Jollibee Philippines As The 'Yumburger' Store That Revolutionized The Fast-food Industry

From a two-branch ice cream parlor in 1975, Jollibee Philippines has managed to become as one of the country's most admired companies.

The fast-food company is considered as the largest fast-food chain the country even eclipsing McDonalds. In fact in one article posted at The Economist Magazine in 2002 said that this was a huge embarrassment to McDonalds since according to the study conducted by Taylor Nelson Sofres study, Jollibee was the most visited fast-food chain restaurant in the Philippines. The story of the company is a phenomenal one that is now often told and retold in many business schools in the country.

Jollibee startef from a two-branch ice cream parlor to a national phenomenon

The story of Jollibee started in 1975 with its two-branch ice cream parlor and these two shops offered its customers with hot meals and sandwiches. The company was then incorporated in 1978 and the two stores became seven and started to explore the hamburger concept. This was the start of the story of the 'yumburger' store. The year 1984 was an important year for the company since this was the time when the fast-food chain hit the 500 million peso sales mark. This feat by the company landed them in the Top 500 Philippine Corporations.

And in 1987, the company entered the list of the country's Top 100 Corporations. Another first was achieved by the company since this was also the company who first managed to break the 1 billion pesos sales mark and this happened in 1989. Another first for the company happened in 1993 since this was the time that the chain was listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange. Jollibee was the first fast-food chain to be listed in the stock exchange. This move by the company broadened its capitalization and also laid the groundwork for its expansion locally and internationally. According to its website, the company maintains 600 stores and over 30 international stores.

Based on other figures as of 2007, the company has 1,655 stores worldwide and sales reaching more than $1billion. Some countries and cities that host a Jollibee store include:

. Saudi Arabia

. Hong Kong

. Vietnam

. Malaysia

. Indonesia

. Dubai

. Brunei

The Jollibee Foods Corporation as the company is known as 1,466 stores in the country and this includes its other stores like:

. Chowking

. Greenwich Pizza

. Red Ribbon Bakeshop

. DeliFrance

. Manong Pepe's

It was in 1994 when the company acquired Greenwich Pizza as one of their moves to become the undisputed leader in food business. After a year, the company got the franchise for DeliFrance which is an international food company. Chowking was acquired next and this boosted the leadership of the corporation in the food industry. According to the company, the success of Jollibee in the Philippines is anchored three important things:

. Superior menu line-up

. Creative marketing programs and;

. Efficient manufacturing and logistics facilities

The company is also driven by its values. The list of values of the company includes customer focus, excellence, respect for the individual, teamwork, spirit of family and fun, humility to listen and learn, honesty and integrity and frugality. The company has been the recipients of many awards and citations and these are given by different institutions and award-giving bodies. For example, in 2005 the corporation was awarded the 'Best Consumer Goods' in Asia's Best Managed Companies 2005.

This was the poll survey that was conducted by the EuroMoney Magazine. At the same year, the corporation was also recognized by Forbes Asia Magazine as one of the 200 'Best Under a Billion' companies in Asia.

In 2004, it's CEO and President was the recipient of the award. Tony Tan Caktiong, the CEO and President of the Jollibee Food Corporation was awarded the 2004 World Entrepreneur of the Year and the award was given by Earnst and Young. The corporation was also cited by the Asian Wall Street Journal Review 200 and cited as the country's most admired corporation. The company has won this citation for 7 consecutive years.

The company's success is owed to Jollibee Philippines' FSC Standards. This standard simply means "Food (F) served to the public must meet the company's excellence standards or it will not be served at all; the Service (S) must be fast and courteous; and Cleanliness (C), from kitchen to utensils, must always be maintained".