Who is Jollibee? What is Jollibee? Jollibee Philippines is one of the most popular Philippine franchise. Originally opened as a Magnolia Ice Cream parlor at Cubao in 1975, the name was originally called Jollibee. In 1978, the business focus shifted from ice cream to hamburgers. Jollibee studies showed a much larger market was waiting to get tapped. Lumba became Tony Tan’s first business and management mentor. After changing the name to Jollibee, the Jollibee mascot was nspired by local and foreign children’s books. Developed by a management consultant named, Manuel C. Lumba working for Tony Tan Caktiong next created the product name “Yumburger” as well as the name “Chickenjoy”. Later Tony Tony made Manny Lumpa in charge of developing the franchise. The stores were re-designed, the service transformed into a full self-service, fast food operation with drive thrus. The first headquarters was located on Main St. in Cubao, Quezon City. Lumba developed a long-term marketing strategy, listing up a number of consumer promotions and traffic building schemes while maintaining internal strengths required by Tony Tan.

Acquistions in the Philippines

The corporation is actually known as Jollibee Foods Corporation. Oh and if you thought that Jollibee was the only fast food chain operated by this coporation, boy are you in for a surprise. To me, it seems like JFC owns a majority stake in all of the Filipino fast food niches.All the delicious oriental style fast food from Chow King is operated at a high level by the same corporation as Jollibee. Oh and that’s not all. Seems like Jollibee Foods Corporation has the idea that diversification is key to its future, and I think they’re on the right track. JFC also bought out the popular fast food pizza restaurant known as Greenwich Pizza. Additionally, in 2005, Red Ribbon Bakery became part of JFC. Keeping with the baking theme, JFC acquired the French cafe and bakery known as Delifrance. The division of JFC that handles business inside of the Philippines is known as Jollibee Philippines.

Jollibee Philippines Mascot

So, wonder what goes through the heads of fast-food chain management and founders when deciding what their mascot should be. It must have been an interesting time when the creators of McDonalds came up with the idea of a friendly clown dressed in red, yellow and white. You can guess things were a bit simpler for Dave Thomas when he named the franchise after his daughter Wendy, though you would hesitate to call her a mascot. We all know how bad (or maybe good?) things can get when a fast food chain brainstorms the brilliant idea of a talking chihuahua that speaks in Spanish about how much he wants (or loves?) Taco Bell. Interestingly enough, not all successful chains need a mascot (or maybe they weren’t memorable) in the case of chains like Arby’s, but many do, like Jack of Jack in the Box and The King of Buger King - all normal people with ridiculous masks or, um, heads.

Now what does this have to do with Jollibee in the Philippines? Well, many would attribute Jollibee’s success in the Philippines to its mascot, sharing the same name as the franchise: the Jollibee. Is it a coincidence that Jollibee chose its mascot to be bright yellow and red as well? Perhaps not - as gaudy as those colors may seem, they are more than vibrant enough to catch the eye’s attention. These colors exposed to children who grow up on Jollibee begin a lifelong association of bright yellow and red with delicious, affordable and fast food. Reminiscent of the memorable flavors of popular condiments for hamburgers (or Yumburgers) and hot dogs, the yellow and red bee named Jollibee is dressed in a chef’s hat along with a shirt and blazer.

Jollibee’s smiling face is friendly enough to be a favorite among kids, and his face is prevalent in many locations that include playrooms for children. Clearly, this cartoon figure is aimed at the younger generation, but it does not alienate the older generation, especially these days, when many of us have grown up eating Jollibee. It’s easy to say that this figure has been pivotal in the branding and marketing efforts that have led to such success in the Philippines.

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