CONTRACT manufacturer JFP Limited has shipped its first set of containers to Guyana under a new contract it has inked with American-based restaurant chain, PF Chang.

PF Chang, a casual dining restaurant chain which serves Asian fusion cuisine, was founded in 1993 by Paul Fleming and Philip Chiang. It has over 300 restaurants worldwide but recently expanded to the growing Guyanese market. Soon, it plans to set up restaurants in Jamaica, followed by Barbados and the Cayman Islands.

“We have just sent two 40-foot containers of furniture for the opening of that store. We are very happy that we have started a relationship with them; we are now writing letters to see how we can start doing more projects on the international side, hopefully in the US,” CEO of JFP Metry Seaga told the Jamaica Observer.

In the interim JFP is actively pursuing opportunities to maximise its business presence in Guyana.

“We intend to go down for the installation and opening of PF Chang’s restaurant. Additionally, we hope to be presented with new opportunities through our exclusive arrangement with Total Office,” Seaga said, adding that he is not overly concerned with the territorial dispute between Guyana and Venezuela over oil finds.

“I think that will work itself out over time,” he said.

For the financial year ended December 2023 JFP produced $411 million in revenues, five per cent of which came from markets outside of Jamaica. But Seaga wants to grow export revenues to 30 per cent by 2025.

The new PF Chang contract has already helped to push that number up to 10 per cent since the start of 2024. JFP is also working on new and existing contracts across the Caribbean and in Latin America. JFP does business in Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Antigua, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Dominica, Bermuda, Panama, and now Guyana.

So far, the company has only been able to send one order to the United States, Seaga explained.

“Anytime we can export our products, it is good for us because the markets are larger. The US market is a very big market for us — if we can break into it — but we haven’t done so in a real way yet,” Seaga said.

JFP Limited, formerly Jamaica Fibreglass Products Limited, operates from a 75,000-square-foot facility on Spanish Town Road in Kingston. The company opened its doors in 1986, with primary focus on making fibreglass products.

Today JFP offers products made from many varieties of materials, such as wood, metal, solid surface, acrylic and various types of upholstery. Its manufacturing capabilities include but are not limited to the manufacturing of furniture for offices, hotels, restaurants, laboratories, and schools; point-of-sale items such as gondolas for clients like KFC, Pizza Hut, Digicel, S Hotel Montego Bay, AC Hotel by Marriott, Sangster’s International Airport, and the Government of Jamaica.

The company has also formed a strong relationship with Caribbean Coffee Baristas Limited, the Jamaican franchise holder for Starbucks which has been expanding rapidly throughout the region.

JFP was listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange in 2022 after raising $280 million from its IPO. That same year, the company reported a profit of $15 million for the year but last year it plunged into losses, partly from outstanding tax obligations and stretched job contracts.

JFP has paid out over $32 million in penalty on taxes for the financial year 2023, up from $133,906 a year earlier. Overall, the company incurred $58.9 million in losses for the year on revenue which dipped 14 per cent year on year to $411 million.

For FY 2024 it’s looking for growth, both in revenues and profitability. Alongside enhanced export opportunities the company is strategically pursuing local contracts to bolster its market presence. Among its recent achievements JFP secured a significant contract from Decameron Hotel for the construction of 144 pieces of furniture.

“There are a multitude of new hotels going up, especially on the western side of Jamaica, and we are doing everything we can to ensure that we get some of those orders,” Seaga said.