Jollibee Sets Sight on the UAE

Manila—(PHStocks)—Jollibee Foods Corp.  (PSE: JFC), through its wholly owned subsidiary Golden Plate Pte Ltd (GPPL), signed a joint venture agreement with Golden Crown Foods LLC (GCFL) to establish a company that will own and operate Jollibee stores in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

GPPL shall own 49% of the company, while GCFL will own 51%. GPPL and GCFL will share control and management of the joint venture company equally. The initial funding for the UAE company is approximately $80,000.00.

The JFC Group currently has 42 outlets, all franchised, in the Middle East, composed of 16 Jollibee stores (9 in Saudi Arabia, 4 in Qatar, and 3 in Kuwait) and 26 Chowking stores (5 in Qatar, 2 in Oman, and 19 in the UAE). Jollibee’s system-wide sales in the Middle East increased by 28% in 2013 compared to the previous year.