Jollibee’s Highlands Coffee surpasses 600 stores as CBTL returns to outlet growth

JFC opened 73 new Highlands Coffee outlets last year to reach 605 across Vietnam and the Philippines | Photo credit: Highlands Coffee

Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC) has reported strong year-on-year outlet growth for its Vietnamese coffee chain Highlands Coffee alongside a return to net store expansion for The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (CBTL). 
 

JFC acquired a 50% share in Highlands Coffee in 2012 before taking a controlling interest in 2017.   

The Manila-based fast food group's full-year 2022 results show it opened 73 new Highlands Coffee outlets last year to reach 605, of which 52 are in the Philippines, Highlands Coffee’s only international market.  

In December 2022 it was reported that JFC was seeking to sell a 10-15% stake in Highlands Coffee, with the potential sale expected to value the coffee chain at approximately $800m. 

JFC also opened 23 net new CBTL stores in 2022 to reach 1,071 outlets across 24 countries. 

Following successive years in which JFC closed more CBTL stores than it opened, the California-based coffee chain’s strong outlet growth in JFC’s fourth quarter could indicate a return to pre-pandemic store numbers. CBTL had a global store count of 1,189 when JFC acquired it in July 2019 and dropped to 1,048 in 2021. 

In its financial report, JFC did not include individual brand sales contributions, but did state that CBTL’s system-wide-sales in its international markets grew 33% in 2022 while international same-store-sales for the coffee chain increased 15%.  

CBTL currently operates stores across 23 international markets, including the US, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. 

Highlands Coffee and CBTL are JFC’s only remaining coffee chains after the Manila-based foodservice company terminated its Dunkin' operations in China after struggling to expand the business. JFC closed its seven Dunkin’ stores in the country in November 2022. 
 

JFC’s out-of-home beverage portfolio also includes Taiwanese bubble tea café chain Milksha, which it acquired in February 2022. JFC now operates 280 Milksha outlets across Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Canada and the UK. 

JFC opened a total of 542 stores across its portfolio last year, which includes its eponymous fast-food restaurant chain Jollibee, Chinese restaurant chain Chowking, pizza and pasta chain Greenwich, cake and bakery shop Red Ribbon and licensed stores of Burger King, among others. 

The company now operates 6,480 outlets globally, 51% of which are in the Philippines. JFC forecasts opening up to 600 stores globally in 2023 across all of its brands. 

Consolidated group revenues grew 38% in 2022 to reach ₱212bn ($3.9bn) while system-wide-sales, which comprises sales from company owned and franchised stores, grew 40% to ₱297bn ($5.4bn).