MAX’S GROUP

MANILA - Max's Group, Inc. (MGI) continues to aggressively expand its presence in the global scene. Pancake House, a homegrown favorite and pioneer in the pancakes and waffle concept, is set to make its initial foray into UAE. MGI recently inked a development agreement with Lulu Group to build at least 8 Pancake House stores in UAE within the next five years. "We are pleased with the opportunity to further broaden our reach in the UAE this time around for Pancake House. We are excited with our partnership with Lulu Group, an established retailer with a storied and rich history of success, to serve our products to the Emiratis," said Max's Group President and CEO, Robert F. Trota. "We are also encouraged that our international campaign has received strong interest from a number of potential foreign partners. This can be attributed to the strength of our diverse portfolio of brands catering to various markets and tastes, anchored on a solid and well-organized MGI support system," Mr. Trota stated. This marks the fourth development agreement signed by MGI for 2015. The company plans to have at least 200 international outlets by 2020 across its brands. "For this year, we were initially aiming at closing at least two territories. With this, we were able to exceed our targets," Mr. Trota added. Established in 1996, Lulu Group is a highly diversified group based in UAE engaged in the businesses of retail, imports, exports, trading, shipping, information technology, tourism and education, with operations spanning across 21 countries. Its latest venture into food and beverage, through Tablez Food Company, has created its own portfolio of restaurants, cafes and ice cream stores coupled with international franchised brands in the Middle East and India. "We at Tablez have always believed in bringing in unique brands from around the world in the evolving and highly competitive food and beverage sector in the gulf region. I am absolutely delighted in partnering with Pancake House, one of the most popular brands from the Philippines. I am also excited about the fact that UAE and the gulf region is home to a large Filipino community and a brand like Pancake House will be a big hit and also gives us a chance to present this brand to other diverse nationalities residing here," remarked Tablez Food Company CEO Shafeena Yusuff Ali. Pancake House currently operates a network of 123 branches including nine franchised outlets located in Malaysia and Brunei.