It’s been called the “McDonald’s of the Philippines,” and the late Anthony Bourdain dubbed it “the wackiest, jolliest place on earth.” Jollibee, a fast food chain based in the Philippines, has become one of the world’s largest restaurant franchises, with more than 4,000 stores in 23 countries, including 37 in the United States. (For comparison, McDonald’s has more than 37,000 worldwide and 14,000 in the U.S.)
Known for its fried chicken, sweet spaghetti and “Aloha burger,” Jollibee serves fast-food with a Filipino twist: The spaghetti, for instance, includes cheese and mini hot dogs, and the fried chicken is meant to be eaten with rice and gravy.
While Jollibee first came to the U.S. in 1998, opening locations in areas with large Asian populations including California, Hawaii and Illinois, the company’s latest investments and openings, including one near Manhattan’s Times Square, are part of a new strategy that the company hopes will make it one of the “top five restaurant companies in the world.”
Incorporated in 1978, the company started as a pair of ice cream parlors before adding hot meals to its menu when McDonald’s announced they were coming to the Philippines.
“We told our friends back then that we wanted to compete with McDonald’s, and they told us not to confront the giant,” Ernesto Tanmantiong, Jollibee’s CEO and younger brother of founder Tony Tan Caktiong, said. “Instead of chickening out, we served Chickenjoy.”
The company now owns 14 global brands. In February, it acquired stakes in Smashburger and fast-casual Mexican chain Tortas Frontera, both U.S.-based companies.
Arthur Dong, professor of strategy and economics at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business, said the acquisitions gives them “a bigger media footprint into the North American market, and a push into becoming one of the biggest companies in the world.”
Dong added that Jollibee’s success in the North American market, as well as its other overseas locations, makes a huge impact on the Philippine economy.
“Any success anywhere contributes to the company’s success overall and would make Jollibee at home more successful and endure a lot more things, in terms of their future expansion opportunities,” he said.
Jollibee’s most recent opening in New York City was highly anticipated, with some customers lining up for 20 hours.
Dong said that the New York opening is a wise move in line with what some economists call the “dense market theory,” which suggests that when a franchise opens a location in an urban area with populations that reside and work in high-rise buildings, it increases the chances of one’s success because of that population density.
“It’s perfect because rather than putting a billboard up to advertise their brand, Times Square is like a billboards haven itself,” Dong said. “In cities, they go from zero to 60 very quickly because of the sheer amount of foot traffic. Because this new location is near Times Square, the result of that is they’re able to capture the attention of not only natives, but people who don’t even reside from New York City, and that gives exposure to the Jollibee menu and their concept.”
Justin Callan from the New York City neighborhood of Coney Island said that, as a non-Filipino, he has always felt welcomed at Jollibee. He and his girlfriend, Faye, were the first customers in line for Jollibee’s Manhattan grand opening on Oct. 27. “All you have to do is open up the door and let the people smell it — that’s what got me,” he said.
Jollibee executives hope to open 150 stores in the U.S. and 100 stores in Canada over the next five years.
“This is our entry into the mainstream, not just Filipino, market — we are catering to a bigger spectrum, and want to keep strengthening our foothold both in the U.S. and globally,” Tanmantiong, the CEO, said.
