Mon Aldrin M.

Ladines
12-Faith

TONY TAN CAKTIONG

Everyone aspires to become a billionaire, including this young man who was born the son
of a cook at a Buddhist temple and is currently climbing the success ladder.

Tony was born on January 5, 1953, in China. He is the third of seven siblings. The
Caktiong family migrates to the Philippines. According to Forbes Magazine, he was ranked 9th
richest man in the Philippines as of January 2021, with a net worth of $2.4 billion. 

Tony Tan Caktiong is the founder and chairman of Jollibee Food Corporation, one of the
world’s fastest-growing Asian restaurant food chains. Jollibee has more than 1,500 locations
throughout 17 nations, Jollibee is the biggest fast food company in the Philippines. Jollibee is a
market leader in the Philippines, with a larger percentage of the domestic market than all of the
other international fast food brands put together.

He didn't start off with the fortune he does now, he came from humble beginnings. He
was born to a cook who had previously worked at a Buddhist temple and had a difficult
upbringing. Their hardworking parents gave them a head start in the world of business by
allowing them to work in Davao at the family restaurant. It was definitely a family restaurant
because he and his siblings helped with everything from dishwashing to bussing tables to serving
customers. As a result, they were able to enroll in top universities, and Tony ultimately followed
in his family's entrepreneurial footsteps by franchising the Magnolia Ice Cream House. He
founded the Cubao Ice Cream House and the Quiapo Ice Cream House at the age of just 22.

After failing at his first attempt in the food business, he eventually succeeded in 1978 by
creating Jollibee by paying attention to those who didn't actually want to consume ice cream all
 Mon Aldrin M. Ladines
12-Faith
the time. Hence, they provided fried chicken, well known to us all as Jollibee Chicken Joy. In
addition, they provided hamburgers and spaghetti cooked in the manner of the Philippines, just
like they do now. More than a thousand Jollibee locations may be found throughout the
Philippines. Furthermore, he has also been able to enter the international market by starting a
franchise. Jollibee is a massive fast-food chain with more than 2,500 shops in the Philippines
with locations in the US, China, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, and the UK.

Now imagining from the start where they started from scratches full of trial and error to
the giant that is now the Jollibee Food Corporation (JFC). The Jollibee Group is now comprised
of 18 brands in 34 countries because of Tan Caktiong's leadership, making it a global leader in
the F&B industry. The group now includes internationally renowned companies like dim sum
chain Din Tai Fung, Seattle-based coffee bar The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, and Japanese gyudon
chain Yoshinoya in addition to well-known local chains like Jollibee, Chinese fast-food provider
Chowking, barbecued chicken brand Mang Inasal, and Greenwich Pizza.

This business entrepreneur has not been deterred by the pandemic at all since his
company established 399 new outlets in 2021, 341 of which were abroad. The business also
made large investments that year to broaden its reach internationally, adding many additional
brands to its portfolio, including the Taiwanese beverage chain Milksha.

In July of 2022, Tony Tan Caktiong received the Ramon V del Rosario Award for Nation
Building in honor of his commercial acumen and his role in putting the Philippines on the map of
the world's food and beverage industry. Caktiong modestly stated, upon receiving his honor, "We
never intended to become big for the sake of becoming big. We set [ourselves on this path]
imbued with a sense of purpose including that it be something we, our people and our country
can all be proud of. When we set our vision of being one of the top five restaurant companies in
the world, we never intended to become big for the sake of becoming big."

References:

Asia, T. (2021). Tony Tan-Caktiong Tatler Asia. Tatler Asia.

Baluyos, M. (2022). Get to Know Jollibee’s Tony Tan Caktiong: Rags to Riches Story. Sugbo.ph.
https://sugbo.ph/2022/jollibee-tony-tan-caktiong-story/. 

Fran, (2022).The most successful entrepreneurs in the Philippines and how they got started -
FutureLearn. FutureLearn. https://www.futurelearn.com/info/futurelearn-international/most-
successful-entrepreneurs-philippines. 

Jollibee (2022). About Jollibee. Jollibee. https://www.jollibee.com.ph/about/.