LOCAL ENTREPRENEUR

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.
 NATIONAL ENTRPRENEUR

Oprah Gail Winfrey

Age: 56yrs

Birth Place: Kosciusko, Mississippi, USA

Industry: Media and Entertainment

Influence: Empowering People, Female Media Pioneer

Net Worth: $2.7 billion

Website: www.Oprah.com

Why they made the list…

Oprah Winfrey, this is not the first time I have spoken about her and it probably won’t be
the last time either; it seems she’s coming up in quite a few places. The reasons why
Oprah is such an influential entrepreneurs is because of the fact that she’s been
through so much and yet accomplished so much more. After being the subject of vicious
sexual attack at the age of nine; she later became pregnant, losing the child at birth she
was only 14 years of age at the time.In 1986 she famously revealed this to her shocked
viewers on her live show. Her fame came to fruition in 1983, when her seductive
character and genuine love of people gained her the job of her dreams; as a talk-show
host.

The following exposure was explosive and she soon became one of the most famous,
most well loved, and most professional people in the entertainment industry. However;
she did not want to stop there as she felt there was another side to her, a side of which
she wanted to pursue, her entrepreneurial side. In 1988 following her instincts she
founded the company Harpo Studios, which for those of you not realised is simply
Oprah spelt backwards. The business went on in leaps and bounds most likely due to
her television career which gave her a massive amount of advertising is each and every
day. The company now has over 250 employees and is currently growing every year.
She also co-founded oxygen media which helps attract over 50 million viewers.
Because of all of the skills she possesses, and her entrepreneurial side she’s managed
to create a personal wealth $2.7 billion pretty tidy sum if you ask me.