Homegrown bakeshop earmarks P300 million capex

CEBU, Philippines — San Jose Bakeshop has earmarked a budget of P300 million to open more branches within Cebu province this year.

San Jose Bakeshop president Jojo Tiongko Jr., announced that the bakeshop will open at least eight new branches before the end of this year.

The bakeshop chain will also commence its entry in malls featuring stores that offer its premium products, such as celebration cakes, among others.

In an interview, Tiongko bared the plan to open small outlets in malls, and also in the countryside and high consumer areas, as this kind of operation does not require higher cost of operation as well as manpower.

San Jose Bakeshop currently has 32 branches all over Metro Cebu employing about 350 regular workers, 80 of whom are bakers.

The expansion plan is seen to need at least 24 more personnel.

Amid the rise of inflation, which also affected the bakeshop industry in general, Tiongko maintains positive outlook saying bakery business is still flourishing, as bread is a commodity and while buying patterns have changed, people still buy breads.

The Cebuano family-owned bakeshop targets to grow 10 percent in revenue this year.

“I think breads would be one of the last things that will go. In times of crisis or prosperity, bread is bread. It’s a commodity,” Tiongro said in an interview.

Established in 1983, San Jose Bakeshop is one of the largest bakeshop chains in Cebu.