More foreign brands coming to PH

Some 150 foreign brands are eyeing to make their presence felt in the Philippines, deemed the franchise hub of Asia.

Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) chairman emeritus Samie Lim said in a press briefing Thursday that these brands—originating from Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, among others—were interested in finding master franchise holders in the country.

These brands would be showcasing their respective concepts in the upcoming Franchise Asia Philippines 2016. He said this year’s conference would have the most number of foreign brands participating, such as a Korean franchise association which is now scouting for malls to set up a “Korean food plaza.”

PFA officials said this attention from foreign brands was concrete proof the Philippine franchising industry would be able to hike the $12 billion worth of revenues it generated in 2014. At this level, the franchising industry was estimated to have accounted for 5 percent of the local economy through 140,000 franchised stores of some 1,300 local and foreign brands, the PFA said.

The industry was expected to grow by 20 percent this year and 30 percent by next year.

Amid the stiff competition, local franchises have also been aggressive in expanding their respective operations not only here but also abroad. The share of foreign franchises has gone down to about 40 percent of all franchises in the country, from a high of 80 percent the previous years.

To help more local franchises, the PFA is staging the Franchise Asia Philippines 2016, which will feature new learnings and innovative business concepts to help the businesses.