TOP 10

SUCCESSFUL
ENTREPRENEURS
IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. Henry Sy, Shoe Mart

is a Chinese-Filipino business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is involved in
the industries of real estate, hospitality, banking, mining, education, and health care. He
is responsible for the establishment of SM Malls, anchored by Shoemart Department
Store and Supermarket. He is the founder of SM Prime Holdings, the holding corporation
for all his business interests in his vast business empire. In 2015

Educational Attainment:

He completed his secondary education in a school now known as Chiang Kai Shek
College and earned his Associate of Arts degree in Commercial Studies at Far Eastern
University in 1950.
 Awards Received:
 Management Man of the Year by Makati Business Club in 1999
 Honorary Doctorate in Business Management by De La Salle University in January
1999
 40 Richest Filipinos of 2008-2012, Forbes magazine Heroes of Philanthropy
 1st Chinese-Filipino recipient of the PRA President Award (2005).

2. Tony Tan Caktiong, Jollibee

 
Is a Filipino entrepreneur. He is the founder and chairman of Jollibee Foods
Corporation and the co-chairman of DoubleDragon Properties.

Educational Attainment:

He attended high school at Chiang Kai Shek College and graduated from the University
of Santo Tomas with a degree in chemical engineering. Tan had initially planned an ice
cream parlor when he founded Jollibee, then added dishes such as hamburgers, french
fries, and fried chicken

Awards Received:

 Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines, 2004

 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year World, 2004

 Gawad Mabini with the rank of Commander (Dakilang Kasugo), 2016

3. Cecilio K. Pedro – Lamoiyan Corporation

People thought Dr. Cecilio K. Pedro was crazy for going against big companies in the
toothpaste industry. Many years later, Hapee toothpaste remains as a major competitor
against global brands in the Philippines.
Cecilio Kwok Pedro, of Chinese descent, was born on 1953 in the Philippines. Even when
he was young, Pedro already has a knack for business, selling pens to his schoolmates. Dr.
Pedro’s story is not the rags-to-riches type, but his success is nevertheless admirable.

Educational Attainment:

He graduated from Ateneo de Manila with a degree in Business Management. It was around
1975 when Cecilio to put up his own business.

4. Socorro C. Ramos , National Bookstore

Socorro Ramos ( Santa Cruz , September 23, 1923 ), also known as "Nanay Coring"
is a Filipino entrepreneur. She is the woman behind National Bookstore , the largest
bookstore chain in the Philippines.

During the Japanese occupation many of the (American) books were hidden and the
couple sold office supplies, soap and flip flops. During the Battle of Manila in 1945 their
shop went up in flames and they had to start again with the stock of hidden books. Three
years later, however, fate struck again when a typhoon destroyed the rebuilt store at the
new location on Rizal Avenue. Again the National Book Store was rebuilt by Socorro and
Jose Ramos.
Over time, the store expanded. At the intercession of the three children of Socorro
and Jose new offices were opened. The company became a real family business and
grew into a chain of bookshops with branches throughout the country. In the 1990s, the
chain had around 50 branches. Twenty years later, there were 145. The National Book
Store was therefore the largest bookstore chain in the Philippines and one of the largest
companies in the Philippine retail trade.

5. John Gokongwei Jr., JG Holdings

 is a Filipino business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He has holdings in
telecommunications, financial services, petrochemicals, power generation, aviation, food,
beverage, and livestock farming.

Educational Attainment:
 Study and obtain an MBA at the De La Salle University. A decade later, he underwent a 14-
week advanced management program at Harvard University.

Early Career:
In 1957, seeing that trading would always have low margins[4] and would always be
dependent on government policies, the family concern entered the era of manufacturing.
With a loan of 500 thousand pesos from Albino Sycip, then chairman of China Bank, and DK
Chiong, he started a corn milling plant producing glucose and corn starch. The company
was named Universal Corn Products and later expanded into Universal Robina Corporation,
San Miguel Corporation was a big customer of theirs.
Later career:
 He is the chairman of JG Summit Holdings, one of the largest conglomerates in the
Philippines. In 2010, his company signed a $3 billion order with Airbus for re-fleeting of
his airline, Cebu Pacific Air. From 2003 his telecom company Digital
Telecommunications Philippines spent nearly $800 million for its mobile carrier, Sun
Cellular which is the 3rd largest mobile operator in the Philippines at that time before
selling to the PLDT group for $1.7 billion. He attempted a $1 billion takeover of United
Industrial Corporation Ltd (UIC), a property giant from Singapore of which he owned in
excess of 30%. UIC controls Singapore Land, one of the biggest property landlords in
Singapore.
 In 2013, his company bought the stake of San Miguel Corporation in MERALCO, the
largest power distributor in the country, for close to $1.8 billion.
 Gokongwei also owns Universal Robina Corporation, one of the largest manufacturer of
snacks in Southeast Asia. In July 2014, URC acquired Griffin's Foods from Pacific Equity
Partners, a New Zealand food company for $609 million.
 He also controls Robinsons Land, one of the biggest property developers in the
Philippines, which also operates a chain of malls. The Gokongwei Family controls over
$20 billion of combined market capitalization for all the companies they own.
 In February 2008, Forbes Asia magazine’s first Heroes of Philanthropy list included 4
Filipinos – Jaime Zobel de Ayala, John Gokongwei, Ramón del Rosario Jr., and Óscar
López.The list is composed of 4 philanthropists each from 13 selected countries and
territories in Asia
6. Alfredo M. Yao , Zest-O
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!

7. 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.
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’s dedication to his business has allowed Mercury Drug into 700 stores and a
widely recognized name for quality pharmaceuticals.
Awards Received:

 President’s Award: Plaque of Merit, Most Prestigious Drugs Manufacturer and

Distinguished Civic Leader in 1973
 Award of Distinction by the Philippine Chamber of Health and Pharmaceutical and Non-
Pharmaceutical Industry in 1986
 Father of Philippine Health and Wellness Retailing by the Philippine Retailers
Association in 2012

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.