Jollibee Group expanding presence in China

Homegrown fast-food giant Jollibee Group is expanding further its footprint in Mainland China as it plans to grow its network of stores under its Tim Ho Wan, Yonghe King, and Hong Zhuang Yuan brands.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, Jollibee said it is set to open 33 more stores of the three Chinese restaurant brands in China by December.

The fast-food chain has so far opened 80 stores of the same three brands this year in the Asian country.

“The expansion efforts of these brands will play a huge and important role in generating revenue and strengthening the Jollibee Group’s growth, especially since China is one of the company’s four pillar markets,” said Jollibee Group president and CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong.

In particular, Jollibee Group has a total of six Tim Ho Wan stores across Shanghai.

The company is planning to “aggressively grow” the Tim Ho Wan brand in Mainland China, targeting to have about 100 restaurant outlets within five years. 

Meanwhile, Yonghe King has opened 62 new stores in 2021.

Yonghe King currently has 383 stores across China and is targeting to reach 1,000 stores in five years.

Yonghe King also entered Shaanxi Province with two stores in Xi’an City and is set to open its first store in Hainan Province.

Yonghe King is scheduled to open a total of 23 more stores by December 2021, according to Jollibee Group.

On the other hand, Hong Zhuang Yuan now has a total of 44 stores across Beijing.

Jollibee Group said Hong Zhuang Yuan is now planning to open stores in the top 10 shopping malls in Beijing and other shopping malls outside the city as it seeks to have 60 stores by the end of 2021.

A total of P12.2-billion was allotted for the Jollibee Group’s capital expenditures in 2021 — the highest in the company’s history — with a focus on expansion in Asian countries such as China, the company said.

This is aligned with the group’s vision to be among the top Five Restaurant Companies in the World. —KBK, GMA News