Entrepreneur 25: NIX NOLLEDO

NIX NOLLEDO

Business: Xurpas Inc.

Category: The Young Millionaire

"I think there is a future for technopreneurs here, because we have a lot going for us as a country."

Xurpas Inc. started in April 2000 after Nix saw that there is a huge potential for wireless applications in the market. Nix with his friends partnered with different advertising agencies and promotional companies to provide them with a full suite of mobile related services, including conceptualization; interface design, software development. mobile carrier deployment and service management.

"We invested very little in the business .. it's more of an intellectual investment."

Their first client were Globe and Smart. They provided them with mobile applications. But once they understood the market's needs, they came up with new ideas and partnered with other parties that needed their technology. 

In September of 2003 they opened a branch in South Africa called Starfish Mobile. They have also launched ventures in Indonesia, Malaysia and the US.

"Our focus is always on how the companies we work with can benefit from mobile technology. I think this attitude has opened a lot of opportunities for us to get more projects. Doing a good job is the best marketing strategy as it ensures your partners will be doing more business with you. It's the relationships you build that count the most."

GOLDEN RULE:

"Be willing to share. Even with the local partnerships. We're always willing to share revenues, resources, and information. Because of that, our reputation began to grow and other companies wanted to partner with us."

Entrepreneur 24: MARVEY MARINO

MARVEY MARINO

Business: GotoKing Franchisee

Category: The Young Millionaire

The first time he visited the site for his GotoKing franchise, he saw a ramshackle building that had clearly seen better, but he glimpsed an opportunity where other people saw an eyesore. It was right on the busiest corner of Batangas City.

Without even knowing what type of enterprise to put in the area, he leased it right away because his instincts told him that it was an ideal place for a business. Until he decided to set up a GotoKing franchise as its dishes were not too expensive.

It was an instant hit. He was doing everything from marketing to operations. Then he enrolled in the entrepreneurship program of Asian Institute of Management to learn how to manage a business efficiently.

Their franchiser also allowed them to introduce lomi in their menu since Batanguenos love to eat lomi.

"We have a lot of competitors but I welcome this, they keep you on your toes and force you to improve and innovate."

"When you see your business improving and you're able to help your community at the same time, it gives you a great deal of satisfaction and accomplishment. Seeing opportunities everyday gets me excited, so when I put up more businesses in the future, I know I will have fun. When doing business, strive to give good quality, products and services, but never forget the value of building relationships with customers and cultivating their loyalty."

GOLDEN RULE:

"Know your priorities in life and use your passion to create long-lasting value." 

Entrepreneur 23: RAYMOND MAGDALUYO

RAYMUND MAGDALUYO

Business: Red Crab Seafood and Steaks

Category: The Young Millionaires

"I am proud to say that we are the safest place for crab and seafood."

His mother started Red Crab in Clark, Pampanga in 1998, then a year later he put up a second branch in Malate, Manila while working as a research associate at the Asian Institute of Management. Then he later quit his job to focus on Red Crab.

"When you start a restaurant business, it's hard to penetrate the hot locations because you don't have a name yet. So you have to start where it's easier to penetrate, where the rent is low and the overhead is manageable. When you have proven your worth that's the time these locations come to you."

The Red Crab transformed from being a purely mid-to-high end crab and seafood restaurant chain into a "house" of branch. Business has gone from tough to very very tough in the past couple of years with consumer confidence on the wane and inflationary pressures squeezing their margins. He attribute their success on their unique product - there are a lot of restaurants offering pasta, pizza and grilled food, but they are the only restaurant that offers crabs and seafood in a casual dining setup.
Their biggest problem is how to get more crabs to meet the growing demand and minimizing crab spoilages.
They have a professional food safety manager who does hazard analysis on the crabs they serve. They constantly monitor places reported to have been contaminated by red tide and make sure that they don't get their supplies from there.

"What we're selling really is the experience of eating crabs and seafood. Most restaurants dwell on creating the perfect ambiance. For us, Red Crab is a place for people who know their seafood. We also want it to be a place where people - even those in casual clothes - can relax and not be intimidated by classy furniture. We also offer fast, reliable, attentive and anticipative service to our guests."

GOLDEN RULE:
"To be the best in your field, you must love your customers, have passion for detail, and an obsession for unique and powerful dining concepts."

Entrepreneur 22: GEORGE LORENZANA

GEORGE LORENZANA

Business: Office Warehouse Inc.

Category: The Young Millionaires

"Nowadays consumers are not so conscious of the quality of service they get. What they want is a wider selection of goods at the right prices."

George and his brother thought of going into office supplies retailing while taking up their MBA at Columbia University in New York, and so in 1998 they opened their first Office Warehouse store along Vito Cruz Extension in Makati City. Which was basically a family corporation wherein their parents and siblings were all stockholders.

They opened Office warehouse at the worst time, the start of the Asian Financial Crisis. Suppliers were hesitant to extend any credit to them because they were new and unfamiliar with the retail business. They persisted despite the difficulties. They studied the retail setup and eventually learned the ropes about managing inventory. Office Warehouse became a big hit because they learned to carry the right inventory and sold them at the right price.

"Going to Office Warehouse is like going to the supermarket; we offer a wide selection of products at very good prices. And being able to put up a one stop shop for office supplies is our contribution to the industry."

They introduced business centers by offering copying, binding, lamination and printing services.

"What is constant in our stores is our wide selection of products, which we will continue to expand. And our quality customer service which we take pride in, will get even better in the near future."

GOLDEN RULE:

"Be careful with your overhead. The success of a company depends on keeping your costs down." 

 

Entrepreneur 21: MELISSA LIMCAOCO

MELISSA LIMCAOCO

Business: Entertainment Gateway

Category: The Young Millionaires

She launched Entertainment Gateway Group with a few friends as partners. When they started it there was so many possibilities because telecommunication companies didn't have a lot of content for the phone. The inspiration came from "what ifs" and "why nots", so as soon as they started offering services, the different telcos immediately started snatching. They started with a service that allow subscribers to order via their mobile phones, greeting cards that were then sent through snail mail to their recipients. Then they introduced the invitation and greeting e-cards before coming up with branding  logo and picture messages. The early stages of the business was challenging because it was very technical and her background was in marketing. They had to learn about the architecture of telcos. As there was no existing business model or study about it because it was new.

The best strategy they did was when they concentrated on music. That's where their market is - the youth. Music is their strength. They partnered with Music One and Tower records.

When she met with Friendster U.S. she found out that they were looking up unto them. The American company's technical staff were so amazed with the creative and innovative content that they had produced. That's when she realized that since the business possibilities were endless, they had to go global.

The business environment is very competitive, because everyone's so good in the field. The challenge is how to become the best. There's a need to be more creative to appeal to more consumers to use the service.

"My role model is General Electric's Jack Welch for developing the greatest human resource system.I value my people, and I hope that I could be as competent as he when it comes to running our company. The company has its own advocacy; all the partners studies abroad, but all came back to the Philippines. We want the business to be here to generate jobs for Filipinos, not to take them away from their families."

GOLDEN RULE:
"If you want to do something, don't approach a third party but go directly to the person you want to do business with. A third party complicate's things."

Entrepreneur 20: RICHMOND LIM

RICHMOND LIM

Business: Time Depot

Category: The Young Millionaires

"I always love watches. In fact, since I was in the 5th grade I'd ask for a watch as a gift whenever I did well in school, or if there was a special occasion like my birthday or Christmas. It was why I went into the business of watch retailing, and opened Time Depot in 2001 at the Rockwell Power Plant mall."

The store was known first as The G-Factory with 3,000 watched in initial inventory. The watches ranged from the eight hundred peso Casio to Alfex from Switzerland that cost P55,000.

In the past, it was enough to have only one watch, and it was replaced only when worn out. Today, watches are like shoes, to be mix and match with the clothes. And they come in  all shapes, colors, sizes and appeal to people from all walks of life. 

"I don't mind having competitors. In fact, we're actually helping each other by giving more options to the customers. At least I know that when a customers buy my watch, they do so because they prefer it to the others. It all boils down to the service that goes with the product."

Nowadays, customer service is a critical differentiator,  that's why it is important to train salespeople. Because customers usually are so busy to read the manual, they train the salespeople of the watch features. They also increase the number of their repair stations as their added service to the customers.

"We want to professionalize the industry by promoting an employee based on his or her experience and performance. Before, a person could become a manager only because he was either a relative or a friend of the owner. Now, promotion is based purely on merit. We want to teach our employees how to become effective managers and to have a clear understanding of their career path. I would also like my employees to grab the opportunity to franchise the business, which is my way of sharing with them our success."

GOLDEN RULE:

"As you grow older, you become more cautious and hesitant to take risks. But you have to be a risk taker to succeed. And you are more likely to succeed when you are young, creative, and more open to new ideas."

Entrepreneur 19: CHARLEMAGNE LIM

CHARLEMAGNE LIM

Business: Little Asia

Category: The Young Millionaires

" We're probably the only restaurants here in the Philippines that don't have a supervisor or a manager."

He set up his first business venture in 2000, when he started supplying liquor to a hotel in Malate. It didn't do as good as I'd hoped and had to close it down after a year, and a cousin invited him to open a restaurant.

The day they opened Little Asia in Tomas Morato in December 2001, his geomancer told him that for good luck he should open at 7 p.m., but as early as 4 p.m. they already had customers lining up outside so by the time they opened up it was already packed. And similarly packed when they open their second branch in Promenade, Greenhills, in December 2004.

"I believe people keep coming back because the dishes we serve are unique. We have around 150 dishes but still we update our menu twice a year to add more so our regular clients can always expect something new. But the amazing thing is we don't have a Chinese chef and never did. We developed all the recipes ourselves from the memories of the food that we ate during our travel abroad."

Ambiance is a big attraction. They make sure their interiors have a distinct refreshing and cozy atmosphere. But their best asset are their service.

"I visit my two outlets every day and talk to all my customers.. And my staffs and I are like barkada. We play basketball every Sunday, and when business is really good, I even take them out to drink."

Every Chinese New Year, they hire the best lion dance troupe to perform in our stores. This group costs more than P1,000 per minute, but they're well worth it because they entertain the customers and drive the bad spirits away. 

GOLDEN RULE:

"Putting up a restaurant is really all about hard work and common sense. I make sure my bathrooms are always clean, my cooks wash their hands, and my waiters always hand something to a customer using both hands--the Chinese gesture of respect."

Entrepreneur 18: AA LEGARDA

AA LEGARDA

Business: Dunwoody and Madison

Category: The Young Millionaire

They started as a manufacturer of natural and reconstituted wood veneer bought from the biggest millers in the US, Australia, and Italy. Then later integrated operations to include the manufacture of modular cabinet and kitchen systems, modular furniture, and fit out construction of commercial and retail structures. They also started using narra, kamagong, wenge, walnut and ash on their furnitures.

AA was an investment banker and stockbroker. He became an entrepreneur when he discovered an opportunity in the market and partnered with two people. One was an architect and the other was Charlie Dobles, the man behind Spoofs Unlimited. They called the company Legno Vero Company Inc. They did veneer panels, but in January 2001 the two decided to concentrate on their own business. AA saw an opportunity for the company to grow, and that was when it became Dunwoody and Madison. Dunwoody came from the name of the street in their village, while Madison is the name of the street where Charlie Dobles lives.

He studied the market and found that it was big but had few players. Getting funds had not been a problem since he was a banker and he knew how to allocate funds and manage his overhead. If he has to considered the money spent for the used machines, his initial capital would have been anywhere between one and a half and two million pesos.

"I learned on my own and through my associates, suppliers, and designers. We called each other  associates here - not employees - because I'd wanted to make them feel they're part owners of this company. I went with them to the job site and helped them do their work."

"The workforce can shoot up to 100 as demand increases, and I'm always excited when the employee count reaches this number because it means we employ more people and therefore help their families in our own special way."

They use local wood, but if a client requests wood that they don't have, they have to import from the US, Italy and Australia. They work with wood veneer. It's sliced wood like paper laminated in medium-density fiberboard. Pressed by a hundred twenty ton press machine for ten minutes, the wood becomes wood veneer.

Through the years they have learned to standardize their products because they believe that there's a quality standard that the market would accept. When a client told them to do it differently, they tell them the repercussions of deviating from accepted standards. Most often, clients appreciate honesty.

"I personally believe that a successful entrepreneur should always look for opportunities to expand his business and reinvent his products. It is the best weapon against the ever-changing business environment."

GOLDEN RULE: Make hiring the right people the top priority. You can't do it alone. An efficient workforce is what enables the business to produce quality products and services.

Entrepreneur 17: CHEESE LEDESMA

CHEESE LEDESMA

Business: The Big Chill Inc.,

               Nami Private Villas

             Karaoke King

Category: The Young Millionaires

Her business concepts she usually gets from talking to fishball vendors and basically from just looking around. She develop concepts from existing business, but the difference is that she try to stay away from the conventional: She like to think of new ideas out of existing ones.

She has always been entrepreneurial. In the states, while she was studying, she and her aunt would put up a mini bazaar. When she was studying in Ateneo de Manila University, she had a friend who imported seafoods, she joined the venture and sold seafoods to friends. Right after college, she saw a juice bars in the States and it was in a mall and there were so many people buying. Together with a high school classmate, they set up the Big Chill in December 1994. The turning point was when they hired professional managers to make the business more sophisticated, more world-class.She considered the Big Chill as her biggest start up success. It's now the largest juice bar company in the Philippines. It's stable and it's not a fad.

With her brother they started the karaoke King in December 1999. They set up a booth where people could record their own songs. They have an affiliation with Viva Records. If they think that a client has a potential to be a star, they ask them to try out professional singing.

Nami Private Villas is a family business. It's the only resort with Jacuzzi's in all balconies and a 180 degree ocean view. The resort is located on a cliff, and there's an elevator to give you a breathtaking view of the ocean. 

"Being aware is important. I once talked to a fish ball vendor and later thought of how to make the fish ball business more efficient. I also make it to a point to talk to my staff about improving our products. That is key to sustaining and gaining more customers."

"If you want to be competitive, you have to adjust to trends without compromising the brand. You have to be organized and maintain a few key people. Being unique, having focus, and being aware of the competition are all important. Nothing comes easy in doing business."

GOLDEN RULE: Although it looks simple, don't reinvent  the wheel. Just take out a franchise or go into a joint venture. But if you really want to go into business yourself, then don't just copy, innovate.

Entrepreneur 16: JANICE KOA

JANICE KOA
Business: Papyvore
Category: The Young Millionaires

She always liked magazines since high school. And when she was in her senior in college she borrowed P200,000 from her parents to open a magazine store in Robinsons Galleria near the dining area which she figured that people could look at magazines while eating. The store's name was derived from the Egyptian word papyrus and added 'vore' so it means a paper lover or someone who devours paper.
At first they didn't have a lot of magazines because they only had a few suppliers. But now they buy the local magazines directly from publishers and get the imported titles from distributors.

"I learned a lot of things along the way. For example, I now make it a point to display the local titles in front because they are more sellable items, and the imported inside because they're expensive. I'd observed that people looking for imported titles really went inside, while those going for local magazines only bought based on what they saw on the cover."

They started with 50 titles but now they carried around 500, including foreign back issues titles as well as special interest magazines. They pride themselves in getting the magazines first as they haggle for the quickest pick-up and delivery times with the publishers.

"My decision to focus on my business had been fulfilling, because at the end of the day, I knew I was doing this for myself and through it, I could make a difference. I really owed my success to the training I got from my parents who had helped me run this business. Since we were young, my parents had been training my siblings and I to be entrepreneurs. Now, everything came naturally for me."

GOLDEN RULE: Love what you do. I really love magazines. I don't think I can push a particular title, or make others buy a particular issue, if I myself don't like it.

 

Entrepreneur 15: ROMMEL JUAN

ROMMEL JUAN

Business: Binalot

Category: The Young Millionaires

Binalot was inspired during their family outings in Cavite wherein their mom wrap their lunch in banana leaves. Rommel with his brother Raffy saw the potential of the banana leaf as a marketing and branding tool, that in 1997 they decided to start the business. With the help of their friend, Aileen Anastacio they introduced to Filipinos their mom's style of wrapping picnic food. Binalot was born.

Just like other new graduates, Rommel also tried his luck as an employee, but after six and a half months he decided to pursue my dream of running his own business. The first task was to decide where to put it up. Since he had no cash to pay for rent, he decided to deliver the food to the target market. They started by calling friends and asking them to try Binalot. The business was  very good in the beginning not until the Asian financial crisis wherein employees started packing lunches and eating in the office instead of dining in the malls. As a result they started having a lot of unsold food, and to solve the problem,the board required each member to sell seven meals a day and to pay for all unsold meals. 

It was 1999 when their chance to put up a mall based outlet came, it was when Shangri-La offered a spot in the Food Court. The company was not doing well at the time, but they decided that the brand was mature enough to hit the malls and it became a huge success.

"As an entrepreneur, I cannot help but be creative. I like spotting new opportunities, as well as imagining and dreaming new concepts. I've had my share of failed ventures but these only intensify my confidence."

GOLDEN RULE: To minimize your risks when starting out, learn everything you can about the business. Read. Research. Get a mentor. 

Entrepreneur 14: QUITO JOSE, MARTIN JOSE, DANIEL JOSE

QUITO JOSE , MARTIN JOSE , DANIEL JOSE

Business: Brothers Burger

Category: The Young Millionaires

Brothers Burger was to give Martin and Daniel an additional source of income because of the Asian Financial Crisis since Martin was into real estate and Daniel's a stockbroker. Quito was the only one who had a job. Their mother's family owned Minggoy's in Ortigas Center and there's an available space next to it which they use. They wanted to try something new, so they decided to put up a hamburger restaurant where they could serve the kind of burgers that they liked - real beef with no extenders. The first store opened in June of 1999.

When they were starting out they realized that they bought the wrong kitchen equipment which cost them P1 million. In spite of the big loss they were able to recover their investment in a short period. 

A student from the University of Asia and the Pacific dared them to treat him with one of their burgers. If it was good, the student would return the next day and fill the place. He returned the next day and filled up the place.

Their turning point was when the Lopez offered them a space in Rockwell.

"The success of Brothers Burger could be attributed to the fact that our products spoke for themselves. That's why we were really strict about quality. We were constantly checking the price of our ingredients, learning new things, and improving the menu."

They decided to open a commissary and training center in Makati to be more competitive. They also introduced new offerings like rice meals which they called Big Meals.

"Our biggest contribution to the industry is that we are able to create more jobs for Filipinos. They might not be getting that much from us, but at least they will have food on the table."

GOLDEN RULE: Start with as little overhead as possible, and make sure that you understand the commitment needed in opening a restaurant.

Entrepreneur 13: SHEREE GOTUACO

SHEREE GOTUACO

Business: Freeway

Category: The Young Millionaires

She was exposed to the clothes business at a very young age, but she never thought that she'll be working with her mom. Her family background led her to go for a business degree. After working at a retail firm in the U.S. after taking up marketing and management in college, she decided to study fashion design because she's always interested in arts, pattern making and designing. 

When she came home, Elite garments helped her launch a new brands. She began with Ensembles but noticed that Robinsons Galleria catered for a young student crowd, so that's how Freeway started and eventually Solo, which offers casual wear for young men and women.

"It wasn't always easy in the beginning. Elite was a small company that was established in 1959, so I had to deal with people who were much older than I was, but it was tough integrating into something that was already set. Today I keep track of the company's performance and study how each brand is doing. Monitor the efficiency of our inventory to minimize losses, and then come up with special designs that set us apart."

She hired younger people and rewarded employees by merit not by seniority.She try to make herself very accessible to her team members whenever they're having a hard time with what they're doing. She even ask them what improvements they would like to see in the company. One of the reasons a lot of their good people stay. 

"Being open-minded to change and innovation is certainly one of the advantages of being in business at a young age. When you're young, your tendency is to be more of a risk taker, but I would suggest taking calculated risks because that's what I do: carefully assessing and studying every aspect before plunging in"

"When starting your own business, you have to know what you want and believe in the concept. You should always start for the right reasons."

GOLDEN RULE: You need an original concept if you were to compete in the garments industry and carve a niche. It would also help to have control systems in place, particularly because it's the last thing a storeowner who is new in the business focuses on. And, while it's easier said than done, you must innovate constantly.

Entrepreneur 12: EUGENIO GONZALES

EUGENIO GONZALES

Business: MTC Academy

Category: The Young Millionaires

"We don't just train out students to become employees, but we prepare them as well to eventually become entrepreneurs by enabling them to offer medical transcription services from home."

It was in 2001 when the idea of putting up MTC academy came up. He thought of putting up a school that would train medical transcriptionist. A medical transcriptionist are people who transcribe medical reports by producing a hard copy of doctor-patient consultations that are digitally recorded. But it was established in 2003. It took more than a year and a half to develop its own curriculum. They partnered with an American firm to develop the program which they later offered as an online course participated by students from all over the world. When the program went well they opened their Aurora Boulevard, Quezon City branch. And they were touted as the first and the largest TESDA recognized medical transcription school in the country because of their comprehensive and internationally acclaimed MT curriculum and their having the most number of corporate partners for actual MT industry on the job training.

Their first franchise opened in Cavite City in June 2004, and after they've been opening an average of two franchise every month.They implemented the country's first central profiling system, patterned after the AAMT Certified Medical Transcription Board Examinations. In November 2005 they partnered with Innovaquest, to allow students who graduated under MTC's new profiling and testing system to find employment at any of InnpvaQuest's 12 production centers throughout the United States.

"We make sure that all our graduates are competent. When they work, medical "transcriptionists" represent the whole Philippine workforce, so if they make mistakes, the industry's credibility suffers."

THE MAN WHO KILLED HIMSELF TO DIE

There was a man who worked at the railroad. One day he went into the freezer compartment to do his routine work, the door accidentally closed and he found himself trapped in the compartment. He shouted for help but no one heard him since it was past midnight. He tried to break down the door but he could not. As he lay in the freezer compartment, he began to feel colder and colder. Then he began to feel weaker and weaker, and he wrote on the wall of the compartment, "I am feeling colder, and colder; I am getting weaker and weaker. I am dying, and this maybe my last words."

In the morning when the other workers opened up the compartment, they found him dead. The sad twist is that the freezing apparatus in the compartment had broken down a few days earlier. The poor worker did not know about the damaged freezing apparatus and in his mind it was working perfectly. He felt cold, got weaker and literally willed himself to die.

SUCCESS PRINCIPLES:

Our sub-conscious mind can be cheated. The sub-conscious mind can only accept and act on information passed to it by the conscious mind. It has no capacity to reject or decline any instructions or information passed to it by the conscious mind. The worker consciously thought that he was getting colder, weaker and dying and the sub conscious accepted the instructions and affected his physical body. That was how he willed himself to die.

** Cappuccino & Success

  by: Richard Quek!

FINGER LICKIN' GOOD

He was 65 years old when he received his first social security check of $99. He was broke, and owned a small house and a beat up car. He made a decision that he has got to change. The only idea he has was a chicken recipe, which his friends liked. With that idea in mind, he took massive action. He left his home in Kentucky and traveled to many states in the US to sell his idea. He told the restaurant owners that he had a chicken recipe that people liked and he was giving it to them for free. What he wanted in return was for the restaurant owners to pay him a small percentage on the pieces of chicken sold. He got rejections, but did not give up. In fact, he got over 1000 rejections. He got 1,009 NO's before he got his FIRST YES. With that one success, Colonel Harland Sanders changed the eating habits of the whole world with Kentucky Fried Chicken.

SUCCESS PRINCIPLES:

Age is no barrier to success, and so is capital. What is needed is an idea put into action, followed with proper planning and persistency. How many of us will keep knocking on doors when we have received 1000 rejections? I pressume not many! This is why there are not many successes like Colonel Sanders.

** Cappuccino & Success

  by: Richard Quek