(Ministop Philippines Official facebook page)
Uncle John’s convenience store will soon be in many neighborhoods across the country bringing familiar favorites to Filipino consumers who have been the customers of about 500 Ministop stores since 2000.
Making the change first is the Ministop in Pampanga which opened last Oct. 12, bringing a yellow-and-blue color scheme to replace the 22-year-old blue-red-yellow theme.
All Mini Stop stores in the Philippines will be rebranded “Uncle John’s” by 2023 as a result of Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. (RRHI) taking full ownership of the Ministop Philippines franchise in February 2022.
The name – Uncle John’s – was chosen from more than 80,000 entries in the store’s “Ready, Set, Name!” contest held in April. “Uncle John” refers to John Gokongwei, Jr., the founder of RRHI, who passed away at 92, in November 2019.
“Uncle John” is also the brand of the popular fried chicken introduced in 2006 that is one of the bestsellers of the convenience store. Another bestseller which will still be featured in Uncle John’s is the Kariman (fried sandwich).
RCSI General Manager Suresh Ramalinggam said, “Using it as the platform in the reinvention of our stores will provide us with a stronger brand story that our customers will be able to relate to.”
The real Uncle John was actually known as “Big John,” also the title of a children’s book – Big John: The Life Story of John Gokongwei Jr.— written by Yvette Fernandez and illustrated by Abi Goy. The book related Gokongwei’s inspiring stories on initiative, perseverance and business skills that built a business empire that now includes Cebu Pacific, JD Summit, Robinsons malls, property development projects like condominium buildings, house-and-lot subdivisions, and supermarkets.
The change of the store’s name is also a commemoration of the legacy of the late founder, said RCSI in a statement as reported by Manila Bulletin.
The convenience store chain has been in the Philippines since 2000 and has stores in north and south Luzon, and the Visayas islands. Prominent Ministop stores are in the cities of Bacolod, Cebu, Dumaguete, Roxas and Boracay. (Alexa Basa, Clarissa Garcia, Thea Magueriano, and Timothy Gacura)