The Mall of Asia - The greatest project of my life

Management Man of the Year 1999

(Speech delivered before the Management Association

of the Philippines on Jan. 24, 2000 at the Hotel

Intercontinental Manila, Makati City)

I sincerely thank the Management Association of the Philippines for this great honor.

Friends know that I am not the honors and awards type of person.

My personal style leans toward working, not speaking. In fact, speaking before you is more difficult than building a shopping mall.

What do I tell you, CEOs who are my peers? I will not talk about the future. Your forecast is as good as mine. I will tell you instead a little about my life and work.

For now, I still get my satisfaction from working in the malls and watching people shop and have fun in a clean, safe and exciting environment. One newspaper said the SM shopping malls were the first to treat the working man the same way as his boss. Why not, their money looks exactly the same.

But the day will come when I will look at this MAP award and remember the work it honors and the kindness you have shown me today.

Early in life I learned from my parents, especially my father, the importance of discipline, hard work, and good credit. My father was a trader in China. Looking for better opportunities, he came to this country and opened a sari-sari store. At the age of 12, I followed him to Manila.

Fresh off a boat from China, I arrived at my father's store and saw his humble surroundings. I said to myself, "This world is not enough. It is just not good enough. I must build it bigger and better."

At that age, I started grade one again together with much smaller classmates. I asked my teachers if I could be promoted faster. My teachers agreed on the condition I scored over 90. Encouraged by them, I studied hard and always tried harder. I finished grade school in five years.

After Liberation, I started doing business in Carriedo. I bought shoes by job lots from American shoe importers and sold them retail. The Americans trusted me with their merchandise even if I had nothing to back me up because I always paid on time.

When I enrolled again, it was for college at Far Eastern University where I passed the qualifying exam. I took up Commerce, but I had to leave school after two years because of my growing business.

To improve myself further, I joined Jaycees and other organizations. It was in Jaycees where I first met many young promising business people and professionals.

My move to Makati was due to a Shoemart customer, who was a persistent real estate agent. She sold me one of the first lots in North Forbes. I moved my family there. As a result, I traveled daily between home and downtown. I saw the development of Makati from the time there was just one building along Ayala Avenue. I saw the potentials of the place and made my investments.

When I opened my first store in Makati, my shoe suppliers, mostly from Marikina, and fellow shoe store owners from downtown Manila came to congratulate me. But some guests said behind my back, "Malulugi si Henry dito."

But I knew better, because I was traveling many times in the 50's and the 60's to Asia, the US, and Europe. Travel at that time was not easy. Flying to New York took almost 40 hours with six stopovers. My traveling also made up for what I had missed in school.

While I was on my buying trips, I observed the merchandising trends, and in 10 years I saw the shopping center development across the US from east to west coast. I knew this could happen in the Philippines. So I thought of expanding beyond Makati.

I started with shoes, and with hard work and self-discipline, the business prospered. I moved on to the department store business, and again, things went well. When I reached my goal, I moved on to the shopping mall.

With the SM shopping malls, people tell me I changed Philippine lifestyle. Families and friends spend time together in the malls. They shop, dine, and have fun, whatever age they are and whatever budget they have. I thought SM City-North EDSA was big enough. I was wrong. So I had to make SM Megamall. But even Megamall is no longer big enough. So, I have to create something even better.

It sounds easy, but these projects require good concepts, funds, time, hard work, discipline, and attention to details. I am hands-on and personalized in my management style. I do not do things on impulse. I think long and hard for every project.

While I am not big with words, I am big and bold with my dreams and vision. By nature, I am curious and adventurous. I like the excitement of change and new and better ideas. I look for excellence in performance.

My basic strategy is to stock to my core business and to my area of expertise. My business is all related -- retail, tourism and entertainment, shopping centers, real estate, and banking. Together they create synergy.

In good times, I do my usual work. But in bad times, I work harder.

Right after Martial Law in 1972, there was heavy capital flight. I decided to build Shoemart in Makati. After the Aquino assassination in 1983, there was a severe economic crisis. I started SM City-North EDSA. During the coup attempts against the President from 1987 to 1989, I started to build Megamall.

And now, in the middle of the Asian crisis, I am embarking on the greatest project of my life, the Mall of Asia.

In life and in business, you need to be good-hearted and trustworthy. This is the way to build long-term relationships.

You have to have a dream, whether big or small. Then plan well, prepare your funds, work hard, and be very determined to achieve your goals.

Another important thing is balance in life. When you succeed, do not change your lifestyle. Equally important, keep your feet on the ground.

As I move on in life and work on more dreams, I have realized something -- there is no limit to what we can do.

God is good and generous with His gifts to us. He gives us many opportunities and equal time everyday. It is for us to make full use of them.

In closing, I want to thank everyone who has helped the SM group through the years. I thank my family -- my six children who are my teammates and friends in the office and at home, and most especially my wife of 50 years, Molly, who is my lifetime companion, treasurer, adviser and best friend. Lastly, I thank God for the wonderful gift of life and the chance for me to experience it fully.

I will see you all at the Mall of Asia.

Thank you very much.