Shaun T. Dy's Business & Economics Perspective Blog

  Last time, I wrote about Jollibee purchasing 70% shares ownership of Compose Coffee . It's easy to shout, "Pinoy Pride! The Philippines has conquered South Korea." I mentioned in that same article about one of my favorite tea franchises--Gong Cha. Gong Cha Korea currently owns 70% of the shares while Gong Cha Global owns only 30%. The big question is did South Korea just "conquer" Taiwan in what it did?  Pinoy Pride Economics (read about its socio-economic costs here ) might say yes to that. They might use Gong Cha as an example saying, "Are you crazy? Look at what happened to Taiwan! South Korea just checkmated it as Gong Cha Korea now owns 70%!" A good question to ask is, "If that's so why does Taiwan still remain a sovereign state and not bought by South Korea?"  Pinoy Pride Economics would rejoice with Jollibee growing worldwide but not in MNCs investing in the Philippines. Did they really think the Philippines checkmated South Kore

Yes, you read it right--Jollibee is set to acquire 70% of the shares of South Korean coffee brand Compose Coffee. This is an excerpt from the Philippine Star Global : JFC’s wholly owned subsidiary Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd. (JWPL) is set to acquire majority shareholding of 70 percent in Compose Coffee Co. Ltd. and JMCF Co. Ltd., collectively called Compose Coffee, for approximately $340 million . Titan Dining II LP and Elevation Equity Partners Korea Limited will hold the remaining shareholdings in Compose Coffee with effective interest of five percent and 25 percent, respectively. Through JWPL, JFC has a 90 percent participating interest in Titan Fund II , which is focused on strategic investments in food and beverage concepts with the objective to further grow in Asia Pacific food service brands and bring strong global food service brands to the region. It's effortless to start the cheer and dance when a Filipino company opens abroad. This is a meme by the CoRRECT Movement on F

I got to eat for the first time at the Yukga Barbecue Grill. Granted, the servings are rather huge and I was alone--I decided to try their delicious seolleongtang. It's around PHP 400.00+ and the serving was rather huge. It would be more advisable to bring a friend to share the bowl if you're a tiny eater. I remembered trying seolleongtang at some Korean restaurant (forgot the name) which closed down some time before the pandemic. I think it was located at The Greenery in Mabolo.  For those who have no idea what seollongtang is, the Korean Bapsang website shares this detail: What is Seolleongtang   Seolleongtang is a milky beef bone soup that’s made by boiling down ox leg bones for several hours until the broth becomes rich and creamy white . This broth is a staple in Korean households, especially during cold winter months. Legend has it that this soup was created because King Seonjong of the Joseon Dynasty wanted to feed a large number of people after an ancestral worship rit

It's been some time since I reviewed a restaurant, right? I've been to IT Park in Cebu City a few times after the pandemic. Last Sunday noon, after going to church, I ate at this new establishment called Hwang Geum Seong at The Walk in IT Park. That would be right across Calyx Building. The presence of both Chinese characters and Korean characters shows it's a fusion between Chinese and Korean. Well, Chinese and Korean food can be similar yet different. In my case, I'm actually a fan of Korean food for some time now. The Mandarin would be read as Huángjīn Chéng (please refer to a pinyin table to avoid misreading it). The literal meaning is Golden City.  There was the limited mix-and-match which reminds me of eating at Mingnan Cuisine in Plaridel, Cebu City. Mingnan Chinese Cuisine presented its trademark mix and match. Meanwhile, the Minnan Seafood Restaurant in Jamestown, Cebu City, Philippines, (read here ) devotes itself to ala carte. I decided to try the limited mix

When you have the taste of capitalism for the first time! There are really a lot of misconceptions about the free market and foreign investments. It would be a good time to write about the differences between North Korea and South Korea. I remembered studying Asian history in high school but it seems it was a rushed course . I guess Asian history is now taught in middle school and high school in the K+12 program. Like economics, it seems that Asian history and world history are treated like "just requirements to pass". Economics is linked to history and vice-versa. It would be good to talk about both Koreas for another economics-related post. Korean history was taught in high school but in a glimpse. I wish I had an updated Korean history textbook in English. We saw the progress of the two Koreas. Sadly, high school economics during K+10 was so rushed though I did learn a lot with a teacher as fierce as the late Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago.  Election seasons reminded me of