For many restaurant brands, real estate dictates growth. For Jollibee, growth is dictated by something else entirely: the customer. And that mindset is reshaping how and where the global fried chicken brand is expanding across the United States.
As Jollibee accelerates its U.S. footprint, its real estate strategy has become one of its biggest competitive advantages. Rather than forcing every location into a single prototype, the brand has built a flexible, proven approach that allows it to succeed in everything from high-density urban cores to suburban strip centers and nontraditional sites.
“The flexibility of our real estate strategy is a real plus for franchise developers,” said Peter Wright, vice president of franchising. “We have stores operating in a variety of formats - free-standing and end-caps with and without drive-throughs, inline urban core, mall and food courts.”
Jollibee’s portfolio of operating formats reads more like a playbook than a limitation. Free-standing units, end caps, in-line locations, mall stores — even walk-up concepts — are all part of the brand’s existing footprint.
Standout examples include the Times Square location and the first franchise location on Queens Blvd. in Flushing, Wright said, which operate as walk-up stores in a demanding real estate environment.
That versatility matters as brands compete for space in markets where traditional drive-thru or free-standing sites are either unavailable or cost-prohibitive. Jollibee’s ability to adapt its format allows it to unlock white space that more rigid concepts simply can’t access.
This flexibility is also especially powerful in nontraditional and underdeveloped pockets of major metros, where demand exists but real estate doesn’t fit a cookie-cutter model. Mall locations, in-line spaces and end caps can often deliver strong economics without the barriers associated with ground-up development.
That flexibility gives developers more options. With several workable formats, Jollibee can fit into more sites and move from deal to opening faster.
At the heart of Jollibee’s real estate philosophy is a simple idea: demand for great fried chicken isn’t confined to one type of custom market or location.
“What it’s really about is finding the right neighborhoods and communities to bring the joy of Jollibee to,” Wright said. “And the best part is finding the connection.”
That perspective has allowed Jollibee to think differently about site selection. Instead of asking whether a location fits a predefined box, the brand asks whether it fits how customers live, shop and travel.
“If they are at the mall shopping with family, they can find Jollibee,” Wright said. “Or if they are on a trip and want to hit it off the highway, they can do that. It allows us to meet a larger customer base.”
Beyond real estate, Jollibee’s growth in the U.S. is also fueled by its evolution from a beloved Filipino cultural icon into a brand that’s venturing into the mainstream. While the company remains deeply proud of its Filipino roots, its expansion strategy is intentionally focused on welcoming a wider customer base — one that extends well beyond the communities that first embraced the brand.
“We’ve seen the brand resonate far outside of just the Filipino customer base,” said Wright. “Great fried chicken has universal appeal, and once people try it, they become fans.”
Of course, flexibility alone doesn’t drive growth. Jollibee is pairing its real estate adaptability with a deliberate approach to franchisee selection — one built around scale, infrastructure and shared values.
“The franchisees we award development rights to have to have the financial resources to build a significant number of stores,” Wright said. “They also have to have the operating capabilities, the team and the infrastructure to build that and be able to operate multiple units.”
Just as important is alignment. “There are a lot of great developers, but what it comes down to is what is their philosophy? What values do they hold dear and are those aligned with what we are looking for,” Wright said.
That focus ensures that as Jollibee grows into new formats and new markets, the brand experience remains consistent.
As Jollibee continues its U.S. expansion, its flexible real estate strategy is proving to be more than a tactical advantage. It’s a growth engine — one that allows the brand to move faster, enter smarter and reach customers wherever demand exists.
By designing the model around people rather than prototypes, Jollibee is positioning itself to win in both traditional strongholds and the nontraditional markets where the next wave of growth is waiting.
For more information on franchising with Jollibee visit: https://1851franchise.com/jollibee.
Jollibee
SPONSORED
Vice President of Franchising Peter Wright explains how adaptive formats (suburban, urban and end-cap models) are driving the global restaurant brand’s accelerated U.S. expansion.
For many restaurant brands, real estate dictates growth. For Jollibee, growth is dictated by something else entirely: the customer. And that mindset is reshaping how and where the global fried chicken brand is expanding across the United States.
As Jollibee accelerates its U.S. footprint, its real estate strategy has become one of its biggest competitive advantages. Rather than forcing every location into a single prototype, the brand has built a flexible, proven approach that allows it to succeed in everything from high-density urban cores to suburban strip centers and nontraditional sites.
“The flexibility of our real estate strategy is a real plus for franchise developers,” said Peter Wright, vice president of franchising. “We have stores operating in a variety of formats - free-standing and end-caps with and without drive-throughs, inline urban core, mall and food courts.”
Jollibee’s portfolio of operating formats reads more like a playbook than a limitation. Free-standing units, end caps, in-line locations, mall stores — even walk-up concepts — are all part of the brand’s existing footprint.
Standout examples include the Times Square location and the first franchise location on Queens Blvd. in Flushing, Wright said, which operate as walk-up stores in a demanding real estate environment.
That versatility matters as brands compete for space in markets where traditional drive-thru or free-standing sites are either unavailable or cost-prohibitive. Jollibee’s ability to adapt its format allows it to unlock white space that more rigid concepts simply can’t access.
This flexibility is also especially powerful in nontraditional and underdeveloped pockets of major metros, where demand exists but real estate doesn’t fit a cookie-cutter model. Mall locations, in-line spaces and end caps can often deliver strong economics without the barriers associated with ground-up development.
That flexibility gives developers more options. With several workable formats, Jollibee can fit into more sites and move from deal to opening faster.
At the heart of Jollibee’s real estate philosophy is a simple idea: demand for great fried chicken isn’t confined to one type of custom market or location.
“What it’s really about is finding the right neighborhoods and communities to bring the joy of Jollibee to,” Wright said. “And the best part is finding the connection.”
That perspective has allowed Jollibee to think differently about site selection. Instead of asking whether a location fits a predefined box, the brand asks whether it fits how customers live, shop and travel.
“If they are at the mall shopping with family, they can find Jollibee,” Wright said. “Or if they are on a trip and want to hit it off the highway, they can do that. It allows us to meet a larger customer base.”
Beyond real estate, Jollibee’s growth in the U.S. is also fueled by its evolution from a beloved Filipino cultural icon into a brand that’s venturing into the mainstream. While the company remains deeply proud of its Filipino roots, its expansion strategy is intentionally focused on welcoming a wider customer base — one that extends well beyond the communities that first embraced the brand.
“We’ve seen the brand resonate far outside of just the Filipino customer base,” said Wright. “Great fried chicken has universal appeal, and once people try it, they become fans.”
Of course, flexibility alone doesn’t drive growth. Jollibee is pairing its real estate adaptability with a deliberate approach to franchisee selection — one built around scale, infrastructure and shared values.
“The franchisees we award development rights to have to have the financial resources to build a significant number of stores,” Wright said. “They also have to have the operating capabilities, the team and the infrastructure to build that and be able to operate multiple units.”
Just as important is alignment. “There are a lot of great developers, but what it comes down to is what is their philosophy? What values do they hold dear and are those aligned with what we are looking for,” Wright said.
That focus ensures that as Jollibee grows into new formats and new markets, the brand experience remains consistent.
As Jollibee continues its U.S. expansion, its flexible real estate strategy is proving to be more than a tactical advantage. It’s a growth engine — one that allows the brand to move faster, enter smarter and reach customers wherever demand exists.
By designing the model around people rather than prototypes, Jollibee is positioning itself to win in both traditional strongholds and the nontraditional markets where the next wave of growth is waiting.
For more information on franchising with Jollibee visit: https://1851franchise.com/jollibee.
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