Homegrown fast-food giant Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) has revealed its strategic plans for the soon-to-be-acquired South Korean coffee chain, Compose Coffee. JFC’s Chief Financial Officer, Richard Shin, informed analysts that the acquisition, disclosed earlier this month, could receive approval from the Korea Fair Trade Commission by next month.
“We anticipate closing the transaction sometime between mid to end August. To be conservative, let’s call it end-August. On that date, the deal will be officially closed,” Shin said.
JFC plans to purchase 70 percent of the Korean coffee chain through its unit, Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd., for $238 million.
This acquisition aims to expand JFC’s coffee and tea business. JFC’s majority-owned Titan Fund and South Korean private-equity firm Elevation will acquire the remaining 5 percent and 25 percent, respectively. This brings the total transaction to around $340 million or KRW470 billion.
“The profit margins in this business are extremely lucrative,” Shin said. “What I really love about this deal is that a 2 percent top-line revenue contribution creates a 12 percent EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) bottom-line contribution.”
Shin also mentioned that JFC would not invest in capital expenditures since Compose Coffee stores in Korea are 100 percent franchised. “The profit margins in this business are extremely lucrative,” Shin reiterated. “What I really love about this deal is that a 2 percent top-line revenue contribution creates a 12 percent EBIT bottom-line contribution.”
The majority of income from Compose Coffee will come from sales of blended and roasted coffee beans to its franchisees.
JFC also noted that the acquisition would not directly impact the current coffee and tea brands under the group.