Before Pepa Wings had mall locations and franchise partners, Paul Lanquino was serving flavored chicken wings in weekend bazaars.
That beginning was intentional.
“Bazaars were part of the strategy,” Lanquino says. “They allowed us to build brand awareness and validate the concept before committing to something permanent.”
Long before launching Pepa Wings, Lanquino had already developed an instinct for spotting small business opportunities. As early as elementary school, he was selling school supplies. In high school, he experimented with selling Tamiya cars, sago, and fruit shakes.
“I’ve always loved finding opportunities and figuring out how to make them work,” he says.
After spending 10 years in the corporate world, he felt ready to build something of his own. Food felt like a natural direction. “My mom inspired my love for cooking, and the kitchen has always been a place where I could be creative,” he explains.
But passion alone did not shape the business. Market timing did.
At the time, flavored chicken wings were not yet crowded in the Philippines. Fried chicken was already a staple, but few brands were specializing in bold, flavor-driven wings.
“I saw a clear opportunity in flavored wings,” Lanquino says. “Filipinos love fried chicken. I believed there was room to elevate it through strong flavors, quality ingredients, and branding.”
That insight became the starting point of Pepa Wings.
Testing the Market in Real Time
Instead of opening a store immediately, Lanquino chose to test the idea in bazaars and food pop-ups. The setup required lower overhead and allowed faster experimentation.
In that environment, feedback was immediate.
“If a flavor didn’t resonate, you would know right away,” he says. “If customers came back for it, that was your signal.”
Execution became central to differentiation. Orders were served hot and freshly tossed to order. Ingredients were sourced locally, including salted egg from Pateros and chilis from Cavite.
“We wanted customers to taste the difference,” he says.
Bazaars also allowed him to observe purchasing behavior closely. He could see which flavors moved quickly, how customers reacted to pricing, and whether first-time buyers returned.
“Repeat customers were the real validation,” Lanquino says. “When people come back, that tells you the concept has potential.”
The early traction was organic. Word of mouth spread. Demand became consistent rather than seasonal.
That consistency changed the trajectory of the business.
Knowing When to Move Forward
By the time Pepa Wings began seeing repeat buyers across multiple bazaars, Lanquino felt confident enough to consider a permanent location.
“Once we saw stable demand, I knew it was time to find the right food hall,” he says.
In 2018, Pepa Wings opened its first food court branch.
The move signaled a shift from testing to institutionalizing the brand. Operating inside a mall placed Pepa Wings alongside established food brands and exposed it to higher foot traffic.
“Our consistency and product integrity attracted the right partners,” he says.
The food court location also forced discipline. Operating in a structured retail environment required clearer processes, more consistent preparation, and stronger day-to-day management.
But the foundation built in bazaars made the transition smoother.
Because the concept had already been validated, the food court launch was not a gamble. It was an expansion of something that had already proven demand.
From Concept to Franchisable Model
From the beginning, Lanquino envisioned Pepa Wings as more than a single-store operation.
“I always saw it as a brand that could grow,” he says.
However, he did not rush into franchising. The concept had to prove itself first. Sales needed to be consistent. Customer loyalty needed to be visible. The product had to demonstrate staying power beyond trend cycles.
Only after those indicators were clear did franchising become a serious move.
“You have to make sure the business works before offering it to others,” he says.
Franchising allowed Pepa Wings to expand beyond what internal capital alone could support. It also required selecting partners who were willing to operate the business hands-on and uphold brand standards.
“The best franchisees are disciplined, patient, and invested in daily operations,” he says.
Today, Pepa Wings continues to grow through a mix of corporate-owned and franchise stores. But that growth traces back to the decision to test before committing.
The Lesson Behind the Bazaars
Looking back, Lanquino believes the bazaar phase was critical to Pepa Wings’ expansion path.
“It gave us room to experiment without risking everything,” he says.
The temporary setups functioned as a laboratory. They revealed which flavors resonated, what price points worked, and whether customers would return.
By the time Pepa Wings entered malls and began franchising, it was no longer an untested idea. It was a validated concept backed by real consumer behavior.
Entrepreneurship, in Lanquino’s view, is not about jumping into scale immediately. It is about observing carefully, refining deliberately, and expanding when demand proves durable.
“Start small. Learn from it. Then grow,” he says.
From elementary school hustles to weekend bazaars to franchised food court outlets, the pattern has remained consistent.
Spot the opportunity. Test it. Improve it. Then scale it.
And for Pepa Wings, that sequence made all the difference.
