Cardiff student and LGBTQ+ activist wins £1000 as one of four official Jollibee Taste Testers, to surprise his boyfriend who is a huge fan of the brand

• Christopher Evans, a Cardiff Met student, wins £1000 and the title of Jollibee’s official taste tester following a one-month long application process via TikTok
• Jollibee launched its hunt for fried chicken taste testers at the beginning of July, offering £1000 prize money to each of the four winners
• Chris applied for the position as a surprise for his boyfriend Callum, who fell in love with Jollibee’s delicious menu when he lived in London
• Chris is an LGBTQ+ activist and plans to put the money into art supplies and a laptop to support his work as an illustrator, which he uses to help change the lives of young LGBTQ+ people in Wales and beyond

Cardiff, UK – 6 August 2021: Jollibee today announces Christopher Evans from West Wales, who is in his third year of studying Illustration at Cardiff Metropolitan University, is one of only four “Fried Chicken Taste Testers”, following a month-long application process. Christopher was shortlisted by a judging panel and then was voted in the top four by the public for his TikTok video entry.

Chris applied for the position as a surprise for his boyfriend, Callum, who is a huge Jollibee fan. Callum, who previously lived in London, fell in love with Jollibee when it first opened in Earls Court back in 2018. Chris comments: “When I saw you were opening a store in Cardiff, I started doing my research and found this taste tester position on TikTok, and I thought it would be a great surprise if I could bring Callum back to the place he loves.” Jollibee opened its first store in Wales last month on Queen Street, Cardiff, to huge queues despite the wind and rain.

When asked how he would be using his £1000 prize, Chris said: “I would definitely put the money into my art. I’m a queer activist and I want to use my illustration to change the lives of queer people all over the world through art.”  His video entry included his illustration skills and creativity, which was a key reason the judges picked his entry. In the TikTok video he designs a Jollibee uniform and edits this onto a photo of his boyfriend Callum, surrounded by Jollibee’s iconic ChickenJoy buckets and crispy chicken burgers.

The brand began the hunt at the beginning of July for four taste testers to join the team sampling Jollibee’s delicious crispy fried chicken menu. The winners will be hosted at the brand’s stunning flagship London restaurant at 22 Leicester Square and will also be gifted a whopping £1000 cash prize each. The lucky four and their plus ones will get to taste some of the latest menu items, including the Spicy Chicken Burger and Sriracha Chicken Loaded Fries.

Entrants were required to post a video on TikTok to apply in what the brand believes to be the first challenge of its kind. Ashlee Campbell, Head of Marketing for Jollibee Europe said “When we started talking about finding fried chicken lovers to taste and give us feedback on our menu, choosing TikTok felt like the natural choice. I am so excited for Chris and Callum and think it’s so amazing the time and effort Chris has put into his application. I can’t wait to meet them both in London for the taste testing session.”  

Entries were judged by a panel composed of Adam Parkinson, the Business Head of Jollibee Europe; gaming content creator, Callum Knight; and lifestyle YouTuber, Michico Rimmer. Both Callum and Michico will be at the taste testing session to meet the winners.  Michico Rimmer commented: “For me, Jollibee was such a big part of my childhood growing up in Dubai and seeing the brand expanding in the UK is amazing. The chicken is out of this world, so to be a judge for this competition is really a dream come true. I can’t wait to meet the winners at the taste testing session and for them to experience the wonders of Jollibee.” 

The three judges made a shortlist of 12 applicants, whose videos were then displayed on Jollibee’s website and open to public voting. The four entries with the most public votes have won the incredible £1000 cash prize and an evening taste testing session with a friend at Jollibee in Leicester Square, London on Tuesday 17th August.

The other winners are Cherif, 21, from London, who has 200,000 TikTok followers and is about to start a master’s degree in Occupational Therapy; Ray Roberts, a London Filmmaker who promotes Filipino and Asian culture; and London couple Sam & Reg, who will be using the money to turn their new house into a home.

Jollibee is a much-loved restaurant chain, founded by Tony Tan Caktiong in the Philippines.  Tony, the son of Chinese immigrants, built up his business from humble ice cream store beginnings, then later on expanded his offering to a selection of hot food.  The brand continues to be owned by Jollibee Group and is now the market leader in the country’s restaurant industry, with 1,478 locations around the world as of December 31, 2020. The brand has many accolades to its name, including the “best international restaurant chain” by US-based food and lifestyle website, Thrillist. Famously, the late celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain referred to Jollibee as the “wackiest, jolliest place on Earth” in his hit CNN food and travel documentary show, Parts Unknown.

Parent company, Jollibee Group, now has over 5,800 stores globally and operates in 33 countries. Jollibee Group also owns and operates Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon and Mang Inasal in the Philippines; Yonghe King and Hong Zhuang Yuan in the PRC; Smashburger in the US, Highlands Coffee, mostly in Vietnam and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf®.  Jollibee Group also owns the franchise of Burger King, PHO24 and Panda Express in the Philippines, Dunkin’ Donuts in certain territories in the PRC, and Tim Ho Wan in Shanghai, PRC.  The company is listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange.

@jollibeeuk