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PHILIPPINES

 

Jollibee: A Taste to Remember

By Carina Cordero Brossy

Matthews, NC, United States

What do burgers, fried chicken, spaghetti, and tuna pies have in common? You can find all of these items and more on the menu of the largest fast-food chain in the Philippines.

How It Bee-gan

Jollibee, with more than 1,660 restaurants located primarily in the Southeast Asian nation, has established itself as an iconic and highly profitable food chain. Originally opened as an ice-cream parlor in 1975, its founder, Tony Tan Caktiong, took on the Philippines’ first McDonald’s in 1978 by creating his own fast-food chain. With a large dose of national pride and a menu shaped around Filipino tastes, his creation became one of the few local brands to beat McDonald’s in its home market.

The company’s main mascot is Jollibee, a colorful red-and-yellow bee. With his chef’s hat, bow tie, and big smile, Jollibee appears in advertisements and social media posts. He even became popular enough to star with other mascot friends in a children’s television show called Jollitown, which aired from 2008 to 2013.

Creating Buzz

Since its early years, the brand has grown by acquiring other restaurants that specialize in such cuisines as Chinese and traditional American. In 2024, Jollibee Group reported that customers spent PHP 390.3 billion (Philippine pesos, US$6.7 billion) across its restaurants and cafés. Philippine call centers and other outsourcing businesses have put wages in the pockets of many workers. With busy schedules and a little more spending money, many customers are happy to grab tasty dishes like Yumburgers and Chickenjoy.

Like any powerful fast-food chain, this brand reaches well beyond its local origins. Hungry fans can find its signature dishes in 17 countries around the world. The United States has over 80 stores with more to come. So, the next time you’re craving a burger with a side of Palabok Fiesta (noodles with garlic sauce, pork, shrimp, and egg), you’ll soon need to look no farther than your neighborhood Jollibee.

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A roadside Jollibee restaurant sign featuring the smiling bee mascot wearing a chef's hat above a red rectangular sign with the white text "Jollibee." against a blue sky

Adaptation of “Jollibee” by scion_cho. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0. 

Close-up of the smiling face of the Jollibee mascot on a colorful sign, showing large cartoon eyes, rosy cheeks, and part of the red head against a bright background

Photo “2007.0819 Jollibee” by Frank Farm. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. 

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Math Resources

Learning Activity:

Sample Problems:

  1. Maria and her family are using Philippine pesos (PHP) to pay for their meal at their neighborhood Jollibee in Manila, Philippines. Maria’s family orders these items:
    • one Amazing Aloha Yumburger with drink (PHP 160)
    • two Chickenjoys with Palabok (PHP 140 for one)
    • one Jolly Spaghetti with fries (PHP 85)
    • two regular Coke floats (PHP 30 for one)
  2. What is the total cost of the meal? Using a currency converter website, find the current exchange rate to convert the total cost from PHP to US dollars. How do the costs of these fast-food meals compare to fast-food prices in the US?
  3. Roberto wants to open a new Jollibee franchise in Manila. He projects his annual gross sales will be PHP 1,500,000. However, Roberto will have to subtract these costs:
    • food costs of PHP 435,760
    • labor costs of PHP 345,660
    • rent costs of PHP 228,930
    • insurance/general administrative costs of PHP 84,500
  4. What will be Roberto’s net operating income in both PHP and US dollars?
  5. If Roberto wants to increase his net operating income, which expense category might he try to reduce first?
Social Justice Question

Researchers have linked a fast food diet to obesity and other negative health effects. In addition, fast food corporations increase food insecurity by undermining local control of food production. Lower-income neighborhoods tend to have higher concentrations of fast food restaurants. What do you think could be possible solutions to this problem?

Explore Further
  1. Website of Jollibee Foods Corporation
  2. Currency converter
  3. Review of Jollibee’s food
  4. Video overview of Jollibee
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