Why Potato Corner is more than just 'Fries' to every Filipino

Image from The Independent Investor

When anybody asks me what my favorite food is, my forever answer is French fries, so my expectations for them are very high. The bar is set at perfect crisp, shoestring shape and saltiness. So when I heard of this company, I was intrigued by how high-rank Potato Corner would be on my french fries ranking list. When I tried their flavored fries, their phenomenal taste would stay in my mouth, let alone make me crave it for a few months after that first bite. This experience was not only mine but became an international experience everywhere as they are globalized. This is their story, Potato Corner.

Potato Corner originated from the Philippines, and a young father, Jorge Wienekethe, created the idea as he was always pushed to be resourceful for his family. Later, in 1992, Mr. Wienekethe met

and later found out that Mr. Montelibano was selling flavored popcorn—two powder-based flavors: barbecue and cheese--that made Ricky's business have a buttload of money. With this in mind, Mr. Wieknekethe couldn't stop thinking about Mr. Montelibano's flavored popcorn enterprise.

Image from The Independent Investor

The idea of flavored food never left Mr. Wienekethe's mind, and later, he created something similar, finding his corner. Something needed to be different, and he decided that french fries would be his niche or his own 'Potato' corner. From there on out, Mr. Wiekethe chose to make his team. At first, the idea was discussed with his best friend, Danny Bermejo, and later, Mr. Bermejo came on board. Of course, they weren't going to leave out the guy who gave Mr. Wienekethe the idea, Mr. Montelibano, so they recruited him as well. Finally, they tapped Jose Magsaysay (Jomag), Ricky's brother-in-law, who had worked for Wendy's for years. They wanted his expertise in food operations. Like them, Jomag wanted more out of his career, especially as a young husband. He was looking for a side hustle; this was the perfect opportunity!

Image from Potato Corner

Flavored food, centered mainly around french fries, reinstated something people already loved. The thought of french fries gives a sense of comfort and familiarity. With the addition of powdered-based flavors, it added a fresh, craveable twist that created even more love for this business. Why wouldn't somebody want to buy something affordable, easy to serve, and able to hit the sweet spots for everybody's taste buds in indulgence and convenience?

Despite this lovely idea, they lacked much capital for an entrepreneurship business and needed to find a way to make up for this. In collaboration with Mr. Wienekethe's known resourcefulness, they could bring together enough capital with family and bank loans and pool the little they had in their savings accounts. Soon enough, they got their idea into the market in a small food stall at an SM Megamall. Even in the early 90s, SM Megamall was one of the most popular shopping malls. So launching there meant immediate exposure to thousands of people walking by daily. In not too short of a future, the lines to their store never stopped, and everyone was invited through word of mouth, which was impressive considering it was in the early 90s.

Their expansion started with an offer to start another outlet in a space at Robinson's Mall, another one of Phillipine's most popular malls at the time. They also got further attention from Ayala Malls, where they were given a kiosk with a location right in the middle of a major mall. Within 3 years, they expanded to 100 outlets within the country. Three of the most popular malls in the Philippines were giving them great attention at a national level, so it wouldn't be long until it would get attention globally.

Image from adobo Magazine

In 2006, an Indonesian student who loved Potato Corner through visitation reached out to the Big 4, asking them to expand to Indonesia. At first, they rejected his offer, but the kid was persistent, so later on, they established their first overseas store there. They went into globalization and expanded to other countries: the US, Australia, Asia, etc. Potato Corner is still a thriving fast food outlet to this day and is, especially, very famous throughout Singapore in terms of Grab or their many outlets within the country.