BUSINESS AND

FINANCE

20 BUSUNESS PERSONALITIES
LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS TRADE

SUBMITTED TO: MRS. PERLITA SAMANTE

SUBMITTED BY: JENALYN D. TAGABI
LOCAL
 1. HENRY SY, SHOE MART

SM is more than just a shopping mall. It is a beloved institution. Many of my

favorite memories happened in SM. From shopping, watching blockbuster
movies, date night, ice skating to food tripping, SM has it all. However, this
gigantic chain of more than 44 large-scale shopping centers in the Philippines
and throughout Asia has very humble beginnings.

Henry Sy came from an impoverished family in Jinjiang, a town near Xiamen,

China. The entire family left China in 1936 to help the family patriarch manage
a thriving convenience store in Manila.

Unfortunately for the family, their store was burned down during World War II.
However, business-minded Henry saw an opportunity selling used military
combat boots and other postwar goods from supportive American soldiers!

His success led to the opening of his first shoe store, the SM in Avenida,
Manila. Henry had problems finding shoe manufacturers who could design
shoes according to what he had in mind, but he persisted. He spoke to
customers and built his own network of suppliers and manufacturers.

That never-say-die attitude got Henry Sy to where he is now: one of the

richest men in the world and a world-class commercial center developer who
provides opportunities to both entrepreneurs and the working class!
 2. TONY TAN CAKTIONG, JOLLIBEE

If you thought you only loved The Champ and Chicken Joy, then be prepared
to be inspired by the man behind the franchise.

Also coming from an immigrant family from China, Tony learned the value of
hard work and dedication from his father who worked as a cook in a Buddhist
temple. Tony’s father started a Chinese restaurant in Manila with his savings
so he can send him to college.

In 1975, Tony bought a Magnolia ice cream parlor. However, it was not
generating enough business. After talking with his customers and people
within the neighborhood, Tony decided to include sandwiches, fried chicken,
and French fries in the menu. In time, the restaurant found itself packed to
overflowing capacity.

By 1978, Tony had opened six more restaurants, but the main item was no
longer ice cream. Tony then decided to adapt the McDonald’s concept and
named his franchise after his work ethic of being as “busy as a bee.”

Today Jollibee has grown to more than 2,500 stores in the Philippines plus
locations in the US, China, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Brunei.
 3. JOHN GOCONGWEI JR., JG HOLDINGS

John’s life story is a “rich-to-rags-to riches” story. John Jr. was born in China
to the scion of one of the wealthiest families in Cebu.

When the father died, so did the business and the family fortune was soon
gone. John Jr. supported his family by peddling items along the streets of
Cebu by bike. Soon, he was trading items by boat to Lucena City and to
Manila by truck. Eventually, he started importing items from the US.

John Jr. soon realized that importing carried too much risk and low margins.
Thus, in 1957, he borrowed Php 500,000 from China Bank and started a corn
milling business named Universal Corn Products.

By 1961, Universal started diversifying its products and launched several

popular brands such as Blend 45. Universal Corn Products was renamed
Universal Robina Corporation.

Today, the Gokongwei family owns several successful and highly diversified
businesses. Among these are Robina Land Corporation and Cebu Pacific.
 4. Socorro C. Ramos, National Bookstore

The next time you buy your batch of new school supplies and textbooks, do
not forget to thank Ms. Socorro C. Ramos!

Her story is a stuff for telenovela, and frankly, I’m surprised the networks and
movie outfits have not caught on. How’s this for a plot teaser?

Girl’s brother marries scion of a wealthy bookstore owner in Manila. The girl
finds job as a saleslady at 18, meets and falls in love with the son of the
owner; thus, he is technically her in-law! Their parents forbid the relationship
and sends the girl back to the province. However, their love is so strong, girl
and boy stand up to the parents, get married, and have twins.

The boy takes over a branch with the girl, and they renamed it in National
Book Store. However, a war breaks out, and the store is destroyed! They
rebuild the store, but everything is held under suspicion of being
“questionable.” They relocate the store in Avenida, but as the business picks
up, a storm destroys their roof. Soon, they rebuild the store, and every
centavo is used to build a nine-story National Book Store.

The girl is Socorro and the boy is Jose. Today, National Bookstore has grown
to over 100 stores. Despite digital technology, it continues to flourish!
5. Cecilio Kwok Pedro, Lamoiyan Corporation

Cecilio’s life is not a typical rags-to-riches story; instead, it embodies the

entrepreneurial spirit of overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds.

Cecilio used to head Aluminum Container Inc., which produced the aluminum
toothpaste tubes for Procter and Gamble, Philippine Refining Company (now
Unilever), and Colgate-Palmolive. However, environmental concerns led his
clients to shift to plastic-laminated toothpaste tubes. Aluminum Container Inc.
failed and closed its shop in 1986.

He put up Lamoiyan Corporation and manufactured toothpaste that was

priced 50% lower than his competitors. These included the still-popular
brands Hapee and Kutitap. Although the foreign brands countered by lowering
their brands by 20%, Cecilio responded by introducing toothpaste targeted for
children that featured the characters from Sesame Street.

Cecilio’s brands have made it to other markets in Asia, such as China,

Vietnam, and Indonesia.

Cecilio’s greatest accomplishment was not limited to manufacturing. He is

also known for his advocacy to help hearing-impaired people find employment
in the country.

His programs include free housing for more than 30 deaf–mute staffs. To
date, more than 180 hearing-impaired students have received college
education through DEAF or Deaf Evangelistic Alliance Foundation.
6. Mariano Que, Mercury Drugstores

Many of today’s entrepreneurs would learn the value of customer experience

and innovation through Mariano Que.

Like many of the entrepreneurs discussed so far, Mariano found opportunities

for entrepreneurship after World War 2. Mariano had been working in a local
drugstore when the war destroyed several businesses in the city.

Mariano saw the need to supply sulfa drugs, which were used to treat
bacterial infections. He started to buy sulfa tablets and sold them at affordable
prices. Soon, other people followed and adapted Mariano’s strategy.

However, only Mariano sold high-quality sulfa tablets, which ensured him a
steady clientele. With his hard work and dedication to build up savings, he
was able to put up his first drug store in 1945, which he named Mercury Drug.
The Roman god Mercury is known for speed. He also carries the caduceus,
which is a symbol in the medical industry.

Mariano invested his earnings into the company and introduced many
innovations in the service. Among these innovations were a drug-delivery
service to clients and locations that are open 24/7 because he knew people
would be needing medicines any time of the day.

By the time Mariano opened his second Mercury Drug at the newly
constructed Ayala shopping center in Makati, he had invested in technological
innovations, such as biological refrigerators and computer-guided controls.

Mariano’s dedication to his business has allowed Mercury Drug into 700
stores and a widely recognized name for quality pharmaceuticals.
7. Alfredo M. Yao, Zest-O

The next time you pass a vendor peddling goods on the street, keep in mind
that he or she can be supporting the next Alfredo M. Yao.

When Alfredo lost his dad at age 12, his mother was left to support him and
his siblings by becoming a sidewalk vendor. A relative was able to give
financial aid, which allowed Alfredo to reach, but not complete, college at the
Mapúa Institute of Technology.

Alfredo took several odd jobs, which included time at a printing press. During
his stay there, Alfredo learned how to print cellophane wrappers for candies
and biscuits. His experience prompted him to start his own printing business.

His printing business was doing well. However, his discovery of the Doy
Packaging system from Europe was the turning point of his entrepreneurial
career. He tried to sell the system to juice manufacturers, but no one was
interested. Thus, Alfredo ventured into the juice business by concocting
flavors in his kitchen.

These juices were not only delicious but also appealing to parents as they
found the light and brightly colored packs easy to include in their children’s
lunch boxes. Best of all, the packaging allowed the juice to stay chilled longer.
Zest-O was born!

Today, Zest-O controls 80% of the juice market, and it has expanded to
markets in Australia, China, New Zealand, Korea, Singapore, US, and several
countries in Europe. Alfredo’s entrepreneurial success has revitalized the
juice region in the Philippines particularly farmers growing dalandan. The Doy
packs are also recycled by local cottage industries into handbags for export to
other countries!

The boy who once faced the harsh realities of life now become a successful
juice manufacturer. Alfredo has diversified his business interests into airlines
by acquiring Asian Spirit Airlines and renaming it as Zest Air.

Alfredo is now literally on top of the world!

8. Corazon D. Ong, CDO Foodsphere

Corazon represented the value of having passion in what you do as a

motivating factor in finding success as an entrepreneur.

Corazon was a dietitian by profession. She used her knowledge to create

processed meats that were affordable enough to compete with the popular
foreign brands. She developed corned beef, hamburger patties, meat loaf,
and hotdogs, which were sold purely as a home business.

By 1975, Corazon decided to scale her newfound business and

established CDO Foodsphere. The company’s reputation to develop high-
quality but low-priced processed meats quickly spread and made CDO a
regular staple in every shopping cart.

As a mother herself Corazon understood the value of having meals that can
be prepared easily, taste good, and fit the family budget.

In time, CDO expanded to industrial markets. Today, CDO supplies

processed meats to 90% of quick service restaurants or QSRs in the country.
9. Gregorio G. Sanchez Jr., LactoPAFI

While working as a provincial board member in Cebu, Gregorio noticed that

pigs sold to market were apparently malnourished.

He decided to look into the cause of malnutrition by doing research in his

spare time. Using only pots and pans in his home, Gregorio conducted
several tests and experiments on how to alleviate the state of malnutrition of
Cebu’s livestock.

Despite numerous failures, his persistence finally paid off. He discovered the
pigs were suffering from a type of bad bacteria. His solution was a probiotic
bacteria that would increase the level of good bacteria in the body.

The bacteria would be called LactoPAFI Probiotic Bacteria. Gregorio’s

discovery would reach global acclaim as a leader in probiotics. It is now
exported to New Zealand, Norway, France, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and
US.
10. Diosdado Banatao, Computer Chips

Diosdado’s life story exhibits perseverance, hope, determination, and the

power of self-belief. The son of a farmer in Cagayan, Diosdado would walk
barefoot just to complete his high school education. His resilience made him a
Magna Cum Laude graduate in electrical engineering.

His excellence in the academe paved the way for Diosdado to become a pilot-
trainee at the Philippines Airlines or PAL, which would eventually open doors
for a design engineer position at Boeing Co. The opportunity brought
Diosdado to the US where he completed a master’s degree in electrical
engineering and computer science at Stanford University.

Diosdado’s experience working with the top technology companies led to his
design of the first single-chip 16-bit microprocessor calculator. By 1981,
Diosdado was commissioned by Seeq Technologies to assist the Ethernet to
find an efficient way of linking computers. Disodado designed the single- chip
controller that provided data-link control and the transceiver in the first 10-bit
Ethernet CMOS.

His success opened doors to build his own company, Monstroni, in 1985 and
Chips and Technology, which made US$ 12 million in the first quarter alone.
By 1996, Diosdado sold Chips and Technology to Intel for US$ 430 million!

Throughout his success, Diosdado never forgot his roots and Filipino heritage.
He set up the Banatao Filipino American Fund to lend support to Filipino
American students in Northern California who aspire to become electrical
engineers.
INTERNATIONAL
1. Donald Trump

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America’s 2016 Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump is perhaps the most
infamous CEO sitting upon a $4.5 billion empire. Trump’s career began with an
economics degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1968. Just seven years later,
he took over his father’s construction company and renamed it Trump Organization.
Known for his pompous attitude, Trump finalized countless multi-million dollar real estate
transactions for hotels and casinos, including NYC’s Plaza Hotel. Despite this, massive
loan payments caused Donald Trump to declare bankruptcy four times since 1991. While
dodging the IRS, he started Trump University, a for-profit being sued for misleading
practices. Donald Trump also lost his NBC show “The Apprentice” after making crude
comments about Mexican immigrants. And now he’s running for President…

2. Mark Zuckerberg

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Worth $51.2 million, Mark Zuckerberg is the famous young CEO of the Internet social
media platform Facebook. After growing up in White Plains, New York, Zuckerberg
attended Harvard University to study computer science. In 2004, he officially launched
Facebook from his dorm to help people network. Soon after, three seniors filed a lawsuit
that Zuckerberg stole their idea called HarvardConnection. The $300 million settlement
gave the men 1.2 million Facebook shares. Mark Zuckerberg then dropped out of
Harvard to work full-time on the company. Facebook had grown to 1 million users in one
year, and there’s now over 1.65 billion. Zuckerberg’s successes were portrayed in the
award-winning film, “The Social Network” and there’s so much veiled information about
the whole Facebook issue that many people question its true purpose…

3. Bill Gates
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Perhaps the world’s most renowned software guru, Bill Gates was the formidable CEO
for Microsoft until 2014. Growing up in Seattle, Gates showed the programming skills and
aggressive business acumen for high-tech innovation. With his Lakeside School
classmate Paul Allen, he developed his first software, “Traf-o-Data,” at 15. In 1975,
Gates dropped out of Harvard University to form Micro-Soft with Allen. Although the 25-
employee firm started out shaky, Bill Gates rapidly expanded the operation and grossed
$2.5 million in 1979. Though he’s credited with beginning the computer revolution, Gates
has faced controversy. Microsoft has been the defendant in over 35 patent infringement
lawsuits. Bill Gates remains the world’s richest person with a $76.6 billion net worth.

4. Michael Bloomberg

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Ranked eighth in Forbes 400, Michael Bloomberg is the notable CEO for Bloomberg L.P.,
a privately held financial software company. Born in Boston, Bloomberg earned a B.S. in
Electrical Engineering from Johns Hopkins in 1964. Two years later, he earned an MBA
from Harvard Business School. Bloomberg began working at the Wall Street investment
bank Salomon Brothers. Using his $10 million severance package, Michael Bloomberg
established his own firm. By 1982, Merrill Lynch had invested $30 million in his company.
Although he left the CEO spot to become New York City’s mayor in 2002, Bloomberg
L.P. went on to install over 325,000 terminals worldwide. He’s also launched “Bloomberg
BusinessWeek” magazine and the Bloomberg Tradebook.

5. Mary Barra
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In the male-dominated business world, Mary Barra stands as one of the most famous
female CEOs. Forbes magazine ranked Barra fifth in the “World’s Most Powerful
Women.” After studying electrical engineering at Kettering University, Barra earned a
General Motors Fellowship at Stanford in 1988. She became manager of the company’s
Detroit assembly plant and climbed the ladder. By 2011, Mary Barra advanced to Vice
President of Global Product Development to redesign GM’s automobile platforms. When
Dan Akerson stepped down, she assumed the CEO title in 2014. Barra was the world’s
first female CEO for an international automaker. Her leadership has been criticized
though. GM has issued 84 recalls involving over 30 million cars since her term began.

6. Warren Buffett

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Nicknamed the “Wizard of Omaha,” Warren Buffett is a respected business magnate

who’s the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a multi-national conglomerate. Growing up in
1930s Nebraska, Buffett started several entrepreneurial ventures from paper routes to
car detailing. At just 19, he graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a
BSBA. Rejected by Harvard, Buffett enrolled at Columbia for a Master of Science in
Economics. He initially worked as a securities analyst for Graham-Newman Corp. until
forming Buffett Partnership Ltd. His partnerships made him a millionaire by 1962. Eight
years later, Warren Buffett became CEO for Berkshire Hathaway. Buffett’s bought
companies like Geico, Dairy Queen, and Kraft Heinz. Recognized among TIME’s most
influential people, Buffett is worth $66.4 billion.

7. Howard Schultz
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Particularly well-known among coffee connoisseurs, Howard Schultz is the outspoken

CEO for the global coffeehouse chain Starbucks. Born into a poor Brooklyn family,
Schultz was a first-generation college student at Northern Michigan University. After
graduating with a B.A. in Communications in 1975, he worked as a Xerox salesman. On
business trip in 1981, Howard Schultz first walked into Starbucks and a cup of brew
changed his life. He joined Starbucks as the Director of Marketing and began expanding
the four-store company. Since promoting Schultz to CEO in 2008, Starbucks as grown to
23,000 stores in 73 nations. He’s lauded for creating the Starbucks College Achievement
Plan and Create Jobs for USA initiatives. In 2011, Fortune named Schultz the
“Businessperson of the Year.”

8. Frederick W. Smith

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Frederick W. Smith is the famous founder and CEO of FedEx, a global courier company
with $14.9 billion total equity. Growing up with a widowed mother in Marks, Mississippi,
Smith was crippled with a bone disease. After regaining his health, he entered Yale
University in 1962. For his economics class, Smith wrote a business plan for an overnight
delivery service and earned a “C.” Frederick W. Smith later turned his paper into success
after serving in the U.S. Marine Corps for three years. The determined entrepreneur
raised $91 million in venture capital to found Federal Express. By 1973, the company
delivered small packages to 25 cities. Since then, Smith’s taken the service international
with over 300,000 employees. Fortune placed Smith 26th among the “World’s Greatest
Leaders.”

9. Martin Shkreli
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Among today’s most hated CEOs is 33-year-old Martin Shkreli, the co-founder of Turing
Pharmaceuticals. Growing up in working class Brooklyn, Shkreli earned a bachelor’s in
business administration from CUNY Baruch College in 2005. He initially worked at
Cramer, Berkowitz & Co as a hedge fund analyst. Almost immediately, the SEC
investigated Shkreli when he predicted Regeneron Pharmaceuticals’ stock would fall. He
founded Retrophin in 2011, but departed four years latter to establish Turing
Pharmaceuticals. Here’s where Martin Shkreli gained infamy for jacking the price of
Daraprim up 5,556 percent to $750 per pill. Although the price stands, Shkreli’s in hot
water with the FBI. In December 2015, he was charged with securities fraud for running a
Ponzi scheme with Retrophin.

10. Jeffrey Bezos

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Worth $63.3 billion, Jeffrey Bezos is the world’s most successful e-

commerce entrepreneur and CEO for Amazon.com, an online retail
giant. As a National Merit Scholar, Bezos attended Princeton University
to earn dual B.S. degrees in engineering and computer science in 1986.
He landed a lucrative Wall Street hedge fund job, but wanted to join the
growing Internet fad. By 1994, Jeffrey Bezos was setting up
Amazon.com from his garage. Fast-forward to 2015 and Amazon’s
cranked out over $100 billion in revenue. Bezos has also started a
human spaceflight company called Blue Origin and bought “The
Washington Post.” Often deemed stingy, Bezos was named the World’s
Worst Boss by the ITUC in 2014. Jeffrey Bezos has also been linked to
differential pricing, tax avoidance, and copyright infringement.