in 2002 and began Ikea's Indonesian operation in 2014.

In May 2012, Dairy Farm bought a 50% stake in the Rustan Supercenters, Inc., the [[Rustan's|Rustan]] group's supermarket chain. 36% came from the Tantoco family and 14% from the Spinnaker group.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.philstar.com/business/2012/05/08/804303/jardine-buys-50-rustans-supercenters|title=Jardine buys 50% of Rustan's Supercenters|website=Philstar.com|access-date=23 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abs-cbn.com/business/05/07/12/tantocos-partner-dairy-farm-rustans-supermarkets|title=Tantocos get Hong Kong partner for Rustan's supermarkets|author=Coco Alcuaz|website=ABS-CBN News|access-date=23 June 2019}}</ref> Its holdings increased to 64% in 2015<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abs-cbn.com/business/06/22/15/rustans-pursues-moderate-expansion|title=Rustan's pursues moderate expansion|first=Richmond|last=Mercurio|work=The Philippine Star|date=22 June 2015|access-date=24 March 2018}}</ref> and 100% in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://insideretail.asia/2017/11/15/flat-quarter-for-dairy-farm-sales/|title=Flat quarter for Dairy Farm sales|last=Inside Retail Asia|date=15 November 2017|access-date=24 March 2018}}</ref> On March 23, 2018, the entire stake was sold to Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. through a [[stock swap]], yielding Dairy Farm 18.25% of Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. stock.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://business.inquirer.net/248152/gokongwei-buying-rustans-grocery-chain|title=Gokongwei buying Rustan grocery chain|first=Doris|last=Dumlao-Abadilla|newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer|date=23 March 2018|access-date=24 March 2018}}</ref> In 2018, therefore, Rustan Supercenters are fully acquired by Robinsons Retail Holdings the 20.00% of which is owned by Mulgrave Corporation and GCH Investments, wholly owned subsidiaries of Dairy Farm.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.robinsonsretailholdings.com.ph/download.php?file=media/files/2020/RRHI%20SEC%2017-A%202019.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200402105159/http://www.robinsonsretailholdings.com.ph/download.php?file=media/files/2020/RRHI+SEC+17-A+2019.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 2, 2020 |title=RRHI SEC 17-A 2019 |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=14 January 2020 |website=robinsonsretailholdings.com.ph |publisher=Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. |access-date=24 November 2020 }}</ref>

As of June 2011, Dairy Farm is 78% owned by Jardine Matheson Holdings.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://202.66.146.82/listco/sg/jm/cpresent/pre110304.pdf|title=Jardine Matheson Holdings 2010 Annual Results|website=202.66.146.82|access-date=23 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325210118/http://202.66.146.82/listco/sg/jm/cpresent/pre110304.pdf|archive-date=25 March 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In August 2021, Dairy Farm rebranded its trading name to DFI Retail Group.<ref>{{cite news|title=Dairy Farm Group rebrands with a new name and logo|url=https://www.marketing-interactive.com/dairy-farm-group-rebrands-with-a-new-name-and-logo|last=Yuen|first=Simon|date=5 August 2021|access-date=10 January 2022}}</ref> On 5 May 2022, the company subsequently changed its legal name to DFI Retail Group Holdings Limited, effectively phased out the Dairy Farm branding.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Change of Name – Company Announcement - FT.com |url=https://markets.ft.com/data/announce/detail?dockey=1323-15441497-6578U71ICPF57OVC9KN3KD4TNC |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=markets.ft.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Change of Name of Dairy Farm Group Holdings Limited|url=https://www.dairyfarmgroup.com/DairyFarm/media/Dairy-Farm/Media/Press-Releases/p220506.pdf|date=6 May 2022|access-date=17 May 2022}}{{Dead link|date=January 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==Discontinued operations==
*In 1998, Dairy Farm sold out its 49% interest in Nestlé Dairy Farm, set up in 1992 to develop dairy products factories throughout China, to [[Nestlé]]; on the merger of [[Kwik Save]] with [[Somerfield (UK Retailer)|Somerfield]], Dairy Farm sold its 11% holding for US$290 million. Dairy Farm acquired 25% of the "No Frills" Kwik Save Group in 1987; Sold the 108-store Simago chain in Spain acquired in 1990.
*In March 2000, Dairy Farm sold its half share in DFI Géant, the Taiwan hypermarket opened in 1998 back to [[Casino Guichard|Casino]], its joint venture partner.
*In 2001, the company sold the 287-store [[Franklins]] chain in Australia which it acquired in 1978. Its Hong Kong–based distribution business, Sims Trading, was sold to [[CITIC Pacific]].
*In June 2002, the 61-store [[Woolworths Supermarkets (New Zealand)|Woolworths]] chain in New Zealand acquired in 1990, was sold for US$337 million.
*In 2004, the Group's Hong Kong ice manufacturing business which began in 1918 was sold for US$107 million.
*In 2023, the Group's Malaysian food retailing business was sold to Macrovalue Sdn Bhd and in 2025, the Group's Singaporean food retailing business was sold to Macrovalue Pte Ltd.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-02-23 |title=Giant operator Dairy Farm sells grocery business to Malaysian company |url=https://theedgemalaysia.com/node/656553 |access-date=2024-03-22 |website=The Edge Malaysia}}</ref>
*On 19 April 2024, DFI's subsidiary PT Hero Supermarket Tbk announced it would divest its supermarket businesses along with the rights to the [[Hero (supermarket)|Hero]] brand to PT Hero Retail Nusantara for 135 billion [[rupiahs]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=HERO Alihkan Bisnis Makanan, Fokus ke IKEA dan Guardian |url=https://www.cnbcindonesia.com/market/20240422115452-17-532217/hero-alihkan-bisnis-makanan-fokus-ke-ikea-dan-guardian |access-date=2024-05-23 |website=CNBC Indonesia |language=id-ID}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Hero (HERO) Lego Bisnis Ritel Supermarket Rp183M, Ini Alasannya |url=https://www.emitennews.com/news/hero-hero-lego-bisnis-ritel-supermarket-rp183m-ini-alasannya |access-date=2024-05-23 |website=www.emitennews.com |language=id-ID}}</ref><ref>[https://www.msn.com/id-id/ekonomi/ekonomi/hero-supermarket-akan-ganti-nama-fokus-investasi-ke-guardian-dan-ikea/ar-AA1nqSAl Hero Supermarket Akan Ganti Nama, Fokus Investasi ke Guardian dan IKEA]</ref>

== Controversy ==
Wellcome, a major food retailer owned by Dairy Farm Group, have been cited by the Taiwanese government for 33 labor violations in Taiwan.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=違反勞動法令事業單位（雇主）查詢系統|url=https://announcement.mol.gov.tw/cmpqry/%E6%83%A0%E5%BA%B7%E7%99%BE%E8%B2%A8%E8%82%A1%E4%BB%BD%E6%9C%89%E9%99%90%E5%85%AC%E5%8F%B8}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=April 2021|reason=source is the government agency website with the violations listed.}} These include instances of maintaining unsafe work spaces that potentially endangered employees, having staff members work unpaid overtime beyond legal limitations, and refusing pay and rest time to employees.<ref name=":0" />{{Primary source inline|date=April 2021|reason=source is the government agency website with the violations listed.}}

==See also==
* [[Hong (business)|The Hongs]]
* [[Wellcome|Wellcome/Food World]]
* [[Maxim's Catering|Maxim's]]
* [[Cold Storage (supermarket)|Cold Storage]]
* [[Market Place by Jasons|Jasons Market Place/Market Place by Jasons]]
* [[Giant Hypermarket|Giant]]
* [[Mannings|Mannings/Guardian]]
* [[Rustan's]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|DFI Retail Group}}
* {{Official website}}

{{DFI Retail Group}}
{{Jardine Matheson}}
{{Beverage companies of Hong Kong}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:DFI Retail Group| ]]
[[Category:Dairy products companies of Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Jardines (company)]]
[[Category:Retail companies established in 1886]]
[[Category:Companies formerly listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange]]
[[Category:Former companies in the Hang Seng Index]]
[[Category:Retail companies of Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange]]
[[Category:Companies listed on the Singapore Exchange]]
[[Category:Companies in the Straits Times Index]]
[[Category:1973 mergers and acquisitions]]