Magazines Archives - 2009 March

Johnny Rockets enters Philippine market
Story 12 - Food Business Asia

US casual-dining restaurant chain Johnny Rockets is set to enter the Philippine F&B market through the franchising route.

The company has signed up the ACA Group of Companies to be its franchisee in the Philippines.

Led by Amable C Aquiluz, the ACA Group used to run a chain of video shops in the Philippines.

The franchise, which will operate as Camamiq Foods, Inc, will open 20 Johnny Rockets outlets in the Philippines over 15 years.

“[Johnny Rockets] fills an empty niche in the Philippines,” said Aguiluz.

For his part, Johnny Rockets’ senior vice-president of International Development, Steve Devine, said: “As with many of our international franchisees, we greatly admire Miguel’s vision in introducing Johnny Rockets to a firsttime market. We fully believe that he and his team possess the business acumen, warmth and enthusiasm it takes to succeed.”

The Johnny Rockets menu in the Philippines will essentially be similar to the ones seen in the home country, according to the statement.

The first Johnny Rockets outlet will be located in Makati City, Metro Manila, the statement said. It did not, however, give a timeframe for the opening of the outlet.

Johnny Rockets serves all-American favourites, including hamburgers, sandwiches and hand-dipped shakes and malts. Headquartered in Lake Forest, California, USA, Johnny Rockets has 255 corporate and franchise-owned restaurants in 29 states and 11 countries.

The company is looking for franchisees in Asia. Franchisees must have operated a restaurant for a minimum of two years, live in the market to be developed, and have a net worth of US$500,000 per unit with an available liquid capital of US$2,000 per unit to develop up to five outlets.

American influence is strong in the Philippines. American F&B firms that are operating in the market include KFC, Dunkin’ Donuts, Krispy Kreme, Shakey’s, Pizza Hut and McDonald’s.

The Philippines is the 12th most populous country in the world, with about 90 million residents. It is also considered one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world.

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