Abstruct
This article explores Minor Food Group’s journey toward winning the prestigious 2024 Asia Marketing Excellence Award in the “Marketing 3.0” category, awarded by the Asia Marketing Federation (AMF). Drawing on personal experiences as the head of the jury, the author delves into Minor Food Group’s “Responsible Marketing-Preneur” mindset, which integrates customer-focused innovation, socio-economic and environmental responsibility, and people empowerment. Through strategies such as digital transformation, product innovation, sustainability initiatives, and leadership development, Minor Food Group has set new industry standards across Asia’s food service sector. The article also highlights key achievements, including the company’s response during the COVID-19 pandemic, community engagement through the Pizza Company Book Club, and its commitment to sustainability through local sourcing and reducing plastic waste. Minor Food Group’s success serves as a model for businesses seeking to balance profit with positive societal impact, demonstrating that responsible marketing can drive both business growth and meaningful change.
Keyword
Minor Food Group, Asia Marketing Excellence Award, Marketing 3.0, Responsible Marketing-Preneur, Digital transformation, Sustainability in business, Customer-centric innovation and Socio-economic responsibility
Introduction
The Asia Marketing Federation (AMF) annually awards the Asia Marketing Excellence Award in the “Marketing 3.0” category, recognizing outstanding efforts and contributions in marketing a company’s products and/or services. It reflects excellence in marketing and the admirable qualities of versatility, innovation, and strategies that resonate with both consumers and the community’s mind, heart, and spirit. Based on the “Marketing 3.0” framework as described by Kotler, Kartajaya, and Setiawan in their 2010 book Marketing 3.0, this concept emphasizes values-driven marketing, where companies focus on creating positive societal impacts rather than just pursuing profits. [Kotler, Kartajaya and Setiawan, 2010] This approach has gained global traction and significantly influences companies approach to marketing in today’s highly competitive business environment. Each year, the AMF
collaborates with national marketing associations to nominate winners from their respective countries for the Asia Marketing Excellence Awards.
This year, “Minor Food Group” from Thailand has won the 2024 AMF’s Asia Marketing Excellence Awards winner for the category “Marketing 3.0”. This article draws on the personal experiences and observations of the author, who serves as the head of the jury for the AMF’s Asia Marketing Excellence Award. It aims to share insights into the winning organizations that are driving innovation and elevating the marketing landscape across Asia, while exploring the implications for marketing professionals and business practitioners in the region. However, it is important to note that the analysis focuses on qualitative aspects such as innovation and social impact, without delving into the operational complexities or potential trade-offs between business growth and sustainability. Additionally, the essay does not explore the challenges in implementing these initiatives or their scalability across different markets, with a geographic focus primarily on Asia that may limit broader applicability.
Embarking on A path of marketing Excellence
Found by an American teenager living in Bangkok back in 1967; Mr. William E. Heinecke. Minor Food Group is now one of the largest food service operators in Asia, and it is a part of Minor International, a global company based in Thailand.
Minor Food Group operates a portfolio of over 2,600 restaurant outlets in 24 countries across the Asia Pacific region. The company owns and operates well-known brands as well as franchise partnerships with globally recognized food and beverage brands. To name a few, key brands under Minor Food Group include:
• The Pizza Company: A leading pizza brand in Thailand with a strong presence in other Asian countries.
Swensen’s: An American ice cream brand that is very popular in Thailand and several other countries.
Sizzler: is a popular restaurant chain under the Minor Food Group, known for its casual dining experience with steaks, seafood, and a popular salad bar, known for quality meals and family-friendly value.
Dairy Queen: A well-known fast-food chain offering soft serve ice cream and fast food, operated by Minor Food in Thailand.
Burger King: Minor Food operates the franchise for Burger King in several countries. Burger King is a global fast-food chain known for its flame-grilled burgers, particularly the iconic Whopper, offering a wide menu of fast-food options in a quick-service environment.
Bonchon: A global restaurant chain famous for its Korean-style fried chicken, offering a crispy, double-fried texture and flavorful sauces, with a menu that also includes other Korean-inspired dishes in a casual, modern setting.
The Coffee Club: An Australian-originated coffeehouse chain that offers food and beverages, popular in Asia-Pacific.
Thai Express: A chain offering Thai cuisine, with outlets in several countries.
Coffee Journey: The journey of coffee is the journey of life. The originated coffee brand created by Minor Food to penetrate in broader customer appeal in small kiosks concept
Gaga: a cool tea brand by Minor Food Group that caters to the growing tea culture and a diverse customer base. It offers vibrant experiences and a range of tea options, drawing inspiration from popular milk tea trends.
Minor Food Group operates both company-owned outlets and franchises. It focuses on multi-brand business models to ensure its unrivalled market leadership position in various markets especially in Asia. [Heinecke and Marsh, 2000] The group has a strong presence in both urban and tourist locations, catering to a wide range of customers. The Minor Food Group is known for its successful marketing and innovation strategy, acquiring and partnering with international brands to grow its portfolio. Its operations span multiple continents, reflecting its commitment to becoming a global leader in the food service industry. Overall, Minor Food Group is a significant player in the global food and beverage sector, leveraging its experience and diverse brand portfolio to expand its market presence both in Thailand and internationally especially in Asia Pacific region.
Unlocking the Secrets Behind the Winning Marketing Strategy
William E. Heinecke’s success story is often cited as a testament to entrepreneurial vision and determination, making him a highly influential figure in both the Thai and global business communities. Minor Food Group’s marketing strategy and innovation are central to its success as a leading food service operator in Asia and beyond. The company employs a multifaceted marketing approach, blending brand management, customer experience, digital transformation, and product innovation to remain competitive and expand its market presence.
Minor Food Group’s marketing strategy integrates brand management, digital innovation, customer-centric initiatives, and sustainability efforts. By continually evolving its approach and investing in innovation, the company stays competitive in the dynamic global market. [Roll, M., 2006] Its combination of digital transformation, product innovation, and strategic expansion allows Minor Food to maintain its position as a leading player in the food service industry.
Responsible Marketing-Preneur
The marketing strategy of Minor Food Group aligns with key concepts of Marketing 3.0, which focuses on three principles: customer-focused entrepreneurial spirit, socio-economic and environmental responsibility, and the empowerment of people’s potential.
At Minor Food Group, no single marketing strategy defines its success. Instead, the concept of the “Responsible Marketing-Preneur” has been introduced, communicated, and embedded as a key part of the company’s culture and core values. This concept aligns with Philip Kotler’s Marketing 3.0, which emphasizes values-driven marketing that prioritizes not only profit but also social responsibility and customer well-being. The “Responsible Marketing-Preneur” concept is built on three key principles: a customer-focused entrepreneurial spirit, socio-economic and environmental responsibility, and the empowerment of people’s potential. By integrating these principles into its strategy, Minor Food Group not only drives business success but also nurtures talent, empowers individuals, and contributes to a more sustainable and responsible future. The following discussion will review this three-pronged strategy in detail.
Customer-focused Entrepreneurial Spirit
Human-Centric Marketing Strategies are key to product development and marketing innovation at Minor Food Group, as they are rooted in deep consumer understanding and customer insight. The company invests heavily and consistently in understanding the deeper needs and preferences of its customers, focusing on creating experiences that resonate on an emotional and human level, moving beyond traditional product-centric approaches. This strategy has driven the success of various sales categories, from delivery to dine-in, with popular offerings like the ’20 minutes guaranteed pizza delivery,’ ‘New York Pizza,’ and ‘Pizza Cheese Overload’ menus. Additionally, Minor Food Group has achieved double-digit growth in sales through innovative monthly product campaigns introduced by Dairy Queen and Swensen’s ice cream. The company has also revamped the retail experience, with the introduction of ‘Pop-up’ stores at Swensen’s to excite customers and the new retail brand concept at Bonchon, ensuring it remains relevant to evolving consumer trends. These efforts reflect Minor Food Group’s commitment to staying connected with consumers through continuous innovation and memorable experiences.
SWENSEN’S STORE EXPERIENCE: A Customer-Centric Journey of Flavor, Fun, and Shared Moment
SWENSEN’S REGIONAL FLAGSHIP STORE IN HATYAI: Swensen’s Hatyai blends deep customer insight with local flair, offering a vibrant, must-visit ice cream experience that stands out in the heart of the city.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Minor Food Group was one of the first companies in the food industry to invest in transforming its large call center platform for pizza delivery into a comprehensive digital app for food delivery. This transformation not only met the urgent needs of customers for convenient, contactless service during lockdowns but also provided entrepreneurial businesses within the group a sustainable solution to continue operations. [Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., Huan, H., D., and Mussry, J., 2023] By leading this digital shift, Minor Food Group helped set a new industry standard in Thailand, demonstrating how technology could be leveraged to ensure business continuity and reshape the future of food delivery services in the country.
To conclude, Minor Food Group’s focus on enhancing customer experiences through product and service innovations, combined with its ability to adapt to consumer behavior shifts and leverage digital technology, solidified its position as a leader in the industry. This holistic marketing approach—integrating social insight, innovation, and digital transformation with business objectives—ultimately earned the company this significant recognition.
Socio-economic and Environmental Responsibility
As a responsible marketing-preneur, it is imperative to consider the benefits to our customers, our employees, and the impact on society and the environment, alongside maintaining business excellence. One of the key initiatives demonstrating responsible marketing by Minor Food Group in Thailand, established 20 years ago, is the Pizza Company Book Club, designed to encourage reading among kids and young people. This initiative offers incentives such as discounts or free pizza to students who participate in reading programs. The program is part of Minor Food Group’s broader community engagement efforts, aiming to promote education and literacy while linking their brand with a positive social impact. The project has collaborated with 800 schools nationwide, encouraging students to collect points from reading to earn free pizza at The Pizza Company. To date, the program has reached over 2 million students across the country, making pizza more accessible to children while fostering a love for reading.
Minor Food Group has brought healthy, nutritious meals to Thai people while creating positive social and environmental impacts through local sourcing by collaborating with the Royal Project Foundation, a Thai non-profit organization founded by King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 1969. The Royal Project helped transition farmers to growing alternative crops such as fruits, vegetables, and flowers, improving their livelihoods and protecting the environment. It focuses on sustainable agriculture, poverty reduction, and environmental conservation, with the broader goal of uplifting rural economies and promoting self-reliance among the people. The Royal Project is recognized for its successful model of sustainable development and environmental stewardship.
By encouraging hill tribe people to grow temperate fruits and vegetables and practice rice terrace farming, the project became one of the first and most successful efforts to eliminate opium production and prevent deforestation. In 1988, it was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for International Understanding. To date, more than USD 6 million has been returned to 500 hill tribe families. This sourcing model provides customers with fresh and healthy vegetables while supporting hill tribe communities, helping them avoid deforestation and opium farming. It represents the beginning of sustainable income, forest preservation, and improved lives.
In addition to this, Minor Food Group has entered into contracts with farmers from Amnat Charoen province to source organic rice. This initiative helps reduce the hazardous effects of chemical fertilizers, which pose risks to both farmers’ health and consumers, while also contributing to environmental degradation. By shifting to organic practices, this effort protects the well-being of farmers and reduces soil and water contamination. So far, more than 10 million servings of organic rice have been served to customers in 64 Sizzler stores in Thailand, promoting health and happiness for both customers and farmers’ families.
Direct contract with farmers from Amnartchareon province for their organic rice
Minor Food Group ordered Ok Rong Thong mangos, one of the most premium and uniquely rare mango varieties in Thailand, which is ideal for making ice cream at Swensen’s in Thailand. Most importantly, fewer farmers are growing this mango. Therefore, Swensen’s partnered with farms in Ratchaburi province to preserve this mango variety for future generations. By ordering 15 million Ok Rong Thong mangos, Swensen’s has committed not only to supporting farmers but also to preserving this rare and original mango variety, ensuring it remains part of Thai culture for over 30 years. This initiative creates significant socio-economic and environmental benefits for the Thai community. It provides farmers with stable income, supports sustainable farming, and strengthens local economies. Additionally, it preserves biodiversity by protecting a rare mango variety, reducing monoculture farming, and promoting ecological balance.
The Minor Food Group is committed to reducing its environmental impact by cutting down on plastic waste. According to the Thailand Food Market Report, Thai people consume an average of 300 cups of coffee per person each year. The coffee industry contributes significantly to environmental issues, as a plastic cup that is used for only minutes can take hundreds of years to decompose. In response, the Minor Food Group reduced plastic use by 61% in 2023 and aim to reach a 75% reduction this year by eliminating single-use plastics and using 100% recyclable materials. One of the most marketing innovative ideas introduced at the Coffee Club in Thailand is the edible cups. In 2023 alone, the Coffee Club reduced plastic waste by 940 tons, which is equivalent to cutting 2,539 tons of greenhouse gases per year. Overall, the reduction in plastic waste is comparable to planting 160,294 large trees or growing 790 acres of forest.
At Minor Food Group, environmental sustainability is linked to happiness, as demonstrated by its switch to cage-free eggs. Hens kept in battery cages are confined to small spaces, deprived of exercise and natural behaviors, which leads to stress, injury, and disease. Additionally, the overcrowding and waste accumulation in industrial egg-laying facilities generate harmful gases and pollution that threaten human health and ecosystems. By 2023, The Coffee Club, part of the Minor Food Group, switched to using 100% cage-free eggs—over 685,000 eggs—under the project “Happy Egg, Happy Breakfast.” This switch contributes to a reduction of 157,444 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent compared to conventional eggs. Moreover, by promoting cage-free eggs, the campaign educates consumers on the importance of supporting sustainable food practices and animal welfare, encouraging them to make more informed purchasing decisions.
100% CAGE FREE EGGS AT THE COFFEE CLUB:
To summarize, Minor Food Group won the Marketing 3.0 Award by excelling in human-centric marketing, demonstrating social responsibility, and aligning its practices with core values. The company emphasizes sustainability and social responsibility through initiatives like reducing plastic use, promoting organic farming, and supporting local communities. Their innovative strategies and commitment to positive impact make them a standout example of Marketing 3.0 principles in action.
Empowerment of People’s Potential
People potential is one of the key principles of the ‘Responsible Marketing-Preneur’ mindset at Minor Food Group. Since opening its first pizza restaurant in 1981, the company has contributed to the development of millions of professionals in Thailand’s food sector, including famous megastars, successful Bangkok governors, renowned chefs, top-tier entrepreneurs, leading business executives, and influential media personalities. Minor Food Group has acted as a school, providing equal opportunities for people from all backgrounds to learn and grow.
The company’s commitment to people and leadership development has helped build competitive advantages and competencies within its workforce. Empowering people’s potential lies at the core of its culture, fostering creativity and marketing innovation that benefit both consumers and communities. Employees are encouraged to fail, learn quickly, and innovate, embracing experiential marketing to unleash their full potential in every aspect of their roles.
Finally, Minor Food Group’s marketing strategies closely align with its brand purpose and mission, reflecting a genuine commitment to values such as the empowerment of people’s potential, quality, and employee development. This alignment helps the company resonate with consumers and employees who share these values.
Conclusion
William E. Heinecke’s success story exemplifies entrepreneurial vision and determination, and he remains a highly influential figure in both the Thai and global business communities. This aligns with Yip’s [1998] argument that entrepreneurs who develop marketing strategies and organizational approaches that leverage the specific globalization potentials of individual economies will create successful global strategies for the Pacific region and maximize their ‘Asian Advantage. There’s no doubt that Minor Food Group is a great example of a business that has always put customers at the heart of everything, creating a positive impact on society, the environment, and the economy, while maximizing people’s potential. With over 50 years of being a ‘Responsible Marketing-Preneur,’ the company has shown that it’s possible to create a positive impact on society and still run a successful business in a more sustainable way.
Inspired by the belief that business can be a force for positive change, I conclude that Minor Food Group has set new standards in responsible marketing. This commitment goes beyond just selling products; it’s about fostering a culture of integrity, sustainability, and compassion. Winning the Asia Marketing Excellence Award in the Marketing 3.0 category is just the beginning. I believe it serves as an inspiration for companies across Asia that, together, we can create not just delightful products and services, but a future where goodness thrives in every part of life.
REFERENCES
Heinecke, W., E., and Marsh, J., (2000), The Entrepreneur: 21 Golden Rules for the Gold Business Manager, John Wiley & sons (Asia) Pte Ltd, Singapore.
Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., Huan, H., D., and Mussry, J., (2023), Entrepreneurial Marketing: Beyond Professionalism to Creativity, Leadership, and Sustainability, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., and Setiawan, I., (2010), Marketing 3.0: From Products to Customers to the Human Spirit, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., and Setiawan, I., (2023), Marketing 6.0: The Future is Immersive, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Singapore.
Kotler, P., and Trias de es, F., (2011), Winning at Innovation: The A-to-F Model, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
Roll, M., (2006), Asian Brand Strategy: How Asia Builds Strong Brands, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
Yip, G., S, H., (1998), Asian Advantage: Key Strategies for Winning in the Asia-Pacific Region, Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts.