Potato Corner opens in Cebu its 2,000th store

Potato Corner, the flavored fries brand operated by the Po family through Shakey’s Pizza Asia Ventures Inc., has opened in Cebu its 2,000th store worldwide as it seeks to further dominate the kiosk-based food industry.

The company on Thursday said in a statement its newest outlet, located in SM City Cebu was “experiential” or “XP” in that it also sold official merchandise, apart from Potato Corner products.

This is the second XP Potato Corner branch after a company-owned store at Glorietta Mall in Makati City opened in July.

According to Potato Corner, these stores also have an expanded menu, special cuts and exclusive flavors.

“We are grateful for the continued patronage of our ‘PotCor’ fans, and we hope that these new stores can inspire more to come by and enjoy our brand’s offerings,” said Joey Alvero, Potato Corner chief operating officer and general manager.

Apart from the Philippines, Potato Corner is available in 14 other countries and territories — including the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia — with over 800 franchisees across the globe.

The snack firm is also present in New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong.

Shakey’s, which also operates Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken, acquired Potato Corner in 2022. Since then, food kiosk chain has added to its network at least 700 stores and outlets worldwide.

A total of 359 stores were opened last year, or around one outlet per day.

280 this year

In June, Shakey’s president and CEO Vicente Gregorio told reporters that they would open around 280 new Potato Corner kiosks this year. This represents 70 percent of the group’s target to have 400 new stores for all its brands.

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The flagship Shakey’s Pizza brand, meanwhile, will only get around 20 new stores.

The group’s earnings in the first half of the year declined by 14 percent to P420.5 million due to higher expenses and “a soft consumer environment.”

Meanwhile, its topline inched up by 7.4 percent to P6.53 billion as its systemwide sales grew.

The company said that while earnings performance remained subdued as expected, the group sees improvements in the second half as input costs improve, maintaining its mid-teens earnings growth outlook for 2024.