KLANG (April 9): Big Caring Group Bhd, which is seeking to float on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, is ramping up its effort in automation and artificial intelligence (AI) in its supply chain as it seeks to support its expansion.
The retail pharmacy and healthcare group unveiled a new distribution centre in Klang, alongside a centralised corporate headquarters on Thursday. Located near Port Klang, the facility is expected to enhance the group’s logistics chain and nationwide distribution.
It should be noted that Big Caring Group unveiled its draft prospectus on the Securities Commission Malaysia website last week for a planned Main Market listing, with the bulk of the proceeds earmarked to reduce its RM1.3 billion borrowings and to finance a new automated distribution centre.
Its executive director Lim Sin Yin said the development of the automation-driven distribution centre followed lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic, which exposed the limitations in traditional operating models amid unpredictable demand and supply chain disruptions.
“At Big Caring Group, we believe that strengthening our operations and supply chain is just as important as delivering care itself. It begins with how we plan demand, anticipate needs, and position supply,” she said.
The distribution centre integrates robotics, warehouse control systems and inventory management platforms into a single ecosystem, enabling greater visibility and coordination across operations.
As a result, she said the new facility has improved its efficiency by 76.5% and achieved accuracy of 99.8%.
“Today, we operate with greater visibility, agility and intelligence via a more connected ecosystem where AI supports planning, automation enables execution and people remain central to decision-making. At this scale, efficiency is not optional, but a capability and responsibility that we must deliver every day,” Lim added.
With the new facility, Lim said the group has strengthened its upstream capabilities through AI-driven replenishment systems that analyse real-time sales patterns and anticipate demand shifts across locations, enabling more predictive inventory planning.
On the downstream, Lim said the facility deploys a combination of automation solutions tailored to different inventory profiles, including systems for both lower-frequency and fast-moving products.
More than 160 robots and 700 racks operate within the system, supporting higher storage density and faster fulfilment, she noted.
As a result, Lim said the automation systems also reduce manual movement within the warehouse, lowering physical strain on workers while enabling teams to handle higher volumes of orders.
Complementing the distribution centre is a new centralised corporate headquarters, which brings teams together to improve collaboration, accelerate decision-making and enhance alignment across the organisation.
Big Caring Group currently operates more than 600 retail pharmacy outlets nationwide under several established brands. Besides BIG Pharmacy and CARiNG Pharmacy, it has outlets under the Georgetown Pharmacy, Wellings and Ting Pharmacy brands.
The group also has over 5,000 healthcare partner touchpoints across hospitals, clinics and physiotherapy centres, and handles an average of more than 90,000 order lines daily at its distribution centre.
According to the draft prospectus, the group is led by the husband-and-wife team of Lee Meng Chuan and Lim. Lee is the group managing director cum group chief executive officer.
Both trained pharmacists, they opened their first retail outlet in Damansara Uptown in 2006. Since then, the group has grown rapidly, fuelled by a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions, including the merger with RedCap Pharmacy in 2018 and My Pharmacy in 2019. It then acquired CARiNG Pharmacy from 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings Bhd (KL:SEM) in 2023.
Under the proposed listing, the group plans to offer up to 1.88 billion shares, comprising an institutional offering of 1.61 billion shares and a retail offering of 267.64 million shares, with pricing to be determined later.
IPO proceeds will be used to fund expansion, with the group targeting 40 to 50 new outlets annually over the next three to five years, supported by the new distribution centre as its existing Bukit Raja facility — now at 61% utilisation — is expected to reach full capacity within five years.
The IPO will represent up to 25.5% of the enlarged share base, of which up to 17.5% will be from existing shareholders. Private equity firm Creador will pare its stake by 11.7%, while the founders will offer about 5.1% stake in the company.
Post-listing, the founders’ indirect stake held via Uptown Paradise Sdn Bhd will be reduced to 34.4% from 42.9%, while Creador’s vehicle, Iris Pallida Sdn Bhd, will see its stake fall to 19.4%. This could decline further to 16.3% if the over-allotment option is fully exercised.
Creador first entered the fray when RedCap Pharmacy merged with BIG Pharmacy in 2018.
For the financial year ended June 30, 2025, Big Caring Group posted a net profit of RM143.02 million on revenue of RM3.41 billion, with same-store sales growth improving to 9.6% from 7.3% a year earlier.