Jollibee Foods Corporation has announced a net loss of 12 billion Philippine pesos (S$336 million) in the first half of 2020, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

According to Rappler, the Filipino fast-food giant will be closing 255 stores worldwide, although no specific locations were stated.

Jollibee made a profit of S$70 million around the same time last year

Jollibee Foods Corporation has 3,286 stores in the Philippines, and a further 2,588 stores worldwide, according to Mashable.

This includes brands such as Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal, Burger King, and Panda Express in the Philippines.

Half of its outlets had to be shut down temporarily in the second quarter, resulting in close to 3,000 stores closed worldwide.

This led to a 48.4 per cent decrease in sales, or 30.7 billion Philippine pesos (S$859 million).

While 88 per cent of Jollibee's stores had reopened in a limited capacity by the end of the second quarter, revenue fell by 46.6 per cent, due to the lack of dine-in customers.

According to Inquirer, Jollibee made a profit of around 2.5 billion Philippine pesos (S$70 million) around this time last year.

Business results in line with forecasts

According to Jollibee's CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong, Jollibee's business results were "very bad", but in line with business forecasts.

Jollibee will focus on rebuilding their business, along with implementing "major cost improvement" under their business transformation program, according to Tanmantiong.

The business transformation program, which will cost 7 billion Philippine pesos (S$196 million), forms a significant portion of the company's net loss of 10.2 billion Philippines pesos (S$285 million).

This business transformation includes the closure of some 255 company-owned stores and the reduction in the size of the organisation in various countries.

Jollibee believes the company will be profitable in 2021

However, Rappler reported that Jollibee is still optimistic that the company will be profitable again in 2021, and projects a growth rate of 15 per cent in 2022.

Their projections assume that lockdown restrictions will not be reimposed.

Jollibee is also set to open 338 stores worldwide in 2020, and is set to turn Smashburger and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, which are both owned by Jollibee Foods Corporation, in 2021.

Top image via Jollibee/FB.