Healthy food need not be boring nor bland. This is the idea that young entrepreneur John Michael Hilton presents to Filipinos with his food and beverage company, Visum Ventures Inc.
Named after the Greek word for vision, the company offers the market new and exciting ways of looking at healthy food. Visum Ventures Inc. currently owns seven brands, namely, Koomi, Oh My Greek, Zig, Salt & Ice, T2, Sante by Zig, and Meraki by OMG.
“Visum Ventures Inc. is a young and passionate food and beverage company that provides fresh experiences through new brands, product trends, and concepts,” Hilton, the company’s 35-year-old founder, president and chief executive officer, said in a recent media briefing. “Our locally curated brand portfolio aims to provide unique culinary experiences and make them accessible to the Filipino dining public who wanted to eat healthier.”
Visum started by bringing the natural drinking yogurt offerings of Australian brand KOOMI to the country in 2019. Then the pandemic hit, but Hilton and Visum trudged on. They continued to expand their portfolio with Greek concepts, Oh My Greek and Zig. Hilton described the two as mostly grab-and-go brands for the health-conscious that were delivery-friendly—the perfect concept given the circumstances.
Next, as mobility restrictions were relaxed, Hilton opened Salt & Ice, an oyster and craft cocktails bar at the Uptown Parade in Bonifacio Global City. This was followed by the introduction of Sante and Meraki, elevated versions of Zig and Oh My Greek, located at the SM Mall of Asia Square.
To date, the expansion drive continues. The group’s flagship brand, KOOMI, just opened its 80th branch in the country, and the goal is to have 100 stores by June. Meanwhile, Visum targets to close the year with close to 2,100 staff and 10 brands both internationally and locally curated in its portfolio.
“We thrived during the pandemic by ensuring our products adapted to the need for social distancing by offering grab-and-go, and a delivery-friendly menu,” Hilton said. “Now that the economy is opening up, we are crafting more offers and menu items that would cater to the renewed dine-in crowd.”