theceomagazine.com | 155paying for the item, he put the foam down
on the floor and lay on it. He was beaming,
so proud that he could own bed foam for the
very first time.
“We grew so much because we go to
the areas where nobody wants to operate as
the people are too poor. For me, it’s about
helping the poor, but if we can still make
a decent profit out of that, then that’s good.
There is also another, more pragmatic,
reason why Prince Retail keeps its prices low.
As an archipelago nation in the tropics, it is
vulnerable to some of the worst natural
disasters known to man. Robert recalls one
time a typhoon wreaked havoc, destroying
some of his stores. “We heard that other
stores were being looted because the people
were so hungry. The mayor asked me to just
open our store, even though it had a torn
roof from the typhoon, to prevent looting
and theft and, most importantly, give people
somewhere to buy basic necessities,” he
recounts. “So I opened the store and found
ways to work the supply chain despite the
damaged roads and infrastructure. We refused
to increase our prices and take advantage
of the situation. Our main goal was to serve
the community and keep the town fed.”
By 2010, Robert’s children were old
enough to help him out with the Prince
Retail empire. As well as helping the
disadvantaged, Robert’s attention moved to
working with one of his sons and three of
his daughters, having them on the Prince
Retail board, empowering them to bring the
business forward. Like any family business, let
alone one of the fastest-growing retailers in
the Philippines, personal and business life are
very much intertwined at Prince.
“Work is effectively our thing,” Robert
says. “Even in the evenings, we work. My
children work until nine o’clock in the
evening, finishing off work they couldn’t
complete during the day. Our family business
is continuous work.”
Rapid expansion soon followed. In 2017,
Prince Retail had grown 32 per cent
year-on-year, opening eight new stores,
entering two new provinces, and starting four
new distribution centres to better serve the
most remote communities in the country.
“We must work extra hard. Money
doesn’t come easily, competition is tough, and
there are many big retailers. We must run
faster than our competition and find a niche
we can operate in. It’s also about persistence.
I like the feeling of aiming to reach a goal
and not having yet achieved it.”
If he were to start his career all over
again, knowing what he does now, Robert
says he might choose a different business,
but that he would still be the same person
pursuing the same goals. “All these
experiences have truly developed me
into having the mindset I have now.”PRINCE RETAIL HAS 43 STORES,
MOSTLY IN VISAYAS AND
MINDANAO. WITH A NEW
ONE RECENTLY OPENING IN
PALAWAN, SOUTH LUZON,
THE CHAIN NOW HAS A
PRESENCE IN ALL REGIONS.