John
Gokongwei, Jr. All these, however, came to a halt when the senior Gokongwei suddenly died of complications from typhoid fever when John Jr. was only 13. Because all that they had was acquired through credit, the banks took away their house, cars, and businesses when his father died. The Gokongwei family suddenly became poor. Their condition and those of the other Filipinos at that time were further aggravated by the start of the World War II. Being the eldest, John took upon his shoulders the primary responsibility that his father left – to provide for the family who has temporarily returned to China where the cost of living was less expensive. He started selling basic necessities such as soap, candle, and thread at the city market. When he had earned enough from selling these items, John traveled to Manila and still sold some more items like rubber tires. At 19, after the war, John had P50,000 – a fortune already at that time – to his name. And soon after, the Gokongwei family which was separated by poverty were reunited. A year later, he and his brother put up Amasia Trading which sold imported items from the United States such as old newspapers, magazines, and used clothing. In one of his speeches, Gokongwei said that they were perhaps the first to bring ukay-ukay to the country. The whole family was helping out in this business and while it was thriving, John knew that he could do more. In 1958, at 31, he established a cornstarch manufacturing company, the Universal Corn Products (UCP). In 1961, Gokongwei’s Consolidated Food Corporation provided alternative to the more expensive Nestle Nescafe and introduced Blend 45. This was followed by Nips, a candy-coated chocolate just like the American’s M&Ms. In 1966, Universal Robina Corporation (URC) was born. Chiz Curls, Chippy, and Potato Chips under the Jack and Jill brand are still Filipino favorites to this day. On the beverage front, perhaps one of URC’s very successful product is C2, the bottled iced tea launched in 2004 which sold 100,000 bottles on its first month. Around the 80s, Gokongwei also tried his hand on real estate. Robinsons Land Corporation was incorporated in 1980. Robinsons flagship mall, Robinson’s Galleria opened in 1990. Since then, Robinsons Land Corporation has been involved in the development and operation of shopping malls and hotels, mixed-use properties, office buildings, residential condominiums, as well as land and residential housing developments. Gokongwei also has interests in a major real estate developer in Singapore, the United Industrial Corporation (UIC). Among its properties are popular landmarks in Singapore such as the SGX Centre, Marina Square, and Stamford Court. In 1987, Gokongwei owned 47.45% of Digital Telecommunications,
Inc. In 1992, the Gokongwei Brothers Foundation (GBS) was established to help uplift the socio-economic condition of Filipinos through the funding of educational projects. The foundation sponsors the education of Filipinos pursuing degrees in engineering and the sciences, and support education through donations to deserving institutions. Free advanced technical programs like industrial electronics and process instrumentation are offered under the GBS. Anchored on these thrusts, the Ateneo de Manila Univeristy John Gokongwei School of Management and the De La Salle University Manila’s Gokongwei Hall were built. Besides GBS, some companies under the JG Summit group like URC and The JG Summit Petrochemical Corporation also have their own corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. In 1994, the JG Summit Petrochemical Corporation started its operations. It is the first integrated polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) plant in the Philippines. Polyethylene and polypropylene are used to make shopping bags, adhesive tapes, lamination films, food packaging materials, candy wrappers, etc. In 1996, the Philippine skies welcomed a plane in yellow, blue, and green. Cebu Pacific, JG Summit’s Holdings’ airlines, made its maiden flight on March 8, 1996. It pioneered the “low fare, great value” strategy and almost every Juan in the country who would otherwise travel by land or sea flew on Cebu Pacific. In 1997, JG Summit Group’s major financial service arm, Robinsons Bank was established. The bank significantly expanded its branch network to 46 with 73 ATMs nationwide. In 2003, Digitel collided head-on with telecoms giant, Globe and Smart, and launched Sun Cellular which pioneered the unlimited text and call services at a more affordable rates. Because of his story, John Gokongwei has been invited several times in the past to deliver a speech especially in university commencement exercises. Every time, he never fails to encourage the youth to become entrepreneurs and not be content with a 9-to-5 job even if it’s a high-paying one. Gokongwei, who initially dreamed of becoming a fighter pilot, believes that it is only when we are able to create jobs for others can this nation really move forward. Sources:  |
Born on August 11, 1926, John Gokongwei Jr., was born with the proverbial
silver spoon in his mouth. He was the eldest son of a rich Chinese-Filipino
family from Xiamen, Fujian Province, China. The family settled in
Cebu where his father owned a cinema. He attended a premier institution,
the University of San Carlos, where he finished his elementary and
high school education. He and his 5 siblings were living a comfortable
life, complete with chauffeur and nannies. John, Jr. was living
his life and enjoying the company of friends who he would always
treat to a movie at his father’s cinema.