Why Jollibee’s Pistachio Kunafa Sundae Matters to Investors

Key Highlights
•     Localized product innovation is a Jollibee growth lever — deepens relevance with mainstream, non-Filipino customers across international markets.
•     Pistachio Kunafa turns local insight into scalable innovation — a UAE-led food trend became a Jollibee dessert platform that could travel across markets.
•     Market-led innovation supports repeatable growth — Jollibee is using local consumer insight to grow menu categories, build everyday relevance and strengthen its international expansion.

MANILA, Philippines 5 August 2026 — Jollibee’s Pistachio Kunafa Sundae started as a local response to a fast-growing food trend in the UAE. It has since become a useful example of how localized product innovation can help Jollibee build relevance across its broader international business, which spans 16 countries.

The product was developed to make the Dubai Chocolate and pistachio kunafa trend — widely described as one of the most viral dessert trends of the decade — more accessible through a familiar Jollibee platform. By translating a premium, culturally relevant flavor into an everyday QSR dessert, Jollibee showed its ability to spot a major consumer trend early, move quickly, and turn it into a product that could drive trial, strengthen menu excitement and bring new energy to the sundae category.

The idea also showed its ability to travel. From the UAE, Jollibee also adapted the Pistachio Kunafa Sundae for Saudi Arabia (KSA) and for markets beyond the Middle East, including the UK, Italy and other international locations where the concept had strong consumer relevance.

“What makes these innovations meaningful is that they start with what customers in each market already enjoy,” said Dennis M. Flores, President of Jollibee Europe, Middle East, Asia, and Australia, “Pistachio Kunafa Sundae was born from a real food trend in the UAE, but it worked because our teams translated it into something accessible, familiar and unmistakably Jollibee. That same market-led approach is helping us build stronger relevance with local customers across the region.”

This approach reflects how Jollibee is building international growth with both consistency and adaptability. Signature products such as Chickenjoy fried chicken, Jolly Spaghetti and Peach Mango Pie remain the foundation of the brand’s global identity, while localized innovations give customers new reasons to try, revisit and engage with Jollibee in ways that reflect local tastes and cultural preferences.

The same pattern is evident in other markets. In Vietnam, Spicy Spaghetti strengthened a core Jollibee platform with a locally relevant spicy twist, helping grow the spaghetti category and support the market’s strong momentum. The concept, which originated in Malaysia, has since expanded to other Southeast Asian markets. Other launches show the same market-led approach at work: Spicy Nuggets gained traction in Brunei, while the UK’s Ube Cloud Crunch Sundae and K-Spicy Chicken Sandwich brought new energy to key menu categories.

These innovations are part of a broader growth formula built on local insight, sustained marketing support and consistent product quality. Jollibee is the No. 1 QSR chain in Vietnam, based on Euromonitor data, and also holds market leadership in Brunei — proof points of how strong local relevance and execution can translate into competitive strength.

As of June 2026, localized launches had energized their respective menu categories, from spaghetti in Vietnam to desserts in the UK, contributing significantly to overall sales growth in these markets.

These launches are also helping Jollibee broaden its mainstream customer base beyond the Filipino diaspora. Local, non-Filipino customers account for nearly 100% of patronage in Vietnam and Brunei, about 87% in the UK, 85% in Singapore and 70% in Hong Kong — expanding the brand’s addressable market and supporting long-term growth.

“Our goal is to build Jollibee into a truly global brand that is loved not only by Filipinos, but by people from different cultures and communities in every market we serve,” said Ernesto Tanmantiong, Global President and Chief Executive Officer, Jollibee Group. “By combining global consistency with local relevance, we create more opportunities to grow sustainably and bring the joy of Jollibee to more people around the world.”