CEBU CITY, PHILIPPINES – Leading food manufacturer, Glico, known for its iconic brand, Pocky, and SM Cinema have renewed their partnership for a third consecutive year, as Pocky continues to be the exclusive biscuit brand sold at SM Cinema Snack Bars across the country. For the first time, both have chosen to mark the occasion beyond the Metro Manila area, organising an exclusive blockbuster screening at SM City Cebu on Aug. 4, 2026 to celebrate the milestone.
Glico has always seen the cinema as more than a place to watch a film. It is a room where attention is undivided, company is close at hand, and a box of Pocky finds its way from one seat to the next without anyone having to be asked. It is also what makes this particular year feel like more than a renewal. Connect with a Smile, launched in the Philippines earlier this year to mark Pocky’s 60 years of sharing happiness, is a year-long celebration of what Pocky has always been for: the small, unhurried gestures that turn a snack into something shared.
Attendees in Cebu were among the first in the region to see Pocky’s new playful “Tap, Snap, Nibble” ritual: a tap to begin, a clean snap of the biscuit stick, and a nibble of the rich, bold flavors that follows. Those flavors now arrive in refreshed packaging rolling out across the range — Chocolate, Strawberry, Cookies & Cream, Milky Matcha, Milk Chocolate and Milk — with brighter, more contemporary graphics that hold on to the warmth the brand has always carried. Pocky Chocolate comes with an improved recipe as well, crafted to be crispier and more chocolatey.
Two years alongside SM Cinema have shown us how much an afternoon at the movies still means to Filipino families and friends. Stepping into our third year, we wanted to widen that circle — and Cebu, with its warmth and its own strong sense of community, was the right place to begin,” said Gerald Mendoza, Managing Director, Glico Philippines. “Connect with a Smile is about the everyday gestures that bring people closer together, and there are few better settings for that than a packed-out cinema. It is how we continue to bring ‘Healthier days, Wellbeing for life’ to communities across the country.”
Cebu, the country’s second-largest city and the commercial center of the Visayas, anchors an audience that reaches across the region and into Mindanao — one Glico sees as central to Pocky’s next chapter of growth, as it taps on SM Cinema’s strong regional footprint of 17 cinemas across 12 cities across the Visayas and Mindanao.
“At SM Cinema, our goal has always been to create experiences that bring people together. Partnerships like the one we share with Glico help elevate the moviegoing journey by adding familiar brands that enhance moments of connection and enjoyment. We are proud to continue this partnership for a third year and to celebrate this milestone in Cebu, reflecting our commitment to delivering memorable cinema experiences to audiences across the country,” said Karen Zabaljauregui, Senior Assistant Vice President and Business Unit Head, SM Cinema.
Since the establishment of this partnership, Glico has seen a steady increase in consumer purchases of Pocky over SM Cinema Snack Bars, underscoring the value of bringing Pocky closer to consumers and making it a natural part of the cinema-going experience.
Pocky remains the exclusive biscuit brand at 103 SM Cinema Snack Time counters nationwide, available across 79 cinemas.
