Make it work

Here are tips on how to start a business and find the time to be both a mom and an entrepreneur.

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
February 21, 2015

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Everything starts with a want. Eileen Juan wanted to capture her growing kids’ photos and save them as mementos. But back then, 13 years ago, there wasn’t any photo studio that offered what she wanted. Fast forward to today. Eileen is now the successful founder and CEO of The Picture Company, a studio that specializes in baby and kid photography.

Model and mom Rissa Mananquil Trillo had the same dilemma. She wanted to look good (who doesn’t?) but makeup caused her skin to break out. She and Jacqe Yuengtian Gutierrez thought of coming up with a makeup brand, Happy Skin, that makes women look pretty and their skin happy. What started with five counters in 2013 has now grown to 50 counters.

Mutya Laxa Buensuceso

Jacqe Yuengtian Gutierrez

At this year’s Mompreneur Summit at the Edades Tower in Rockwell, entrepreneur moms revealed secrets to putting up a business, keeping it successful, and finding that elusive work-life balance.

Rissa Mananquil Trillo

SECRET TO SUCCESS

So what’s the secret to finally starting a business and keeping it successful? “Find your magic. Ask yourself, what is the ‘why’ of my business?” says Eileen. She says this will separate you from competitors. For Rissa and Jacqe, following the six Ps (proposition, product, packaging, price, place, and promotion) helps you differentiate your brand. Having a defined set of values, no bending them, helps, too. According to the partners, they can easily make Happy Skin available to the mass market. While this is more income generating, they opted to choose key locations only. “Our goal is to make it at par with international, world class makeup brands. So we have to stick with our branding,” Rissa says.

For Jill Gorodias Borja, CEO and president of Manang’s Chicken, a Pinoy chicken brand, your idea for a business does not have to be unique. It just needs to be better. The Philippines has a plethora of chicken and its different permutations: deep fried, infused with flavors, roasted, and smoked. But Jill says that Manang’s is better because although it’s not original, it has a story. Manang’s Chicken started from her manang’s (househelp) chicken recipe. The family couldn’t get enough of it that they wanted the rest of the foodies to taste it.

“We have a lot of established competitors but what sets us apart is we’re offering something better. Starting a food business is more than just serving good food. You also need to ensure quality, provide consistency, and give good customer service,” says Jill.

Jill Gorodias Borja

Eileen Juan

KEEPING IT ALL TOGETHER

But here’s another dilemma: As the business you’ve started (congrats!) is growing, so are your kids. Just what is the secret to making both a business and a family work?

Here are tips on how to achieve a balance from Mutya Laxa Buensuceso, country manager of Luxasia Philippines, founder of Spinkie, and a mom of two.

1. Eliminate the guilt of pursuing your career.

2. Get a support system.

3. Have an established work system and stick to it.

4. Separate work and family.

5. Quality work is better than quantity.

6. Start the pursuit of happiness now.

Yakult on Steroids and other drinks made just for you

MB Lifestyle talks to one of Singapore’s best mixologists as he shares some of the weirdest and best custom-crafted cocktails requested by you, dear sober barflies.

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
February 26, 2015

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There’s the perfect pairing of wine and cheese, whiskey and lechon, but not everyone finds a drink that seriously turns him on while epitomizing his persona, wants, and whims. While the Pinoy drinking culture lets us order a bottle of beer in a nearby store and the not-so-secret brewing revolutions of craft beers and speakeasy bars are going on, there’s a request for bespoke drinks straight from the pleasures of our own taste preferences and vivid imaginations. To the rescue are liquid artists. Although the Philippine customized cocktail culture isn’t fully established yet, mixologist Jeff Ho, one of the pioneers of the bespoke cocktail scene in Singapore and one of Singapore’s top 25 bartenders by Drinks World Asia, says it has potential. Jeff flew to the country to share his expertise in bespoke drinks. And he invites drinkers (the curious, the casuals, and the heavy boozers) to fly to Singapore on March 7 to 14 and experience how the Lion City celebrates its cocktail week. “We can give New York or London an easy run for their money,” he says. The secret to a surprising, unforgettable bespoke cocktail? Don’t just tell any mixologist to surprise you. What do you want?

• 

Lust

 Having been in Manila, what’s your impression of our local drinks?

I’ve been to Blind Pig. I think the bespoke cocktail scene in Manila has a great potential, but what is lacking is the supply chain. The distributors should import products from overseas. It’s a challenge when they have a huge range of drinks but have no consistent supply. I think it’s gonna be fly.

What’s your philosophy in making drinks?

Less is more so the flavors would come out. Sometimes, when you put in too many ingredients, you cannot distinguish which is which. It’s also best when less is more so you can adjust the flavor.

What’s the weirdest bespoke cocktail you’ve ever made?

I have a lot! In Singapore, we have the essence of chicken, which is common for children to drink before exams. It’s like a health supplement. I steam (the chicken) with ginger and turn it into a dessert cocktail. I put chocolate and butterscotch. It tastes like a chocolate drink without the milk. It sounds weird but it’s good. I also have shiitake mushroom with whiskey. I soak the mushrooms in a jar of whiskey. You get the rich flavor of whiskey and the umami taste of mushroom. Then, there’s also the bakkwa or pork floss. I barbecue pork slices and marinate them with sweet seasonings.

What’s the most challenging ingredient you’ve ever worked with?

My latest creation is baijiu, Chinese wine. It’s like your local version of lambanog. Baijiu is made from rice and wheat, if you take it with rum and ferment it over nine months, you’ll get a huge complexity of flavors. Baijiu is strong when you drink it on its own, but I can make a baijiu cocktail that’s good for Alzheimer’s disease. I do research and experimentation to see which works.

What are you going to serve at Cocktail Week?

It depends on your requests but I have many tricks up my sleeve. I have this black orange liquor, with 40 percent alcohol. I use premium orange paired with yogurt. My guests describe it as ‘Yakult on steroids’ because it’s refreshing and sweet and sour.

 What are your tips for surviving drinking sessions? How can you cure a hangover?

Apart from drinking in moderation, don’t go crazy on two strong drinks. Just keep hydrated. And pace yourself, too.

Can you make a drink just by looking at someone and gauging  his personality?

(Laughs) No, it’s better if you tell me your preferences. Say for example you just arrived, I’d ask, ‘What kind of fruits do you like?’ Then I’d say, ‘Do you like it sour or sweet, bitter or strong?’ If it’s a guy, we ask if you prefer it sprit forward, meaning hard. Guys like it stronger and bitter sweet. Of course, I ask other questions. That’s why it’s truly bespoke.

What if someone doesn’t like what you’ve made? What do you do?

That happens because of miscommunication. Sometimes the customer is not able to articulate what he wants. But then again the first try is the calibration stage. You adjust to the tastes of your customer that’s why less is always good. But it sure does make my day when drinkers love it, when their eyes light up and say ‘This is my drink!’

How do you balance the science and arts of mixing drinks and food?

Mixologists should be aware of physics. For example, in mojito, we use custard sugar because it’s served in a tall drink with crushed ice. The custard sugar takes a longer time to dissolve. In whiskey, we use the round ball ice because of the smaller surface area. Your whiskey gets chilled without diluting the flavor. I can use any ingredient as long as it’s edible! (Laughs) I also do a lot of research and experiments to see what works.

And the next Dorina Pineda could be you

Theater Spotlight: Bituing Walang Ningning, The Musical

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
February 23, 2015

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It’s been (mis)quoted many times, many ways. Cherie Gil’s iconic line, “You’re nothing but a second rate, trying hard, copy cat!” (Spills water on Sharon Cuneta’s face), never gets old—but it does need a new stage. From the original comic series by Nerissa Cabral to the blockbuster hit movie in 1985 starring Cherie, Sharon, and Christopher de Leon to the 2006 TV series starring Sarah Geronimo, Angelika dela Cruz, and Ryan Agoncillo, the classic Pinoy tale now ups the ante. It’s going to be a musical theater play.

WHERE’S DORINA? Actors Mark Bautista and Cris Villonco will play Nico and Lavinia in Resort’s World Manila’s Bituing Walang Ningning, The Musical. Auditions are up for the role of Dorina.

Resorts World Manila, Viva Communications Inc., and Full House Theater Company bring to life the classic drama Bituing Walang Ningning: The Musical starring Mark Bautista as Nico Escober and Cris Villonco as Lavinia Arguelles. Who’s Dorina Pineda? It might be you.

With audition dates on Feb. 28 and March 1 at The Plaza in Newport Mall, director Freddie Santos says the team is looking for Dorina’s X factor. “This is not cinema where you can close up your personality and X factor. When you have Cris Villonco on stage, you need to level up,” he says. The next Dorina should be between 16 and 20 years old, with good diction, can sing and act (of course), and with pleasing personality. Not only will she be portraying a classic role but she’ll win a movie and recording contract under Viva.

“As far as the songs are concerned, the production showcases new songs from Willie Cruz including ‘Mahawi Man Ang Ulap’ and ‘Sana’y Maghintay ang Walang Hanggan.’ It doesn’t mean though that even if the songs are new, you’re not going to love the show. It’s new music, but more than anything, it’s the story that they’re going to love. It’s a challenge to young audience because it tackles your life choices: career or love? It’s very relatable,” says Santos.

He adds that the musical production has kept 12 original and iconic sentences, the remaining 50 pages are new script. Of course, Cherie Gil’s iconic line will be there, along with “Sinira mo ang kanta.” The rest, we have to watch.

“The songs that are part of the show will cross all generations. It’s about the glitz and glamour and being a star,” says Cris Villonco, who’s playing the contra vida Lavinia Arguelles.

From playing charismatic roles as Maria Von Trapp in the Sound of Music and Maria Clara in Noli Me Tangere, Cris says she loves the challenge of playing the villain.

“One thing I love about being part of theater is that I have a playground to do different roles. A lot of people think that I am very nice because of my angelic, round face. But it can fool a lot of people,” Cris says, “But then again my middle name is Siguion Reyna so I think I got something. So whenever I do my mean face, it can come out easily.”

Fresh from his London stint as one of the cast members in Here Lies Love, which tells the story of Imelda Marcos, Mark Bautista says his theater gigs have helped him take challenging roles.

“The London’s West End is the playground of famous actors like David Suchet and Benedict Cumberbatch, so I feel like I have to keep up and make good of my acting. I searched about my character. I haven’t watched the iconic movie and I have no plans of watching it. So I have to read the script and start from zero,” he says. Mark, apparently, doesn’t want to be a copy cat (pun intended). www.rwmanila.com

Hotter Than Grey

Hotter than mr. Grey

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
February 16, 2015

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Guess what, long before Christian Grey and his BDSM fetishes became a worldwide sensation, there are tons of tomes much better, sexier, hotter, and more critically acclaimed than what came out of EL James’ wild and kinky imagination. But they are hush-hush. After all, the discussion of our secret pleasures and the discovery of our sexuality were taboo (and remains so in some countries). But the literary world is becoming more open to this genre and with it came erotica flooding our bookstores and e-pubs, some even free for download.
Here are five books that we think are 100 times steamier than 50 Shades of Grey.

THE AWAKENING BY KATE CHOPIN

Gist: The story centers on Edna Pontellier and her struggles to reconcile her role as a mother and a woman in the context of the 18th century. Edna leaves her two kids, husband, and two lovers in her quest for sensual and self-realization.

Why it’s better: Still a recurring issue over time, The Awakening has an epidemic theme that revolves around the emancipation of women, not just her sexual awakening. Kate’s novel is highly acclaimed by women’s movements and feminists. According to the New York Times’ article “Bored Wives and Jubilant Widows” written by Sharon O’Brien and published in 1990, the book is now firmly planted in the American literary canon, currently the only novel reprinted in both The Norton Anthology of American Literature and The Northern Anthology of Women’s Literature.

FANNY HILL OR MEMOIRS OF A WOMAN OF PLEASURE BY JOHN CLELAND

Gist: The classic erotica—frequently banned and prosecuted over time—tells the story of Fanny Hill, poor and innocent, as she falls under the hands of a brothel keeper. Watch how this naïve young lady rises to respectability from her climaxes and miseries as a prostitute in 18th-century London.

Why it’s better: Erasing the erotic side of the story, Fanny Hill shows us how to pick up and dust ourselves off to start all over again. In his article “Fanny Hill Still Giving Pleasure” for The New York Times, Jonathan Yardley says that while the classic novel will never replace Little Red Riding Hood as a kid’s bedtime story, it’s a splendid bedside novel for grownups. “Fanny’s story tells us that morality is a far more slippery business than most moralists would have us believe, and that the road to happiness and virtue is not necessarily either straight or narrow,” Jonathan says.

THE FLOWERS OF EVIL BY CHARLES BAUDELAIRE

Gist: A compilation of 53 poems that tackle eroticism and decadence from the imagination of the great French poet Baudelaire. At the time it was published, The Flowers of Evil shocked the 19th century world with its overt sensual imagery.

Why it’s better: Because it’s Baudelaire, the modern man of his time.

SLEEPING BEAUTY TRILOGY BY ANNE RICE

Gist: First published in the ‘80s under the pen name A.N. Roquelaure, the Sleeping Beauty trilogy finds modern re-release after the success of 50 Shades of Grey. We’re sure, you’ve guessed from the title that the trilogy is the adult version of Disney’s Sleeping Beauty.

Why it’s better: Anne Rice epitomizes today’s modern women when she told the New York Times: “How can it be wrong for women to have the same right? We’re sexual beings! And fantasy is where we can do the things we can’t do in ordinary life.”

TAMPA BY ALISSA NUTTING

Gist: A mixology of the classics The Reader by Bernard Schlink and Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, Tampa tells the story of Celeste, a 26-year-old teacher and her a 14-year-old boy toy.

Why it’s better: It’s a satirical novel that questions society’s double standards when it comes to sexuality. In the Telegraph UK, Duncan White says in his review that Tampa explores the hypocrisies of society and the psychology of women. He wrote: “The reader gets the occasional didactic nudge, such as when one of Celeste’s female students complains that ‘when women hit it they’re labeled sluts, but with men, it’s just expected.’”

The scientist and the rocker

by Nickky Faustine De Guzman
February 16, 2015

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Here are two artists, juxtaposed, to bring out how each one sees an object and recreates it through a different eye. The first artist, more serious, infuses his medical background into his artworks. The other creative, meanwhile, is a stark contrast. He’s a happy guy, who creates happier artworks. Meet Van Truico and Jethro Jocson.

THE SCIENTIFIC ARTIST

He has a split personality, but it’s not a disease, it’s a gift. Inside Van Truico are two opposing animals: science and arts. For him, there’s science in arts and vice versa. An artwork, according to him, is both a feeling and a thought. A scientist, he likes to experiment. Van plays with industrial materials like leather, wires, screws, stainless steel, and copper. And like a passionate artist, he uses feelings, moods, and guts.

Van Tuico

(Images by Pinggot Zulueta)

“I graduated from dental medicine but I am a full-time artist. I apply my medical background, the terms I’ve studied in physiology and anatomy, into my artwork. I believe there’s science in arts. Sometimes you think they are just objects of beauty or meaning but they do have functions,” Van says.

Tighten One’s Belt, mixed media, 2014.

His projects always have touches of science. “My works are raw. And I am glad I am applying dentistry in my art. For example, dentists have molding teeth set. I didn’t realize at first that I could incorporate that in my work. There’s a science, for example, in adhesion, like you have to device a way to cook or paste cement in a canvas,” he says. In his recently concluded exhibit “Skin Deep,” he infused cement and leather—and a dash of psychology and medicine, too.

“I like observing people. It’s my pastime. ‘Skin Deep’ is a metaphor of the things I want to do and the things I want to see. Like skin, the largest organ, there are many layers in a person. Most of the time, you need to peel through the layers to see someone. You see someone as happy or sad but beneath it, you don’t know what he’s going through. So in my work, I put layers, such as cement and leather,” Van says.

He adds that he infuses his work with leather because it’s flexible and durable. “The longer leather lasts, the impact is more beautiful. It’s like meeting people or seeing people. The longer you know them, the more impact they have. It’s not just skin deep,” says Van.

He adds that his art process is longer than usual, partly because he has science as background. He does many studies, and drawings, and proposals before he touches a canvas. “My process is step by step, I do much research. Sometimes, my preparation is longer than the painting itself. I’d rather have more research because I am not a trained artist, and because I like to think things through,” he says.

For Van, science and art are ever evolving and he has so much more to learn and discover. “I appreciate it that I am learning every day. I don’t want to stop discovering things.”

Jethro Jocson

MR. COOL GUY

He can pass off as a rock star with his long hair and fashion sense: plaid shirt, black jeans, wayfarers, and a glass of wine in one hand. Jethro Jocson creates and plays music but he breathes arts and teaches it, too.

Prayers in Motion, mixed media on canvas, 2014

“I make my own music and I listen to it to enhance my creativity. I paint whenever the sun is up, when it’s daylight. At nighttime, I create poems and stories,” he says.

In his recently concluded exhibit called Integrity, Jethro showcases his strong moral principle and his sunny disposition, visible in the paintings that showcase happy colors, curves, and lines.

In “Integrity,” he chose his masterpieces, recreated, and tweaked them. “I chose my best works. You see? They’re all minimal. This is my way of thinking, simple. I get inspiration, with like I said, lights. Whenever I see light, an idea pops in my head,” he says.

As an art teacher to special children, Jethro applies a simple trick he believes in: “visual order of things,” which, according to him, is about figures and lines, construction and color theory and color composition. “I believe that a person is molded with his upbringings, experiences, and educational background. That’s my ethics and that’s how I do it,” he says.

His paintings offer a tinge or, sometimes, too much of Jethro. For example, in Opportunity of Happiness, he paints about marriage, a marriage of two contrasting objects, which, when combined, produce chemistry despite their differences. Salvation of Youth, on the other hand, focuses a picture of a red balloon on a cloudy day. The painting reminds one of childhood memories. “These are the things that remind you that you’re getting old,” he says, smiling.

He has a short poetry included, too. Called High Fidelity, it summarizes Jethro’s integrity as an artist: positive and simple. “We will cry without sadness to fly merciful with true happiness in motion,” one line says.