Jollibee gets Korea nod for Shabu All Day hot pot acquisition

Insider Spotlight

• FTC approval clears key hurdle for Korea expansion
• Deal seen lifting revenues and boosting profitability
• Hot pot chain adds scale and strong unit economics
  
  
  

Jollibee Foods Corporation has secured regulatory approval for its planned acquisition of South Korea’s Shabu All Day, marking a critical step forward in a deal that reinforces its ambitions in one of Asia’s most competitive dining markets.

The Korea Fair Trade Commission’s approval allows the Jollibee Group to move closer to completing the transaction through its subsidiary, Jolli-K Co. Ltd., bringing into its fold the country’s largest all-you-can-eat hot pot chain. 

The development represents the key new milestone in a strategy the company has already been building out in Korea.

The big picture

Once finalized, the acquisition is expected to contribute around 2 percent to group revenues and about 8 percent to global EBIT, highlighting the material impact of the deal on Jollibee’s earnings profile. 

The company is betting on Shabu All Day’s scale—about 170 stores—and its differentiated unlimited dining format to drive sustained consumer demand. 

The move also builds on Jollibee’s earlier acquisition of high-return coffee chain Compose Coffee, further deepening its multi-brand platform in Korea. In outlining the rationale, the company described the deal as part of its focus on “scalable, high-return concepts,” a framing that comes from a company release and signals how management is positioning the deal internally and to investors.

Why it matters

The approval underscores Jollibee’s growing execution track record in Korea, where it has been steadily building a multi-brand platform. Shabu All Day’s estimated two- to three-year payback period and high-capacity store format strengthen its appeal as a growth engine in the region.

What they’re saying

“Securing Korea FTC approval is an important milestone that advances our planned acquisition of Shabu All Day,” said Jollibee Group Global president CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong. 

“This investment strengthens our Korea growth platform and reflects our focus on scalable, high-return concepts that support profitable growth for the Jollibee Group.”

The bottom line

With regulatory clearance now in place, Jollibee is poised to close the deal and deepen its foothold in Korea, leveraging scale and format innovation to drive its next phase of international growth. —Princess Daisy C. Ominga | Ed: Corrie S. Narisma