November 2, 2020

It is no longer a man’s world. Everywhere you look, more and more women are breaking the glass ceiling and leading the way in their respective fields. Case in point, the empowered women entrepreneurs featured in ESME’s The Future of Womxn, Web, and Work Series in collaboration with Passionate Empowered Womxn Entrepreneurs. Driven, brilliant, and just plain awesome, these women have shown that not even a pandemic can slow them down.

Nene Tamayo-Plamio’s name was up in lights when she won the first ever season of Pinoy Big Brother (PBB). But surprisingly, she didn’t choose the path of stardom. “Hindi lahat ng sumali sa PBB gusto mag-artista, ang iba gusto magnegosyo,” she joked. The prize included a business, and she went on to build a comedy bar and restaurant near her place in Angono. A self-described “serial entrepreneur,” Nene was hooked from the first time she signed her lease, commissioning her own bazaars that sell local Filipino products.

In her ESME webinar titled Business leadership: Change Navigator last August 8, she reflects back on how her showbiz roots shaped the woman she is today. “What made me win is my leadership skills,” she confidently said. She knew what her strengths were, and even though some of her start-ups had fizzled out, she was determined to find her own niche in the business world. When she finally did find her big idea, it was because of her love for Dagupan bangus.

With Nene Prime Foods, she did find her big idea. Born out of her love for Dagupan bangus, Nene Prime Foods delivers quality pinoy flavors through their signature Spanish sardines. However, quarantine protocols made it impossible for them to source their bangus supply from Dagupan. This puts Nene at a turning point; this can either paralyze her company or take them in a whole different direction. She chose the latter. With meat being more accessible, she quickly developed a new product: the Chorizo de Plamio. “In times of crisis, hindi pwedeng survivor lang. We have to navigate [change]. We have to do something about it,” she asserts.

Hiyasmin Neri-Soyao shares a similar background with Nene. Launched in the Star Magic Batch 15, she quickly dived into a career on-camera. In an ESME webinar titled Shoppertainment: The ‘Window Shopping’ of a Post-Covid World last October 17, she shares how her stint as O Shopping presenter prepared her for her current line of work. “It’s how you communicate with your body movement, your spiels, how do you describe a product better., and how you sell it in a relatable way,” she says.

She is now the co-founder and managing director of Shoppertainment Live Inc., which helps brands communicate their message and build campaigns through e-commerce. Hiyasmin has pinpointed the recent trend of live selling in Asia and with the pandemic shifting consumer trends even more toward e-commerce, she has proven that she has mastered adaptability.

Unaricci has also survived the changes brought by COVID-19. Initially named Tryst, founder Nina Ricci Eleazar launched the brand in 2011, which sold imported European accessories. It re-launched recently as Unaricci, a multi-brand retail store, in Rockwell Powerplant Mall. But the pandemic halted their operations earlier this year. In her webinar titled Re-opening Retail: What’s Next for Unaricci last September 12, she reveals how she found herself at a loss. “One day I woke up [and] I said, ‘you know I’m not a frontliner, nor a doctor or a nurse. What can I do?

I know I can’t do it by myself, I know I can only do it through Unaricci,” she tells the audience.

So she started drawing, a skill she admittedly wasn’t good at. She had realized that what was lacking in the market right now was other options for Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) aside from leather or waterproof 3-ply. She wanted to create light and breathable PPEs that wouldn’t make its wearers uncomfortable or sweaty. But the problem was getting fabric that was light and protective. Months later, she would find a solution: fabric pre-treated with Scentsor N9 Pure Silver. Not only are the resulting creations up to par with safety standards, but they are also fashionable.

The long, arduous journey that Unaricci and Nina have been through would not have ended on a happy note without her partner, Margaux Salazar by her side. Describing their strong bond as business partners Nina credits Margaux’s understanding and innate marketing talent as integral to their success. “We are work wives,” Margaux jokes, then adds more seriously, “you have to trust your partner from the very beginning.”

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