Metro as a brand was founded in 1957 by its chairman, Mr. Ong Tjoe Kim. Retail business under the stewardship of the late Mr. Ong flourished and grew to become one of Singapore’s major department store chains. Metro Holdings Limited was formed in 1973 and listed on the Stock Exchange of Singapore in the same year. Metro continued to grow its retail business over time and subsequently diversified into development, leisure, construction business.
The group’s core businesses today are focused mainly on property and retail, with a concentration in the Singapore market and key market regions of People’s Republic of China and Indonesia. Metro’s retail arm, wholly-owned subsidiary Metro Private Limited, serves customers through a chain of three Metro department stores and four specialties “Accessorize” stores in Singapore, and another five department stores in Jakarta and Bandung, Indonesia.
What began as a familiar household name has since grown over the years and evolved into an iconic Singapore brand with a strong footprint in Indonesia. Metro Department Store in Indonesia is one of the leading retailers focused on serving the fashion-conscious customers with exquisite tastes. To date, it has a chain of five department stores in Jakarta, one in Bandung, one in Makassar, one in Surabaya and one in Solo.