Travel, food, health, fashion, beauty, and more Lifestyle stories you love.
Travel, food, health, fashion, beauty, and more Lifestyle stories you love.
By Faye Almazan
Photos by: Gerlyn Mae Mariano
“Passionate,” is how Vanessa Singson described herself.
The entrepreneur and head of the franchised branches of South Korean restaurant bb.q Chicken in the Philippines said she would like to be known for her hard work and compassion.
“I’d like to be known for being hardworking and compassionate because I believe that there should always be quality in everything that we do,” Vanessa told GMA Lifestyle.
If Vanessa’s name rings a bell, that’s because she comes from the prominent Singson family of Ilocos Sur. She is in fact, one of the children of businessman and politician Chavit Singson.
The family, through their conglomerate LCS Group of Companies, brought the famous South Korean fried chicken brand, bb.q Chicken, to the Philippines. It first opened its first branch at Bonifacio High Street in Taguig City in November 2022. The brand continues to expand its presence opening branches in and outside Metro Manila.
“The opportunity just came up, it was presented to my dad. I’ve always had a passion for cooking at home and I wanted to learn the business side of it so bb.q Chicken came up and it was an avenue for me to do that,” Vanessa said.
Despite being new to the local food scene, Vanessa said the whole business journey, so far, has been fun for her.
“I’m still kind of new in the industry, but it’s been fun learning everything,” she mused.
As the head of their food business, Vanessa described her leadership as “quality” and “compassion.”
“My leadership style is quality in everything that we do, but also compassion for our staff and our customers,” she said.
Given the principles she abides by in leading their team, Vanessa considers her parents as her greatest role models in life.
“My parents because they’re the perfect example of discipline, hard work, and compassion,” she explained.
Vanessa also shared the two life lessons she got from her father, which highlighted time and opportunity.
“One is, ‘time is gold,’ and two, he always says this, ‘strike while the iron is hot,’ so meaning, grab every opportunity that comes your way.”
“The last name is just like anyone else’s last name,” is what Vanessa answered to the question of how it was like growing up in a family that holds a surname as influential as hers.
She continued, “We make our advantages and then if there are disadvantages, then we kind of just learn to overcome them.”
Her father, Chavit, has held several government positions in their home province, Ilocos Sur. He held the governor position in Ilocos Sur several times and also became a mayor of Narvacan. The LCS Group of Companies are in the energy, mining, finance, telecommunications, and now, food business. The company also invested money when the Philippines hosted the Miss Universe pageant in 2016.
Coming from an affluent family, people already have preconceived notions including having an “easy life”, it comes with the territory, after all.
When asked if she agrees about people’s perception of children from prominent families living an easy life, Vanessa said, “No, not really, because nobody ever really has an easy life. It depends on you what ‘hard’ is for you…we were kind of raised to work hard, earn a living, and whenever we work hard, we’re rewarded for it.”
According to Vanessa, her childhood was “very normal” and that they were “never really treated differently.” She recounted, “We were kind of raised to be very humble and work hard and study hard.”
Vanessa said she was never really pressured growing up, but she stands to be her own critic instead.
“By nature, I’m kind of a perfectionist so it’s not really about other people’s perception, but my own,” she explained.
“We wanted the Filipinos to try the No. 1 chicken of Korea,” is what drove Vanessa and her family to establish branches of bb.q Chicken in the country.
Which makes a whole lot of sense as the brand’s name stands for the “best of the best quality chicken.”
The restaurant, which was established in 1995 in Seoul, South Korea, is among the most known fried chicken brands in the East Asian nation and has more than 3,000 stores in about 57 countries, including the Philippines.
Since opening its first branch in Bonifacio Global City in November 2022, Vanessa said bb.q Chicken has been well-received by the Filipino diners. And despite having a menu that came from abroad, Vanessa said they didn’t have to tweak any food items to suit Filipino taste buds.
“Surprisingly, no. The menu’s from Korea, nothing was tailored to the Philippines. It’s very interesting that we didn’t have to tailor anything to the Filipino palate,” she noted.
For Vanessa, the main challenge lies in maintaining the quality standard the brand is well-known for globally.
“I think the biggest challenge would be bringing the quality standards of Korea to the Philippines and then having to maintain that every day,” she said.
Given the tough competition in the country’s food industry, especially in terms of fried chicken, Vanessa highlighted bb.q Chicken’s flavors and ingredients.
“The way it’s made, which is a secret, and its flavors are very unique,” she said, but also added that, “we don’t like comparing it to other chicken brands because there’s always a space for everybody in the industry.”
There is something for everyone at bb.q Chicken as its menu offers a range of Korean-style fried chicken and other loved Korean dishes and side dishes. The abundance of choices could be overwhelming for first-time diners so Vanessa recommended giving their best-selling Golden Fried Chicken in original flavor a go first.
For those looking for something sweet and spicy, Vanessa suggested their Gangnam Chicken, while Secret Chicken is a popular choice for those craving for something on the sweet and salty side.
Part of Vanessa’s personal favorites include the brand's signature Myungran Cream Pasta, which has pollack roe. She also enjoys the crispy and spicy Tteokbokki Platter, which has an assortment of chicken, dumplings, and of course, the popular rice cake dish, tteokbokki.
“Hopefully, we bring in more brands by next year and then maybe come up with my own. That’s the goal,” is what Vanessa said when asked about future plans of her business.
Vanessa added that she has a lot to look forward to, but noted that she is set on expanding bb.q Chicken in the country and maybe establishing her own brand, for the meantime.
The restaurant quickly expanded in 2023, opening branches at several locations including Robinsons Magnolia in Quezon City, Newport Mall in Pasay City, The Shops in Bonifacio Global City, Evia Lifestyle Center in Las Pinas City, and its first branch outside Metro Manila, at Vista Mall in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
“For now, I think, it would be just opening more bb.q stores and then bringing in more brands and hopefully, coming up with my own concept,” she said.
