MANILA, Philippines – Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC) is bringing Asian food brands Tiong Bahru Bakery and Common Man Coffee Roasters to the Philippines. 

In a disclosure on Friday, August 4, JFC said it will set up a joint venture company with Food Collective Pte. Ltd. (FCPL) that will invest up to P250 million in the company. JFC will own 60% with FCPL’s interest at 40%.

Across Singapore and Malaysia, there are 16 Tiong Bahru Bakery and 5 Common Man Coffee Roasters stores.

JFC said Tiong Bahru Bakery is “famous for being the ‘Home of the Hand-made Croissants’ and for its baked goods and coffee.” 

Common Man Coffee Roasters, on the other hand, operates all-day dining restaurants in Singapore and Malaysia. It does coffee roasting and sells coffee products, and operates a Coffee Barista Academy. JFC plans to put up at least one Common Man Coffee Roasters outlet in the Philippines this year.

“We are excited to enter this joint venture with FCPL to own and operate the Tiong Bahru Bakery and Common Man Coffee Roasters in the Philippines. These brands will be a strong addition to JFC’s foreign franchised brands and will allow JFC to capture an even greater opportunity and strengthen JFC’s position for further growth in the Philippine market,” said JFC CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong. 

JFC’s other foreign franchised brands are Burger King with 127 stores, Panda Express with 18 stores, and Yoshinoya with 7 stores. These brands contribute 3% to JFC’s system-wide sales. 

FCPL is a majority-owned subsidiary of Tital Lifestyle Holdings Pte. Ltd. JFC has a 90% interest in Titan Lifestyle’s parent company, Titan Dining LP, which was incorporated in Singapore. 

JFC, one of Asia’s largest food companies, had 6,616 stores worldwide as of end June 2023. By store outlets, its largest brands are Jollibee with 1,609 stores, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf with 1,117 stores, Chowking with 613, Mang Inasal with 569, and Highlands Coffee with 673. 

It is aiming to be one of the top five restaurant companies in the world.

JFC divested from Vietnamese noodle chain Pho24 this year after deciding to focus on core brands in chicken, burgers, coffee and tea, and Chinese cuisine. – Rappler.com