Fruitas Holdings Inc., a leading food and beverage kiosk operator, is set to venture into the grilled chicken business as part of a strategy to expand core business.
Fruitas said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Wednesday it would use recent acquisitions—Heat Stroke Grill and Kuxina Ihaw Na—to launch the grilled chicken concept.
Fruitas plans to offer the new concept through its current kiosk network or by independently setting up strategic stores.
“Chicken has proven to be the leading protein offered in foodservice in the Philippines and Fruitas believes it can carve a niche in this wide and fast-growing market segment,” the company said.
Fruitas is also planning to launch a fresh store concept under the Babot’s Farm brand.
Babot’s Farm will initially have three product lines of fresh products in its own portfolio, including Fruitas’ leading buko beverage line, a new soy line under Soy & Bean featuring products from its recent acquisition, The Tofu Store and fresh dairy.
Soy & Bean’s soy-based products will initially include fresh soy milk, tofu, taho, and soy-based ice cream.
“Babot’s Farm is a collection of fresh products which Fruitas is excited to serve to Filipino consumers. Our mission is to make fresh products easily accessible to Filipinos, thus bringing the farm closer to them,” said Fruitas president and chief executive Lester Yu.
“We are equally excited with our impending entry into the chicken business. We are confident that we can enter the market in a cost-effective manner yet come up with a well-loved product,” he added.
Fruitas as of end 2019 operated 1,068 stores across the country and over 20 brands in its portfolio.
The brands include well-loved food concepts Fruitas Fresh from Babot’s Farm, Buko Loco, Buko ni Fruitas, De Original Jamaican Pattie, Johnn Lemon, Juice Avenue, Black Pearl, Friends Fries, The Mango Farm, 7,107 Halo Halo Islands, Shou La Mien Hand Pulled Noodles and Sabroso Lechon.
