McDonald’s opens 13th Cebu branch today

Opening four new stores within a year, international fast-food chain McDonald’s shows its confidence in the receptive Cebu market.

After opening new stores in Sykes, Escario and in Tabunok last March, McDonald’s will be opening its 13th branch today at the newly developed retail and entertainment complex called “The Walk” at the Asiatown IT Park in Lahug. 

The Walk is a multi-use establishment developed by the Cebu Property Ventures of the Ayala Land that specifically caters to the workforce of business process outsourcing companies within the area.

The McDonald’s branch at The Walk is a complete restaurant setup with a drive thru and a walk-in delivery for the call center workers.

This 24/7 store has a seating capacity of more than 200 and will be managed by 72 crewmembers and 10 managers.

In an interview prior to its opening date, Aaron Castro, McDonald’s operations consultant said that through these years they have noted the positive response of the Cebuano market towards their entry in the city’s food district thus they decided to continue growing within the area.

Castro said that because of their internationally known brand, they have been able to strengthen their market dominance not only within Cebu but even nationwide.

“We have a branded product. And through this image, we are able to protect and ensure our customer’s interest. The “value” of our products, service and delivery is always retained and that has been our edge over other competitors in the market,” he stressed.

With the new branch’s proximity to their existing JY branch, Castro pointed out that each store will provide ease and convenience to its captive market but definitely won’t affect each other in terms of sales and client base because they will cater to different market scopes.

He pointed out that the new branch will specifically focus to serve the needs of its immediate captured market from the BPO companies nearby.

Meanwhile restaurant manager Benjamin Picson stressed their new store’s strict compliance with international food safety standards and pointed out that the company invested greatly on ensuring cleanliness and customer satisfaction by utilizing equipments that serve these purposes such as their own ice maker, pest control measures as well as fire safety features.

He said that their crew is required to wash their hands every 30 minutes by a soap that was specifically formulated for the company’s use to ensure food safety at all time. – Rhia de Pablo