A peek at Jollibee’s opening days

Colorful balloons, upbeat music and announcement streamers are the regular fixtures often seen in fiestas or events that mark a big celebration. Add to these the thousands of people lining up, the langhap-sarap food, and the warm smile of the large red bee to sum up the grand revelry of every Jollibee store opening.

The birth of a Jollibee store is usually met with warm welcome from different sectors of a particular locality. It is a common occurrence to find people lining up outside the store as early as 3:00 or 4:00 am to anticipate the moment when the brand new Jollibee doors will finally swing wide open. In North Luzon, for instance, when Jollibee opened its Sapangpalay store in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan, people were there early in the morning despite the fact that there are a number of Jollibee stores within 30-45 minutes from the new store.

"When you open in a generally new market, whether you opened 10 years ago or you open only now, the excitement stays the same. During opening days, you will find that people really look forward to be part of a new Jollibee in their vicinity," says Pepot Miñana, Jollibee vice president for North Luzon.

Jollibee’s VP for US Operations and South Luzon Business Unit, Tommy King, shared that customers come in droves. Oftentimes bus loads of people arrive at the first day of a Jollibee store. Even if the store would give prizes to the first 100 customers, the crowd would already balloon to doubles or triples before the store opens. "It’s a family affair. Moms would excitedly take pictures of their kids in the new Jollibee store. When we see that, we personally offer to be their photographers so all members of the family can be in the picture," King added.

Metro Manila is another matter. But where we think various fast food chains have saturated every nook and cranny of the metropolis by now, there are still areas where you will find people braving the scorching sun or the soaking rain to be in a Jollibee store opening. Jollibee VP for Mega Manila, Iyoh Villamayor, intimated that, "In Metro Manila, we have already stopped doing promos for the first 100 customers because even without it the stores are jam-packed on their first day like when Jollibee Cogeo and Jollibee SM San Lazaro opened."

The mood in the Visayas and Mindanao regions are even more ecstatic. Customers would even take home Jollibee food wrappers and packaging as their souvenir items. Many of them would ask, "Why did you open here only now?" signifying their eagerness to have the Philippines’ popular fast food chain in their area. Having a Jollibee in the locality connotes progress and aspiration.

Once word goes out that Jollibee is establishing a store in a certain location, people get excited about it. "Sometimes people would visit the construction site and make inquiries. Others would already place their orders for a Kiddie Party," Villamayor remarked.

There are different benefits for every sector but they all have the same response: Jollibee is very much welcome in their place. For the local government, they see it as a boost in their economy that will provide opportunities and increase in employment, taxes and tourism. For businessmen, it assures a more dynamic economic exchange as well as an improvement in local business trends. For the local churches, they see it as a way of encouraging more parishioners to look forward to Sundays and family days.

And the big winner is the people themselves, who all long to have a taste of the Jollibee langhap-sarap and experience its unique brand of happiness. One mother from Lingayen remarked that she is thankful with the opening of Jollibee in their area because it enables her to save. How? Here’s the scenario prior to the Jollibee Lingayen opening. She brings her seven children to Jollibee Dagupan by riding a bangka, then taking the jeepney to the bus station where she and her kids get a bus to Dagupan. Now, she can enjoy the experience right in her own district.

"Every opening day is a memorable experience for us in Jollibee. But one picture that really stays in our minds is the smiles of children as they excitedly embrace the Jollibee mascot. Those are the moments that we really felt that this is special for the people, especially the kids. And that picture is an inspiration for us to remain committed to our mission of spreading happiness to the people in whatever way we can," King said.