The first grocery store of Puregold Price Club, Inc. in Bohol is set to open in nine months, making it the first national supermarket company to set up shop in the province, an official of the company said.

Representatives of supermarket chain owned by tycoon Lucio Co broke ground for the branch in Ubay on Tuesday with local officials led by Mayor Constantino Reyes and Gov. Aris Aumentado in attendance.

“Mag start na tayo ng construction and we hope after eight to nine months nakatayo na po ang Puregold Ubay,” said Puregold area manager Tina Ibarrientos.

The Puregold supermarket will be erected at a 4,000-square meter lot near Ubay’s municipal hall in Barangay Fatima.

The property owned by the Ubay local government will be leased to Puregold at P480,000 a month for an initial 25-year period.

According to Ibarrientos, the supermarket will have a selling area of 1,400 square meters and a storage area of 400 square meters.

She added that a Puregold supermarket usually employs at least 120 personnel, depending on the size of the branch.

For his part, Reyes said the opening of the supermarket is projected to spur economic growth in the growing first class municipality which is poised to be the province’s second city.

“Dako kaayo ni og impact in terms of economy kay mo kita man ang lungsod unya mo generate pod og employment so game changer jud siya,” Reyes said.

Meanwhile, Ibarrientos also bared Puregold’s initial plans to open a a branch of the company’s subsidiary, S&R Membership Warehouse, in Panglao.

Puregold acquired upscale retailer S&R Membership Shopping in 2012. (A. Doydora)