Stars are part of Kamiseta’s success story

Brands have an interesting way of turning their names into verbs. Like how? For example, if you are enlisted as an endorser by Kamiseta, you are “kamisetized” (noun: kamisetization). Or something like that.

Cris Roque, the self-effacing head of Kamiseta (clothes and skincare), will surely approve of describing as “Kamisetized” her glittering array of A-List endorsers that includes local and Hollywood celebrities who play an integral part of the brand’s success.

In the following Conversation, Cris talks about how Kamiseta came to be from the P6,000 that her father gave her as seed money.

How many businesses are you managing and how hands-on are you in managing them?

“At the moment, I am handling Kamiseta Clothing, Kamiseta Skin Clinic, and Kamiseta Skin Care, of which I am the owner, president and CEO. You could say that I am very hands-on. As a boss, I am quite strict, but I am also very compassionate, especially to the people who are very loyal to me. Loyalty is very important to me. Sometimes, I tend to micromanage, which can be a good thing and a bad thing. I work with a very able team who has the same work ethics and passion as me.

“We have a very simple goal, and that is to provide quality products and services to our customers and patients. We have high standards because our customers and patients who choose to entrust their hard-earned money to us deserve nothing less. Our customers and patients are our bosses, and we can only stay in business if we give them the best.”

Which one of those businesses is harder to manage?

“Not one business is harder to manage than the others. Each comes with its own set of challenges, but the management style for all is the same. We give the clothing, skin clinic and skin care businesses the same level of attention. Our mantra here in Kamiseta is that in everything we do, we should try to give more than 100 percent.

“Ever since I started Kamiseta and up to this very day, my work ethics, passion and drive have not changed. Mula noon hanggang ngayon, binubuhos ko talaga lahat. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. Success, far from making me complacent, has given me a greater sense of purpose and greater reason to keep giving Kamiseta my best. Having employees, customers and patients means having more people to care for and be responsible for.”

How and when did you put up your Kamiseta clothing line at kelan ang Kamiseta skin?

“I started Kamiseta Clothing in 1990 when I was just a fresh graduate and Kamiseta Skin Clinic in 2017. When I was just starting with Kamiseta Clothing, I was really struggling because of my limited resources. But I still gave it my all. Lahat ng lakas ko, everything I am, I gave to the brand. My dad gave me P6,000 to help me jumpstart whatever I wanted to do. I knew it was not enough, but I was ashamed to ask for more. Inisip ko na lang kung paano pagkakasyahin.

“I applied to Ricco Ocampo of Sari-Sari and he requested me to make samples of the clothes that I would be selling. I could not tell him that my funds were limited, so I just made miniature samples of the clothes. And when Ricco saw them, he found them so cute and so adorable. Little did he know that the reason why I made them so small was because I had limited funds. Right away, he gave me a 10 sq. m. space in his store where I could sell my designs. And I will be forever grateful for that.

“I knew I had to work doubly hard because there were already a lot of big players in the industry at that time, and my funds were very limited. Then Kamiseta became my priority. Wala na akong ibang inisip except kailangan kong galingan ito. I was the one buying the fabrics, loading the fabrics into my car, delivering the clothes to the store, fixing the merchandise, making the designs, dispatching the designs to sewers, buying the buttons, buying the threads — you name it, I did it all! I was also the saleslady. Binuhos ko lahat.

“The turning point of my career was when Harley Sy of SM offered to give me a space for Kamiseta at SM Megamall. Naturally, I was very excited. But at the back of my mind, I knew I had to choose between eight stores in Sari-Sari or one store at SM Megamall. It was a difficult choice because I was already established in Sari-Sari. Leaving it could mean starting all over again. To make the long story short, I took the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to open the first Kamiseta boutique at SM Megamall. And the rest is history.”

How many and who have been your celebrity endorsers for both?

“For Kamiseta Clothing, past endorsers, both local and international, were China Cojuangco, Mai Mai Cojuangco, Gretchen Barretto, Kris Aquino, Alicia Silverstone, Natalie Portman, Petra Nemkova, Natalia Vodianova, Kate Hudson and Katie Holmes. Our current endorser is Heart Evangelista-Escudero.

“For Kamiseta Skin Clinic, our endorsers include Yasmin Vargas, Gloria Diaz, Happy Ongpauco, Ellen Adarna, Cristine Reyes, Celine Lopez, Roselle Taberna, Camille Ongpauco and Maxine Medina.”

Was it hard to negotiate with foreign (Hollywood) endorsers?

“No, not at all. They just want to know more about the brand, the campaign, and how the brand will make use of them. It is flattering that endorsers from different parts of the world would want to endorse the Kamiseta brand.”

Is it a big boost to hire celeb endorsers?

“The combination of a strong brand and a celebrity who is a perfect match for it is definitely a winning formula.”

How do you choose your endorsers? What are the criteria?

“Kamiseta stands for women who want to make a go of and make the most of their lives despite all the hurdles. They are inspirations to all that regardless of where they came from, with hard work, perseverance and lots of help from above, they can make their dreams a reality.”

Yours is a success story (starting with P6,000). Tell us the sacrifices and challenges along the way.

“The biggest challenge for me was I did not have enough money. I started with very little, but with a dream, guts, and major determination to pursue my dream. Tiyaga talaga and lots of prayers. I knew in my heart that the formula for success was hard work, perseverance and lots of prayers.

“Even if I had so little when I started, while I was growing up, my parents instilled in me strict discipline and the value of good education and hard work. My mom would always tell me to either ‘sacrifice now and enjoy later’ or ‘enjoy now and sacrifice later.’ Hindi sila nagkulang ng advice sa akin. They always told us that money is not the defining factor to one’s life, and that hard work, perseverance and faith in God are the keys to make it.”

How is the competition in the businesses (especially where Kamiseta Skin Clinic is concerned)?

“I have learned over the years that competition is a reality if you are in the retail business. If you do not have a stomach for competition, you cannot be in the retail business. When I was still starting, of course, there were times when it would get to me. But over time, I learned to deal with it. I can face it head-on now. After all, it is a given in this industry.

“More than that, competition is definitely good for consumers. It pushes businesses beyond their boundaries, and inspires us to keep innovating and offering better products and services to our customers and patients who give us their hard-earned money. We owe our customers and patients the best that we can offer.”

How do you balance your time between your family and your businesses?

“I consciously try to live a balanced life. I take my work very seriously, but also not too seriously. Work is part of my life, but it does not consume or define me. Quality of life is more important to me.

“Kamiseta was just my dream, and now it is a reality — our reality. I hope that in the years to come, Kamiseta will continue to be a gift that keeps on giving to my loyal employees, to our customers and patients who have given us their trust, to my parents who have been with me and believed in me every step of the way, to the young Cris who used to just dream of making it in life, and to many more generations of dreamers who need only to believe that with hard work, determination, and prayers, life can turn out to be so much better and more meaningful than what they hope it can be. ‘To dream the impossible dream... To fight the unbeatable foe… To bear with unbearable sorrow... To run where the brave dare not go.’ That is what we are meant to do with the gifts that we have been blessed with in this one and only precious life that we have been given.”

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