Homegrown food chain focuses on local market

CEBU, Philippines – Bullish on the upbeat market in the local food industry, restaurant chain Café Laguna Group now focuses its expansion in the local market.

Café Laguna, a Cebu-grown authentic Filipino restaurant, joins other local capitalists who chose to grow within its home turf before the market gets swallowed by the entry of foreign players with the onset of the ASEAN integration.

Group franchise director Jill Urbina-Viado said that the Philippines offers a good market for local entrepreneurs to invest into, thus international franchise ventures will have to take a backseat for now.

For the past 24 years since its inception, Cafe Laguna has grown to seven outlets, three in Cebu, and the other four outlets spread  in Dumaguete City, Iloilo City, Cagayan de Oro City, and General Santos City, via franchise.

This year, the group will open a fourth outlet in Cebu at the SM Seaside City Mall at the South Road Properties.

"We get inspired by the opening of mall developments in Cebu, and other parts of the country. There is so much opportunities for growth here, overseas expansion could wait," said Viado.

Cafe Laguna Group also operates several restaurant concepts such as the Vietnamese and Thai cuisines inspired Lemon Grass, the Asian fusion restaurant Ullis, and newly introduced seafood, lechon and Cebuano cuisine restaurant Parilya at SRP.

Viado said the company is also negotiating several expansion potentials around the country, like a possible outlet in Manila, as well as in Bohol, but it is still waiting for the right timing and the appropriate location with right customer-traffic, which are vital to the business.

The Group, according to Viado continues to attract interested parties from other countries such as Hawaii, among others, but the company is more particular on quality growth -- sustaining its brand rather than expanding thinly and jeopardizing its name.

Cafe Laguna Group started as a "mom and pop" carenderia outlet in Lahug, 24 years ago. Now, it has grown as one of the largest restaurant chains in Cebu, with diversified restaurant brand concepts.