Sunga, John Malex

11- Logro

BUSINESS TYCOONS
1. Henry Sy, Shoe Mart

- 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

- 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 Gokongwei 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. Manny Villar
 - Manuel "Manny" Bamba Villar Jr. is a Filipino billionaire
businessman. He has been a Philippine Senator and the
president of the Nacionalista Party. Villar was born to a
middle class family in Tondo, an impoverished and densely
populated district of Manila.
- Villar was born to a middle class family in Tondo, an
impoverished and densely populated district of Manila. After
graduating from the University of the Philippines, he
worked as an accountant and financial analyst, then
launched a highly successful business in real estate. Villar's
companies have built over 200,000 homes, and his business
career made him the wealthiest person in the Philippines.

5. Lucio Tan
- Lucio C. Tan, Sr. is a Chinese Filipino billionaire businessman and
educator with interests in banking, airline, liquor, tobacco, real
estate industries and education. In 2013, Forbes magazine listed
him as the second richest billionaire from the Philippines with a
net worth of $7.5 billion.
- Lucio Tan is the founder and chairman of the $1.1 billion sales LT
Group, which has interests in tobacco, spirits, banking and
property development.
- Tan started as a chemical engineer at Far East University, where
he mopped floors to put himself through college.
- In 1982, Tan established Asia Brewery. Now a subsidiary of LT
Group, the brewery was the only one then to compete with the
market leader San Miguel.