Success story: Bobby’s love affair with travel

CEBU, Philippines — His penchant for travel as a child made him the country’s seasoned tourism advocate, businessman and an Honorary Consul to Latvia, Robert “Bobby” Lim Joseph’s success is purely brought about by sheer wit, charisma and never saying no to every opportunity that comes his way.

He grew up in Metro Manila, born in Dagupan City, but his roots can be traced from Cebu where his Syrian-Lebanese great-grandparents started a trading store in Colon Street called American Bazaar.

This explains his fondness of Cebu, which he considers as his second home.

Bobby is the founder of several companies, including hotels, commercial real estate leasing properties, distribution and cargo firms, retail and wine wholesale and retailing ventures. He is the chairman of R.Joseph Holdings, Philippine Wine Merchants, and Coltrans Cargo, among other businesses.

Successful in business, this cancer-survivor of nearly 20 years is spending his money on tourism education, promotion, with special focus on Cebu, not to mention is surreptitious charity works.

Traveling salesman

Although he wanted to be a lawyer, Bobby said there is something about travel that fascinated him as a young teen.

At 13, he tried selling typewriter eraser products, and discovered his ability to convince people despite his age.

After experiencing the thrill and excitement in the world of salesmanship while still in school, Bobby shifted his dream from becoming a lawyer to a salesman for the love of discovering new places, meeting different people and eating exotic food.

A graduate of BS Economics at Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Bobby immediately became one of the youngest sales promoters in the Philippines for several international airlines at 17 years old. These multinational airlines include Italian and Egypt airlines, United Arab Air, and Korean Air.

Bobby mastered the tricks in inviting foreign nationals to come and visit his home country Philippines. The key is building relationships.

He found out at an early age that business is after all, all about relationship.

At 25 years old, Bobby travelled to different countries, spent significant number of days mostly in European continent—making friends, and immersing the diverse cultures from country to country.

His commitment to enjoy his youth, regardless of hurdles along the way brought him to the gateway of his dream, and he never ceased to master his craft as traveling salesman.

Ambitious

Aside from his natural wit and charisma, Bobby admitted that he was very ambitious. He wanted the finer things in life, travel-and-be-merry-type-of-life, and he lived it even before he married.

Being ambitious was his ticket to experience the real texture of life—from working without sleeping, to finer things a youth could only dream of.

“I always say why not?” to every possibility. “I entered insurance selling,” and other many money-making ventures presented to him along the way.

Although his parents had businesses, and had exceptional business acumen, Bobby, the eldest of the brood of six promised to himself not to let his siblings be employees.

Being ambitious is not bad at all.

In fact, he said ambition drives a person to reach his goal, regardless of oppositions, series of failures along the way. As long as “you love what you are doing.”

The secret is, “never say never.”

Invest. Invest. Invest.

While enjoying travel all over the world—for free, Bobby made use of his earnings to invest mostly in real estate, a trait his mother taught him.

Before he reached 30 years of age, and a bachelor, he already built his own house, and a bought pieces of real estate properties here and there.

He said no one can go wrong in putting money in real estate. Before long, his investents in properties allowed him to establish several businesses including a posh tailoring in Makati, Import-Export venture, among others.

While wearing different hats at the same time—an airline top executive, a businessman and a civic activist, Bobby saw himself failing many, many times in some of his ventures.

He was cheated by partners. Some ventures folded up, but he never did thought of quitting, the more he strived to invest, invest and invest.

In 1975, Bobby put up P65,000 to create the Phil. Wine Merchants, a wine wholesaling business, and the Ralph’s Wine and Spirits, its retail arm.

Together with brother Ralph, the brothers’ business is one of the largest distributors of fine wine and other imported alcoholic products in the Philippines today.

Bobby also owns a hotel in Metro Manila and Boracay, a wine Museum. He is also into property leasing, retail and other strings of businesses.

Fighter

Bobby is not only a fighter in business, and his causes but he is also a fighter of life.

In 2000, this fearless tourism advocate was diagnosed with cancer. Despite that, Bobby continued to fight for tourism advocacies, putting pressures to government leaders to introduce programs he believe could maximize the tourism potential of the country.

He established the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies (Naitas), now TraveNetwork of Independent Travel Agents (NITAS) to give voice to small and starting travel agencies which are often intimidated by travel wholesalers or the big and deep-pocket travel agents.

According to Bobby, the wealth of Philippine tourism should be distributed fairly and not being monopolized by few giants and influential travel agencies.

He fought for the right of small players, while he personally fight for his life.

Cebu’s magic

Oblivious of his Cebuano roots, Bobby said he instantly fell in love with Cebu after a good friend the late Anos Fonacier (a tourism trailblazer, who owned several hotels including Cebu Plaza Hotel, etc.,) tagged him along in frequent visits to Cebu.

What impressed him most, he said is Cebu’s pro-active private sector, working hardly together in developing its tourism. The private sector’s unity and collaboration is like no other.

His “love-affair” with Cebu further developed after his cancer diagnosis, when he noticed that if he visits here—he feels happier, calm, and sometimes he forgets his diagnosis.

Since his diagnosis nearly 20 years ago, Bobby has made Cebu his second home, and established businesses here and bought some properties.

He even funded several tourism related programs promoting Cebu domestically and internationally and founded the weekly 888 News Forum.

Lately, Bobby learned through his cousin, Cebu business leader Gordon Alan “Dondi” Joseph that their great grandparents started their business in the Philippines in Cebu.

This somehow explains why he feels a sense of kinship with Cebuanos.

Legacy

With countless contributions he imparted to the country’s tourism industry, particularly in Cebu, Bobby opts not to think of a concrete legacy he could leave as a pillar of Philippine tourism, saying “if there will be a legacy I could leave, it’s for my children and from the hearts of people that I touched. People who don’t know me don’t care.”

What is important for him now is to mentor and coach people how to tap the wealth of tourism.

He doesn’t downplay his blessings, in fact he is indeed blessed with so much, he said.

My businesses are running well, he is grateful.

Yet, Bobby is not done reaching his ultimate ambition—“to make people smile while I’m still alive.” (FREEMAN)