LEE KUM KEE, the Hong Kong-based Asian sauces brand widely credited for creating oyster sauce, announced that it is bringing more of its products to the Philippines, as part of expansion plans in Southeast Asia.
“We feel that there is a market, and we would like to expand it further,” said Carmen Liew Mei Ling, Lee Kum Kee regional marketing director, during the March 11 brand event at Greenhills Promenade, San Juan, Metro Manila.
While she refused to divulge how many of the brand’s 200-odd Chinese-style sauces will be entering the country, Ms. Liew said it is working with exclusive local distributor SYSU International, Inc., to ensure the products are widely available.
“It’s all in our plan to bring more products, which will fit into the local taste profile,” she said.
The Lee Kum Kee sauces currently available in the country are hoisin, chili garlic, premium soy sauce, and sesame oil.
Ms. Liew also noted the recent launch of Panda brand oyster sauce in sachets and a smaller 145-milliliter bottle (it also comes in 500 ml), “so more people can enjoy our products anytime they want”. She added that the oyster sauce is still Lee Kum Kee’s most popular sauce in the Philippines.
Lee Kum Kee was founded in 1888 in Guangdong, China, and entered the Philippines in the 1970s. The company currently serves over 130 countries across five continents, according to a company press release.
The March 11 event also served as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts as they treated some 150 orphans under a local charity to food and a movie screening of DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda 3.
The chosen charity, Kaisahang Buhay Foundation (KBF), whose services include helping orphans and abandoned children find new homes locally and internationally, was also given a P500,000 cash donation from the company.
“This is our first time working with KBF, but this is not the last. We are expanding our charity and donation [efforts] in Southeast Asia,” said Ronald Wong Wun Wing, global corporate affairs senior manager.
“We’re taking a very cautious and conservative approach; we want to experience it first and then we’re expanding the program,” he said, adding that they are still looking for other foundations to support. — Zsarlene B. Chua
