Tony Tan Caktiong—founder, executive chairman, chairman of the board and chief taste officer of Jollibee Foods Corporation—transformed a little burger-and-ice cream parlour in Cubao into one of the biggest food-and-beverage success stories in the world. The forward-thinking Tan Caktiong is behind the household name brand Jollibee. This local favourite is now the darling of the global fast-food industry, expanding its reach far beyond Philippine shores and into the bellies of food lovers worldwide.

Under Tan Caktiong’s leadership, the Jollibee Group now encompasses 18 brands across 34 countries, making it a world leader in the F&B sector. Aside from beloved local chains like Jollibee, Chinese fast-food purveyor Chowking, barbecued chicken brand Mang Inasal and Greenwich Pizza, the group includes globally known entities like dim sum chain Din Tai Fung, Seattle-based coffee bar The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Japanese gyudon chain Yoshinoya.

The pandemic has not stopped this mogul in his tracks, as his company opened 542 stores in 2022. In 2021, the company also made substantial investments to increase its global footprint, expanding its portfolio to include several new brands, including Taiwanese beverage chain Milksha. For 2023, the billionaire has invested up to PHP19 billion to open as many as 600 stores worldwide.

In recognition of Tan Caktiong’s business acumen and how he put the Philippines on the global F&B map, he was honoured with the Ramon V del Rosario Award for Nation Building in July 2022. When he accepted his award, Tan Caktiong modestly remarked, “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. 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.” In 2023, Tan Caktiong became the namesake of a building he donated to his alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas. The Tony Tan Caktiong Innovation Center (UST-TTCIC) is located at the institution’s 40-hectare campus in Laguna.