Tag: Grab Philippines

Manila, Philippines – Grab in the Philippines has announced the appointment of Ronald Roda, most recently the company’s chief operating officer, as its new country manager. He replaces Grace Vera Cruz as she takes on a regional role as head of regional corporate strategy.

In his previous role, Roda led the GrabCar business for over six years. Under his leadership, Grab expanded its reach from 8 cities to over 200 cities in the Philippines since 2018, making Grab’s services accessible to millions more Filipinos. 

Moreover, during the pandemic, when the GrabCar business was temporarily shut down, he adapted swiftly to sustain business operations and transforming it into a more reliable and affordable service post-pandemic.

Meanwhile, Cruz will continue to be based in the Philippines in her regional capacity, to ensure a smooth transition and operational continuity. Her ongoing presence signifies her continued commitment to supporting the Philippine market and strengthening Grab’s long-standing partnerships.

Speaking on his new role, Roda said, “I am honoured to take on the role of country head for Grab Philippines, and I am committed to continuing the great work and building on the strong relationships established under Grace’s leadership. My goal is to continue making Grab a true partner for growth, providing innovative solutions that benefit Filipinos across the nation.”

He added, “Together, we will further enhance the quality of life for our consumers and driver-partners, and strengthen the pathways for success for our MSMEs and corporate partners, ensuring that Grab remains a vital contributor to the Philippines’ socio-economic development.”

Meanwhile, Cruz commented, “I am deeply grateful for the unwavering support, collaboration, trust, and openness from all our partners and stakeholders who have believed in Grab’s success during my tenure. Reflecting on the commitment I made when I joined Grab, I am proud of the strides we have made together to drive innovation, enhance services, and uplift the lives of Filipinos.”

She added, “As I transition to my new regional role, I am filled with confidence, optimism, and excitement for Grab Philippines and our new country head. Ronald’s dedication and deep understanding of the industry make him the perfect leader for this next chapter. I encourage everyone to extend to him the same level of support and trust that you have generously given me as we continue our journey to drive growth and success for Grab and the Filipino community.”

Manila, Philippines – Following a recent ₱9m fine by the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC), Grab Philippines has stated that it is now evaluating its legal options regarding the fine, stating that it has been proactive at communicating with the PCC in regards to alternative options in reimbursing the fees to consumers.

A spokesperson for Grab Philippines said that while they are surprised with the new fine PCC has given them, they are glad that the PCC has finally come to a decision on the disbursement mechanism for the remaining administrative fees.

“Grab Philippines has always been 100% committed to fully depleting the unclaimed admin fees, and have made every effort we can to do so. We proposed alternative disbursement mechanisms and are surprised that the PCC made a decision in February 2023 without informing us – given that we’ve been regularly following up with them,” the spokesperson said.

The company also added that they will abide by the recent PCC order in regards to the alternative refund mechanism as required by the order.

The fine imposed by the PCC is composed of a ₱6m fine where Grab violated three separate commission orders for the company to return a combined ₱25.45m to its customers. The other ₱3m fine is in regards to Grab providing incorrect and misleading information in the compliance reports that the company submitted with respect to the refund orders.

Manila, Philippines – Grab Philippines has recently released a public statement amid the ongoing issue of homophobic remarks from its partner delivery riders that netizens have pointed out regarding the launch of the McDonald’s x BTS meal in the country.

https://twitter.com/vmindables/status/1405089267940937729

Netizens have raised the alarm after a handful of deliver rider partners of the app posted homophobic statements against the popular K-pop group BTS, calling them ‘BTS Biot’ or ‘BTS gay’, labeling BTS as a group of gay people. 

The influx of these homophobic statements comes after a rise in food deliveries of the BTS McDo meal across Grab deliveries in the country, which consists of a 10-piece chicken McNuggets, medium fries, and Coke, as well as McDonald’s South Korea’s two popular dipping sauces – sweet chili and cajun. 

In the statement, Grab Philippines stated that “inclusivity is one of Grab’s core values, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for inexcusable behaviors.”

They also added that they have immediately suspended the delivery-partners in question and will continue to work hard to maintain an inclusive and diverse platform.

“Our delivery-partners continue to provide significant services for our kababayans (countrymen) during these trying times. We hope that our consumers will not let the actions of a few select individuals affect the livelihoods of the many delivery-partners who rely on the Grab platform to support their families,” the company added.

Despite the statement, netizens continue to raise concerns about delivery riders of Grab who are still not given appropriate action.

Twitter user @vmindables stated that the attitude of these select riders are very much ‘disturbing’, but their co-delivery riders ‘tolerating’ such acts are even more gut-wrenching.

“All we wanted was to enjoy this short season in peace. This isn’t just about the hate against BTS but also the mockery against the LGBTQ+ Community. Educate your riders. Stop making ‘biot’ or other third-gender terms an insult and a figure of fun and mockery,” the user added.

Meanwhile, Twitter user @yeontaeberrykim commented that said action is not only applicable for the sake of BTS, but also the use of slurs against the members of the LGBTQ+ community.

https://twitter.com/yeontaeberrykim/status/1405500651757391881

“It is also important to remind the delivery partners to act accordingly. There is no place for prejudice. As you said, inclusivity is one of your core values and this should be reflected by your partners and their services towards your customers,” the user added.

Manila, Philippines – A handful of local brands and organizations in the Philippines have shown their quirky side by joining the online trend in regards to the recently-debated online trend #LugawIsEssential.

The context draws its origin from the now infamous ‘lugaw incident’ where Marvin Ignacio, a food delivery rider working for Grab Philippines, was held in a checkpoint at Brgy. Muzon, San Jose del Monte, Bulacan by barangay (local government unit) officials since his delivery of ‘lugaw’, the Filipino equivalent of savory porridge, was not deemed ‘essential’ in terms of service.

As the Greater Manila area, including the province of Bulacan, is still under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), many people resort to food deliveries, to which the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) has deemed ‘essential’.

The video appeared in the Facebook Live video of the food delivery rider, who streamed the confrontation with barangay officials. The incident went viral on Maundy Thursday, 1 April, which has drawn flak among netizens due to the ‘paradoxical’ nature the barangay officials gave in terms of the item’s essential nature. Despite initially blowing up on Facebook, the trend became more prominent in other social media channels, including Instagram and Twitter.

As the trend #LugawIsEssential spiked in popularity on Twitter Philippines, several known and local brands have jumped in the trend to poke fun at the ongoing trend, while maintaining campaign presence and relevancy at the same time.

Jumping first on the trend is the rider’s employer Grab Philippines, where in one of their posts, they quote that “If food is essential, and lugaw is essential, therefore LUGAWISESSENTIAL”. The post itself has acted as a new local campaign by Grab PH of using the promo code to gain a free delivery perk from the service itself.

Furthermore, the Philippine arm of GrabMart also uses the same promo code campaign to entice customers with a free delivery perk when they buy the ingredients of lugaw, which include rice, egg, garlic, salt, and ginger as staples.

Some Grab PH users have also noted a new advisory message on the app’s dashboard which similarly pokes fun at the lugaw incident, stating that they are “serving you 24/7 this ECQ so that you can stay safe at home while we bring you essentials (food and lugaw included!).”

Meanwhile, the Philippine division of smartphone brand Xiaomi posted a tweet reminiscent of the time of how the founders of Xiaomi in 2010 united on a meal of lugaw in deciding what to call their company as.

Oil company Phoenix Fuels, on the other hand, pokes fun at the debacle by posting an infographic stating the ‘essential’ ingredients of making lugaw, accompanied with a Twitter thread helping online users how to cook porridge. The online post aims to promote Phoenix Fuels’ liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products.

On a similar note, local weather channel Panahon.TV also posted a photo, enumerating and visualizing the lugaw ingredients at the same time.

As the trend fell into the observance of April Fool’s Day as well, some smaller local brands have also jumped into ‘trolling’ their online audiences with ‘new products’.

On a weird note, local adult pleasure brand frisky ‘announced’ that they have recently launched a new lube product, with lugaw as the new flavor, to which they ‘announced’ is on sale on both Lazada and Shopee.

https://twitter.com/FriskyUltd/status/1377406606963396610

Meanwhile, local candle scents maker Clementine Scents announced that they have launched a ‘lugaw-scented candle’ to allow customers “enjoy the scent of [the] favorite Filipino porridge, wherever, whenever.”

A screenshot of the Instagram post of Clementine Scents

Other brands and organizations that poked fun on the #LugawIsEssential debacle includes the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, local anime media group portal AniRadio Plus, and Default Cafe Pub, which made a jovial take on the likewise viral photo of President Rodrigo Duterte blowing a ‘birthday cake’ made out of steamed rice.

Manila, Philippines – GrabKitchen finally gets a second branch in the Philippines, which will be located in Sampaloc, Metro Manila, generally known as the ‘University Belt’, housing a number of top colleges and universities in the district. The branch adds to the overall 50 known GrabKitchen branches in the Southeast Asia region.

The concept of GrabKitchen revolves around a mix-and-match feature, which allows customers to satisfy their food orders from different merchants all in one order. 

The second GrabKitchen Philippine branch brings together eight brands to provide more food choices to consumers. It also aims to provide food entrepreneurs the opportunity to launch their brands in new locations with a lower setup cost and to reach a wider base of customers through GrabFood. 

The eight food chain brands include Conti’s, Sinangag Express, CoCo Fresh Tea and Juice, as well as Omakase, Mister Kabab, and Army Navy, and also Pizza Telefono, and Happilee. 

According to Grab Philippines Head of Deliveries EJ Dela Vega, GrabKitchen responds to both consumer demand and helping food and beverage entrepreneurs succeed in their digital business stints.

“Our first GrabKitchen has enabled merchants to establish their brands in Makati, where they didn’t use to have a physical store, with minimal upfront investments. At the same time, it has also provided food lovers the option to enjoy different cuisines they love in a single order and pay one delivery fee. We hope to bring the same benefits to consumers and businesses through the opening of our Sampaloc branch,” Dela Vega stated.

The country’s first branch was launched at shopping mall Glorietta 2 located in top business district, Makati City, where it facilitated six merchants.

Dela Vega also added that these merchants will add variety in terms of food choices in Manila. Omakase and Happilee are opening their kitchens in Manila for the first time, while the others hope to gain more customers through GrabKitchen. He further shared that Grab considered several factors in shortlisting the merchants, including identifying the in-demand food items in the area and leveraging data from historical orders to address cuisine gaps. 

“We are hopeful that our Sampaloc, Manila branch will give foodies more freedom to mix and match their orders. They can also take advantage of the fact that our GrabKitchen merchants offer long-distance deliveries up to 10 kilometers,” Dela Vega added.

GrabKitchen was a concept first introduced in Indonesia in 2018 and has since become the largest regional cloud kitchen operator in Southeast Asia. GrabKitchen’s branches expand in countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia, where it has also recently opened a first branch. 

To celebrate the launch of the newest GrabKitchen branch, Grab is offering free delivery to customers from February 9 to 28, 2021 for orders with a minimum price tag of ₱550.

Manila, Philippines – Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen in the Philippines is adding a new item – US. Spicy Chicken Sandwich – to its menu, and it has exclusively tied up with GrabFood to offer customers a first-taste ahead of its official store launch.

The new item will be made available in stores on October 18, but customers can already order from GrabFood starting October 14.

https://www.facebook.com/popeyesph/posts/2890775661200668

The U.S. Spicy Chicken Sandwich features a spicy boneless chicken with pickled jalapeños, bacon strips, and spicy roasted garlic mayo on a toasted brioche bun.

With Popeyes being a participating merchant-partner for GrabFood’s new Long Distance feature, GrabFood users within a 10 km radius from a Popeyes branch will also be able to avail the U.S. Spicy Chicken Sandwich. 

Manila, Philippines – Grab Philippines has tied up with Unilever Philippines to launch the Safer Meals Philippines campaign, a program which provides hygiene kits to GrabFood merchant partners and delivery partners. 

Through the kits, Grab aims to ensure utmost safety and hygiene at every stage of the food delivery life cycle. Part of the kits is Unilever’s newly launched Lifebuoy sanitizer and Cif multi-purpose cleaner. 

According to a press statement by Grab Singapore, the partnership with Unilever covers the whole of Southeast Asia in the objective to protect Grab riders as well as to support the livelihoods of small business owners. 

GrabFood Philippines Head EJ Dela Vega said, “Keeping our communities safe is core to everything we do at Grab, and we are fortunate to find a partner in Unilever that shares this philosophy and be able to make a difference through our Safer Meals Philippines campaign.”

Since March, Unilever has been doing its part to support nationwide efforts in supplying basic goods and services amid the pandemic.

It announced its local response “Malasakit for All” (compassion for all) to support its employees, partners, and communities, where among the initiatives are the provision of hygiene relief packs and medical supplies to hospitals as well as NGOs and affected groups nationwide.

Unilever’s VP for Communications in Southeast Asia, Ed Sunico said, “Building trust across communities and consumers is a way to move forward from the challenging situation that we’re all facing right now.”