Robert Blancaflor: The original stylist

MANILA, Philippines - We are the original stylists. We coined the term ‘events stylist.’ Before, there were no stylists; there were just florists. We basically started the concept of ceiling-to-floor design — the cloth hanging, the draperies — for weddings and other big events,” says Robert Blancaflor, who marked his 20th year in the industry with a floral installation show recently at Ayala Malls The 30th  at Ortigas Center in  Pasig City.

Blancaflor, a certified public accountant, used to be an investment banker at Citibank in New York.

“In 1997, my brother got married,” he recalls. “I could not find anyone to do the styling. They could only do flowers. So I bought the materials and did the styling myself.” His first celebrity wedding was that of Aga and Charlene Muhlach. Since then, he has designed and styled more than 2,000 events both here and abroad. The activity center on the second floor of the mall was virtually transformed into a “flower wonderland” for all of the three days that the floral installation show was held.

“We called the show ‘Fresh’ because, unlike the others, we are the only stylist left in the country that don’t use artificial or fake flowers,” Blancaflor says. “We use only fresh flowers in all our events. Instead of buying from wholesalers locally, we are also a direct importer.” The red roses, for example, come from America and Ecuador. Filipinos also like tulips, which he uses a lot when they are in season.

And Blancaflor has expanded his business. “This year, we started a rental company. Everything you see here the chairs and tables is ours. Other stylists would borrow from us, so our clients in my rental company are also our competitors,” he remarks.

 “The problem with the styling business now is a lot of people just copy from Pinterest,” Blancaflor observes. “I really hope that by doing things like this, we encourage people to be more creative and to be more original.” 

Ayala Malls The 30th, a vibrant community lifestyle mall, is the perfect venue for events such as this. They just launched Ann Pamintuan’s exhibit of animal wire sculptures and installations, the first of a series of art-related events at the mall.

“We are also talking with a few other artists, not just big name artists but also small community art groups, so you can expect different types of events over the course of the second half of the year,” says Mariana Zobel de Ayala, Ayala Malls The 30th general manger. “We are constantly finding ways to continue what Ayala has done for many years, reinventing what it means to experience ‘malling’ and mall living.”