Binalot unwraps up Asia expansion plan

MANILA, Philippines – Homegrown fastfood chain Binalot Fiesta Foods Inc. is pursuing its plan to expand in Asia as it aggressively seeks more foreign franchisees, particularly in countries where there is a large Filipino population.

Binalot president Rommel Juan said the company is setting its sights for expansion in more countries across Asia after the success of its initial foray into franchising in Dubai.

“We are looking at countries around the Asean region such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and even in our other Asian neighbors such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan,” Juan said.

“We want to offer Filipino comfort food that our countrymen will enjoy while they work abroad.  At the same time, we are proud to introduce our food and culture internationally,” he added.

Binalot offers meals wrapped in banana leaves across its 34 branches nationwide.

The company marked its first international venture in Dubai in September last year through a franchise deal with conglomerate Al Ahli Holdings Group.

The initial plan is to open about 20 Binalot branches throughout the Middle East with the Al Ahli Group over the next five years.

With the success of its Dubai food franchise, Juan said Binalot is now actively working to secure more foreign franchise agreements especially in countries with large Filipino communities.

“In the Philippines, our growth is generated by the increase of the call center or business process outsourcing industry which is set to match or even exceed the overall revenues of OFW remittances by this year,” Juan said.