Tycoon Sid Consunji and I have something in common. No, it’s not our net worth. It’s the fact that we both grew up around construction sites.
In my case, the construction site of my childhood is for residential homes, one after the other. My grandfather ran a small build-and-sell business and he always brought my brothers and I to the different construction sites on weekends to pick up scattered nails for a fee. I became at home with the smell of dust, wood and marble. I had my own hard hat – pastel blue. My brothers played in mountains of sand and gravel. The sound of a cement mixer was music to our ears.
Sid, as everyone knows, of course, is the eldest son of the late David M. “DM” Consunji, touted as the father of contemporary construction industry.
DM founded DMCI, a construction company, which grew to become the conglomerate that it is now.
Sid had to spend time in construction sites. He was even brought to Saudi Arabia when his father got a contract to build a dozen bridges.
My grandfather’s business died along with him when he passed away decades ago. Sadly, there was no succession plan.
I sat down recently with Sid, who gladly shared with me lessons he learned from his father, his college days at UP Diliman, about dressing beyond casual, and his great admiration for women.
The last part – his tales about his women – shall remain unpublished as I promised him.
But there were many other exciting lessons from our chat.
On his succession plan for instance, I asked him what would happen to DMCI if he suddenly gets hit by a speeding Porsche?
In all confidence, Sid believes the third generation would be able to continue his legacy and that of his father before him. Some are already in the business and they are good, he said.
He said the third generation could eventually make DMCI global because that is the game of that generation.
On the lessons he learned from his father, he said hard work was something his father taught him and his siblings well. His father also taught him to always treat people kindly and to master the art of “pakikisama,” which he said is necessary in life.
DM, among the country’s richest man according to Forbes, built many big projects in the country including the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Makati Shangri-La, and others.
But his father’s most difficult project, Sid said in jest, was raising him.
The business community, however, would surely disagree with this because Sid is very much respected even by those outside the real estate and construction industry.
It was, in fact, his idea to list DMCI in 1995 and to grow it to where it is now. He was also able to steer the company through the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. He didn’t think they would survive. But they did. Today, DMCI is a team effort with Sid’s siblings, including Jorge and Victor who are equally respected in the industry.
But among them, Sid stands out for his unconventional ways.
For instance, while he has built skyways skyscrapers around the country, there is one thing he will not build: his wardrobe.
He is never comfortable in suits and barongs, or even a collared long sleeved shirt. And he does not care. What’s important is running the business well.
In fact, the first time I sat down with him in a Japanese restaurant years ago, I showed up in a dress, which I had to iron myself because the helper was away for an errand.
My effort turned out to be futile. He showed up in a collarless shirt, shorts and slippers. I was embarrassingly overdressed.
But to tweak a line from The Kingsman, it’s not clothing that makes a man. It’s wisdom and manners that do.
He is simple, too, showing me his P13,000-watch when other men of his stature have multi million peso timepieces. I asked him if he is comfortable wearing that in the company of the country’s richest, he said it does not matter.
What’s important is punctuality, he said. And punctual he was, arriving on the dot for our 5 p.m. meeting.
That’s Sid, the son of David and also so much more.
Crown Asia’s IPO story
I am wondering which company will be the first to brave the stock market this year.
Many family businesses don’t want to list because they don’t want to be under public scrutiny, but Tita Villanueva, director, senior vice president, and CFO of Crown Asia Chemicals Corp., the listed compounds and pipes manufacturer, said the company’s journey has been a good one.
It started as just a family business, but the company braved the market and listed on April 27, 2015.
She said a lot of companies are afraid of the regulatory requirements, but in the end, going public is good.
“It’s good for succession planning. It’s to preserve the value of the company,” Villanueva shared with me over a recent chat.
It’s a seal of good housekeeping and now less than three years since it listed, the company is being noticed by many investors.
Indeed, Crown Asia has nowhere to go but up. It’s still a relatively undervalued company.
Iris Gonzales’ e-mail address is eyesgonzales@gmail.com.