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[ About the Author: Gaile Ramirez loves to write and considers it as one of her passion. She dreams of publishing a book someday. Currently, she is working for Haribon Foundation. Thank you very much Gaile for producing this article for us - Hermie ]

If I will not grab the opportunity, the management of Tork will give the business to someone else. […] It’s a lost opportunity for me”

These were the most evocative words our group received from the owner of Hotels, Restaurants and Institutions (HRI) Marketing. Our quest for a million peso has led us to the couple who owned this company which started as a small distributor of Tork and Green Cross products.

It was a typical hot summer Saturday. But the weather did not stop us from finding HRI Marketing along this heavy traffic zone called E. Rodriguez Avenue. The bright greens and blues of their small office welcomed us and made us feel at home. Buboy and Monette, along with three other staff, were working when we arrived. It was only after a few minutes when Buboy sat with us and embraced the start of our agenda with them. Here we began listening to his success story.

The Power of Dissatisfaction

“Eto ang kaloob sa atin ng Dyos, kaya dapat maging masaya na tayo dito. Ang importante magkakasama tayo.” Do these statements sound familiar? The problem with us, Filipinos, is our mentality to be contented with what we have. We abhor wanting more for we think that that is being greedy. Our faulty beliefs unconsciously make us romanticize poverty. Who ever said that eating only once a day is romantic? There’s nothing wrong with this character just as there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be rich. This was what Buboy felt years before he started his business. He knew that his earnings were not enough for him and his wife, more so, to have a child. He did not accept his situation simply because he knew that he can do better than this.

Having the Eye for “IT”

Here comes the part where we have to strive. Of course, getting the breads is not just a matter of psychological motivation. It is not just about “who needs it.” Certainly not about “who wants it the most.” It is also about “who knows where to get it.”

Buboy and Monette had several sidelines when they were still employed. It wasn’t easy—they actually failed a couple of times until Buboy has been exposed to the operations of Tork as an employee. This gave him the opportunity to see the potential and learn the nitty-gritty of this business. He knew that at that time, Tork distribution in Quezon City was still small and a handful of opportunities were waiting for him. He saw the potential in it and this he grabbed with little hesitation.

It’s All About Risks

Buboy did not have what it needs to establish his own business. He only had Php150,000 when what was needed was around 3 to 5 million pesos—enough reason to make the Tork Management think twice over giving the distributorship to Buboy. But he found more ways than one to get just what it calls for. The biggest risk that Buboy took was perhaps closing the deal with the Tork Management even before he had the resources needed in his hands. “If I will not grab the opportunity, the management of Tork will give the business to someone else. It’s a lost opportunity for me.” But he found refuge through a high-interest lending company that does not require financial statements and collaterals. The couple resigned from their stable jobs to be able to focus fulltime on their new business. He can confidently say that what he had was more of lakas ng loob than a carefully laid out business plan.

Humble Beginnings

They say a journey of thousand miles begins with a single step. Let’s face it: thousands of multi-billionaires out there started with nothing much in their pockets, but they eventually gained revenues. Buboy’s very own house was their office and stockroom for a good two years, utilizing all the spaces available. So what if it’s not much of an eye candy? After all, there’s more than what meets the eye. They just started with the basics. He, himself, did the routing and the delivery, with just one truck and a few extra hand to aid him.

Getting to Where They Are Now

Running their own business was not easy for the owners especially during their crucial first year when no pool of accounts has been established yet. Buboy had to do client calls and bear with the different personalities of the clients he met. But with proper motivation and right strategies, the couple was able to progress eventually. After two years in the business, they witnessed their movement from a debt-laden person to a millionaire.

To date, they are opening at least ten new accounts per month through the help of four agents. A rented office space and bodega now houses the twelve employees and their stocks. From one truck, they now have three to deliver their products. With a brand quality comparable to top labels, it wouldn’t be long before they have a well-defined niche in the market.

Last Words

At the end of our conversation, Buboy can not tell us any hard and fast fool-proof tip for those who want to set up their own business. Strategies depend on the kind of business you are engaged in. This, then, means that you have to really know your business and what it entails to be successful in it. But listening to him made me confident to state a few lessons learned:

• A lot of men and women in business lost in their first try before finding the winning combination. The key in business life is persistence. Pick up your lessons along the way and apply them as you try your luck again.
• We can only take so much risks. Living in a dog-eat-dog world, just one mistake can make you lose everything you’ve been dreaming of. Aside from the proper motivation, the basic knowledge on how to run a business and money is also necessary. What’s vital is not really the capital but the management.
• Master the art and science of delaying the gratification. Don’t think of how to spend your money even before they earn it. Once in a while, it is good to address some of our indulgences, but we have to discern only to which we will give in.
• Have a little pride as well. Don’t make the management feel that you don’t have enough money even if you started small. It might cause you your business in favor of other interested entrepreneurs. Pride, in this case, is beneficial.
• Start small but dream big. Your business does not have to be big at the onset—start as small as your money can afford.
• Take the first steps now.

It is not a sin to dream to be rich, more so, to be rich in actuality. It is what we do with our wealth that spells the difference. With Buboy’s story, I guess it only goes to show that when push comes to shove, we can thrive and we will survive.