Jollibee buys majority stake of master franchisee in HK

MANILA, Philippines — Asian food service conglomerate Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) has announced it would purchase a majority stake in Meko Holdings Ltd.

Meko is Jollibee brand’s master franchisee in Hong Kong, the company said in a disclosure yesterday.

Golden Plate Pte. Ltd., a Singapore-based wholly owned subsidiary of Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd., will acquire shares from the shareholders of Meko, equivalent to a total of 60 percent ownership for $16.08 million, subject to adjustments.

Jollibee Worldwide is 100 percent owned by JFC.

The remaining 40 percent will continue to be owned by the current shareholders of Meko.

The share purchase agreement (SPA) and shareholders’ agreement (SHA) were signed by the parties yesterday, subject to fulfillment of agreed closing conditions.

In making the acquisition, Jollibee said Hong Kong is an important market for the group and an important part of JFC China’s strategy to elevate the Jollibee brand in a general population or mainstream market.

“Hong Kong is renowned for its relationship with a vast variety of food and attracts both a strong base of local consumers and tourists,” JFC said.

Upon completion of this transaction, JFC will have 60 percent ownership of what was once 100 percent franchised market.

Jollibee aims to be among the top five restaurants in the world.

It has been aggressively expanding in the Americas, North America, Europe and China.

Just last week, Jollibee opened its 500th restaurant in China.

The company opened another branch, Yonghe King, one of three brands in China, along with Michelin-starred Tim Ho Wan and Hong Zhuang Yuan.

At the end of February 2023, the JFC Group operated 6,506 stores worldwide: Philippines (3,281) and International (3,225): 501 in China, 385 in North America, 333 in EMEAA, 640 with SuperFoods mainly in Vietnam, 1,079 with CBTL and 287 with Milksha. Its largest brands by store outlets worldwide are Jollibee with 1,594, CBTL 1,079, Chowking 613, Mang Inasal 571 and Highlands Coffee 610.

Its eight wholly owned brands are Jollibee, Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal, Yonghe King, Hong Zhuang Yuan and Smashburger.