Office workers go for Binalot

Binalot Fiesta Foods, Inc. spiced up the local restaurant scene in 1996 by commercializing an old Filipino tradition: serving meals wrapped in fresh banana leaves, hence Binalot, Tagalog for wrapped, was born.

By combining tasty Filipino favorites like adobo, tocino and daing na bangus with generous servings of rice, salted egg and tomato, Binalot soon became a magnet for ordinary office workers looking for affordable alternatives to the American style fast-food restaurants that were becoming a drain on their pockets.

Its humor-laced Pinoy menu appealed to a wide market with full meals costing from P39 to P85. Consider such main offerings as Tapa Rap Sarap, Bistek Walastik, Sisig na Makisig, BOPISticated, Love me Tenderloin Tips, My Dinuguan and Only, Pride tilapia, and Anytime Inihaw na Baboy. Vegetable dishes are called You bet Pinakbet, Along came Talong with Bagoong, and Togue-ther Again.

Binalot’s wit has been rewarded with steady growth, now counting 31 stores including 26 franchised outlets.

The company’s franchise program allows four store types. The kiosk which requires 9 to 10 square meters will require an investment of about P750,000 but will only be able to serve a limited menu.

To be able to serve Binalot’s complete product line, a prospective franchisee will have to choose from a counter with 9 to 15 square meters and P850,000 to P1 million in initial investments, a food court outlet with 16 to 25 square meters and P1 million to P1.6 million in investment, and a full store with 35 to 65 square meters and P1.8 million to P2.5 million initial cash outlay.

The initial investment covers the franchise fee, store construction, kitchen equipment and facilities, furniture and fixtures, air conditioning system where applicable, signage, and pre-operating expenses. Binalot will also assist in the recruitment and training of the store staff. A maximum of five employees must attend and complete a two-week full training program, designed to provide them with a comprehensive understanding of the administrative and technical aspects of operating a Binalot store. The training cost is included in the franchise fee.

Binalot also assigns trained company representatives to work at the store for a period of 10 to 30 days from opening to assess the situation, at no added cost to the franchisee.

Binalot president Rommel T. Juan says franchisees “must have an entrepreneurial spirit and be success-driven, faithfully follow the entire Binalot Franchise and Business System, personally undergo and complete the restaurant management and operations training program, and be customer-oriented.”

He adds, “We have developed, tested, and perfected the Binalot Franchise System for 11 years and a key ingredient to the success of our franchisees is their strict adherence to this system. We transfer this business technology to help franchisees become consistently profitable in operating their Binalot store.”

Franchised stores achieve payback within two to three years.