A glimpse into Lucio Tan’s world

First of Two Parts

"I have sweated for five decades to establish my own business."
– Lucio C. Tan

Building a business empire as vast as taipan Lucio C. Tan’s entails not just dedication and hard work, but a continuing quest for knowledge. With great determination to acquire new knowledge, Tan became a self-made man who rose above his humble beginnings to become one of the wealthiest men in Asia today.

While Tan never fails to amaze even the most jaded businessman for his entrepreneurial skills, the 68-year-old "Kapitan," as he is fondly called by those close to him, remains a very private and even mysterious person. But despite being rarely seen in the society pages, TV interviews or even photographed, Tan has become one of the country’s most prominent business figures. His legendary simple lifestyle, prudence and stout heart for the young and needy have put him a cut above the rest and earned him the admiration not just of his peers but the Catholic Church as well.

The STAR will, thus, attempt to shed some light on the "mystery" of Tan’s life based on a book produced in China to mark the 50th anniversay of the founding of the Lucio Tan Group of Companies.

The book, the preface of which was written by no less than His Eminence Jaime Cardinal Sin was published by Xinhua Publishing House and chronicles Tan’s travails, from his humble beginning to single-handedly building a vast business empire with over 100 corporations, including the country’s flag-carrier, Phillippine Airlines (PAL); Asia Brewery Inc., the second largest beer and bottled water producer in the country; FortuneTobacco, the country’s biggest cigarette-manufacturing company; and the Philippine National Bank (PNB).

In his preface, Cardinal Sin compares Tan to the proverbial mustard seed that began small but emerged bigger than most of the shrubs and trees. "Indeed, he started small and humble. His only armaments were faith in God and determination in his work. They proved to be the best ammunition a person can have!" the good Cardinal writes.

According to the book, Tan’s investment in the Philippines alone, including two mega acquisitions in the 90’s - namely PAL and PNB, by the end of 2001 totalled more than 100 companies in about 40 sectors, such as agribusiness, aviation, finance, securities, tobacco, beverages, food, distillery, chemicals, construction, hotel, real estate development, travel and tourism and others.

Through these companies, Tan has become one of the country’s biggest employers providing jobs to more than 50,000 Filipinos, livelihood to over a million farmers and an incalculable number of people as direct beneficiaries.

Tan has also intensely pursued joint ventures with overseas entrepreneurs with projects in Hong Kong, China, US and its outlying territory Guam, and Papua New Guinea.

Liquor and tobacco ventures

The book says the success of Tan’s enterprises is deeply rooted in liquor and tobacco. He owns Fortune Tobacco, the country’s biggest cigarette-manufacturing company; Asia Brewery, the second largest producer of beer and bottled water; and Tanduay Distillers, one of the oldest and biggest rhum makers in the world.

Every day, the factories at the sprawling Fortune Tobacco and Asia Brewery complexes churn out dozens of cigarette brands, including the best-selling Champion, Hope and Winston and eight brands of beer that compete head-on with the brands produced by another beer giant, San Miguel Corp. (SMC)

"In the 30 years since the founding of Fortune Tobacco Corp. we encountered great difficulties raising funds and experimenting with our formulas," Tan was quoted as saying. "Our products, which were not selling too well at first, now sell briskly, thus laying a solid foundation for both our business. All the things that happened in this period are still fresh in my memory. This achievement is the result of the support and encouragement from my parents, relatives and friends, and from unity and hard work of my colleagues."

These words, according to the book, best sum up the formula for the success of Tan’s business empire.

Staying ahead of time

Believing that "success means staying ahead of time," Tan bought his first helicopter in 1968 to save time and beat the traffic in Manila. The acquisition put him among the few Asian entrepreneurs who had their own helicopters at that time.

The helicopter, according to the book, facilitated the brisk tempo of his work and significantly improved his efficiency as it only takes him five minutes to fly from his residence to office and merely 10 to 20 minutes to his various businesses spread over Luzon.

The book also says that Tan works 17 to 18 hours a day, and the busier he is, the more vigorous he feels.

A vivid example of how determined he is to stay ahead of everyone, to be on top of every situation, and to maximize his time, the book say that whenever Tan visits the US, he usually flies home from the States at night so that he will arrive in Manila early in the morning. He would then take a domestic flight to another part of the country to preside over a meeting or take an inspection trip to personally address a situation.

The book also said he often presides over six or seven simultaneous meetings in his corporate headquarters, giving instructions and discussing problems, carrying out his work in an orderly manner even when he is under pressure.

Giving back to society

With his well-honed sense of social responsibility, Tan has long subscribed to the principle that "what is taken from the people is to be used for the interest of the people."

As a result of this belief, Tan has set up charitable institutions and worked hard for the promotion of education and improving the life of impoverished Filipinos. By the year 2000, Tan had already spent million of dollars in charity alone.

In 1986, Tan established the Tan Yan Kee Foundation, named after his father. In the 15 years since then, most projects funded by the foundation have been for promoting education and constructing school buildings, thus giving many children and opportunity to finish college.

The book said Tan’s biggest feat in promoting education was his purchase of the University of the East in 1990. The institution had by that time contracted debts exceeding $2 million. It was Tan who bailed out UE.

Tan also supports non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in setting up health care facilities and donates advanced medical equipment to public hospitals. He also sponsors doctors for further studies to the US, UK, Germany and Spain, among others. So far, 69 doctors, who are the most specialized in their fields, have returned after completing their specialization abroad.

Besides supporting education, Tan gives financial aid to religious groups in building places of worship, actively takes part in relief efforts to assist disaster-stricken areas, helps protect the environment, supports sports development programs, and offers generous assistance to anti-drug and anti-vice campaigns. – Rica Delfinado