MARIA SOCORRO RAMOS

Maria Socorro Cancio was born on September 23, 1923 in Sta. Cruz, Laguna, to a family that is
no stranger to running business. Her parents ran a dry-good selling business, while her
grandmother had a stall in the market. But her Lola’s business was shut down because of
mismanagement. The young Maria would often see customers buy items on credit, which her
grandmother failed to keep tab on.

Socorro was around 18 years old when she started working as a saleslady in a branch of
Goodwill Bookstore owned by his brother Manuel in Escolta, Manila. Impressed with Maria’s
skills, the older brother entrusted full management of the business to her.

Story of business:
It is in the same store that Ms. Cancio met her husband Jose Ramos, who happens to be
Manuel’s brother-in-law. Maria’s parents were against their relationship because she was only
18 that time; she was forced to go back in Laguna, and was barred from seeing Jose. Defying
her parents’ disapproval, and with mere 11 pesos in her possession, Maria decided to go back
to Manila and married Jose in 1940. Her family did not talk to her for quite some time, but their
fury subsided when Maria gave birth to her twin babies Alfredo and Benjamin.

On the same year, the couple decided to open their own store. Maria and Jose started selling
books, GI novels, and supplies. The store’s name was Socorro’s idea after she would often see
the word “National” stamped on cash registers, which is quite fitting for it is considered as the
pioneer in providing textbooks, novels, and other school and office needs of the Filipinos.

During the Japanese invasion, they changed their business from selling books to selling soap
due to the censorship that was being imposed.

After the war, the Ramos couple was able to find a barong-barong in the corner of Avenida Rizal
and Soler and rebuilt it, right when the post-war school year was about to start. They used the
house’s door as their counter and started offering notebooks, textbooks, and other school
supplies.

The business was going smoothly until Typhoon Gene destroyed their house and their business
in 1948. But the couple was determined to recover and continued to work hard.

All the hard work paid off because they were able to construct a two-story building that became
their store for many years.

The success of National Bookstore continued, the business expanded and has now branches
across the country with more than 2,500 employees. Maria Socorro Cancio Ramos is now way
past her 90’s, hence it’s the younger ones who are managing the small empire. Nanay Coring
remains as a great inspiration to all those who struggle, for she is the epitome of surviving
against all odds.

Strategy:
After the Japanese occupation, the Ramos couple was able to rebuild a shanty in the corner of
Soler and Avenida Rizal in time to catch the boom of post-war business. Using the door of their
house as a counter, Ramos again started selling textbooks, notebooks, pad paper, and pencils
in time for the first postwar school year in the country. Just like that, National Book Store made
its transition from being a general merchandise store to a store that sells books and more.
Business went well mainly because only a few stores sold school supplies during that time.

In the 1950s, Socorro Ramos thought of producing a line of greeting cards and postcards using
Philippine views and artwork. By creating a distinct design, it promoted Filipino culture to the
rest of the world. The company later acquired the national franchise for Hallmark Cards. It was
also at that time that they began a publishing program with the assistance of international
publishers such as McGraw-Hill, Prentice Hall, Lippincott, and Addison-Wesley.

Values:
With all her awards and wealth, Socorro Ramos stays humble and credits her success to
values. She constantly monitors the business landscape. She says there’s always something
new to learn; successful business people must remember this and keep their minds open.

TONY TAN CAKTIONG

Tony Tan Caktiong was on born January 5, 1953. He is a Filipino entrepreneur. He is the
founder and chairman of Jollibee Foods Corporation and the co-chairman of DoubleDragon
Properties.

Tan was born to Chinese immigrant parents from Fujian. 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.

Story of business:
When he was 22, Caktiong decided to shell out P350,000 in an ice cream parlor franchise. He
opened Cubao Ice Cream House and Quiapo Ice Cream House. As their business becomes
more and more successful, they started to hire more people to help them manage it. Two years
later, he decided to serve hamburgers, fried chicken, and spaghetti as people began to tell him
that they don’t want to eat ice cream all the time. It was then that they decided to rebrand and
change their name to “Jollibee” as it represents them as a company, and the people that they
cater to – hardworking and happy.

McDonald’s came into the picture not many years later, but they failed to take over Jollibee’s
popularity as, according to Caktiong, they don’t know the local food culture. Filipinos have a
sweet taste on food, so Jollibee decided to serve spaghetti with a sweeter flavour. Filipinos like
to smell everything they eat, which is the reason behind the “Langhap Sarap” tagline they have
been using for a while now.

As years go by, the Jollibee group grew bigger. Caktiong partnered up and established a couple
other food chains including Chowking, Red Ribbon, Greenwich, and Delifrance. Aside from
bringing Jollibee, Chowking, and Red Ribbon to other countries, they’ve also established new
food chains in China and Taiwan which suit the tastes of the people there.

Strategy:
Sometime in 1978, Caktiong and his brothers and sisters engaged the services of a
management consultant, Manuel C. Lumba. Lumba shifted the business focus from ice cream to
burgers,[3] after his studies showed that a much larger market was waiting to be served. Lumba
became Caktiong's first business and management mentor.

The Jollibee mascot was inspired by local and foreign children's books. Lumba created the
product names "Yumburger" and "ChickenJoy". He had the company incorporated and leased a
house on Main St. in Cubao, Quezon City as the first headquarters. Lumba formulated a
long-term marketing strategy: listing up a number of consumer promotions and traffic building
schemes. Caktiong stressed that developing internal strengths was critical. The stores were
re-designed, the service transformed into a full self-service, fast-food operation with
drive-throughs. Not long after, Caktiong and Lumba went on an observation tour in the United
States, attended food service and equipment conventions. Caktiong placed Lumba in charge of
franchise development.

Jollibee depends on high customer traffic and tight operations mangement. It offers great
service to the high volumes of people who patronize its outlets by functioning as a well-oiled
machine with close tabs on daily operations.

Values:
The country’s most popular fast food chain exemplifies this very trait. “Jollibee became what it
has become now because of the hard work and determination of people working towards the
achievement of our vision,” words straight from Tony Tan Caktiong

GABBY LOPEZ

Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III is the eldest son of the late ABS-CBN chairman emeritus Eugenio
Lopez Jr. and Conhita La’O. He belongs to the Lopez family of Iloilo, one of the wealthiest and
most prominent families in the province. Today, he is the Vice Chairman and Executive Director
of the Lopez Group of Companies, a major player in the country’s public service and utility
sector.
Lopez has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science in Bowdoin College and a Masters degree in
Business Administration in Harvard Business School.

In 1986, he was given the position of Director of Finance in ABS-CBN by his father when the
control over the company was restored after Martial Law. He was elected the chairman cand
CEO of ABS-CBN in 1997, and he took it to where it is today by pushing for a more diverse
media company, exploring Interactive Media, Sound Recording, Post-Production, International
Cable and Satellite Distribution, Sports Programming, and Licensing and Merchandising.

It was also in 1997 that he began to invest in telecommunications and cable telephony, leading
to the establishment of Lopez Communication Group. This was the committee which oversees
the projects for ABS-CBN along with Bayan Telecommunications (BayanTel) and SkyCable
Corporation (SkyCable) for which he is vice president and chairman, respectively.

Charo Santos-Concio succeeded Lopez when he retired in 2012. Until today, however, he
remains as the chairman of the Board of Directors of ABS-CBN.