A faux rattan business blossoms from true friendship
July 13, 2001 | 12:00am
The strong friendship of a small gang of married women gave birth to a business that has further nurtured their closeness. I once joined one of the group’s sessions and I can tell you their fellowship is something that can make an outsider green with envy. South of the Border was originally composed of five happily married women but a family relocation reduced the group to four.
At present, sisters-in-law Odette and Luhli Chiongbian, together with bosom pals Maureen Borja and Doris Bautista, make up SOTB. Before moving on, I must inform you that South of the Border is a budding company that retails a line of high-end patio or lanai furniture fashioned entirely out of a material that can fool the eye. It looks and feels more rattan than real rattan, but then since it is a product of science and technology, pieces made out of it can be left under the sun or rain and survive for years and years. If, indeed, the wonder bra is a great invention, these faux rattan pieces I swear are much, much better.
A piece of information reaching us led to my search and eventual discovery of this marvelous product. Desperately desiring to have something nice and different to furnish our recently added patio with, I had to beg the AAVA to disclose to me the address of Luhli Chiongbian who I knew resides in our village. With her phone number supplied, I wasted no time and called to inquire about the rumored furniture supposedly in her possession. She sounded friendly and promptly invited me to take a look at some of the pieces in her residence. Imaginatively positioned in her lush family garden, the pieces in delicious colors and au courant designs surpassed my expectations!
My fascination with the pieces led me to place an on-the-spot order for a patio set composed of a round table and a quartet of armchairs. They are in vivid cobalt blue, a color that I covet, which, by coincidence, matches the blue of the glass panes that are integrated into the railings enclosing the raised patio. Since the time they were delivered (two weeks after the order), the pieces have been mercilessly subjected to rain, sun and the daily dousing they get each time the hanging plants overhead are watered. Yet they continue to look as good as new.
We’re often frustrated, angry even, whenever we’re told that some pieces on display are for export only. I suppose these women know how it feels when somebody spots something she/he likes so much only to be told that they are meant to cater to the tastes of some lucky people living abroad. It makes them proud to feel some sense of achievement. First, they’re conserving the environment by sparing our rattan trees. Second, they’re providing livelihood for those who dye, weave and assemble the parts made of faux rattan, which is transformed into durable outdoor furniture. What this venture earns, the group considers as mere icing on the cake.
As of now, the group is quite happy with the volume of their business. Aside from the homes of some close friends or residents of the village, places like Tequila Joe’s at the Alabang Town Center and the Parque de España at Filinvest proudly use South of the Border pieces in their establishments. When we had a chat with the group, they excitedly showed me photos of forthcoming additions to their line of products. Rattan look-alikes are now being fashioned into attractive baskets and useful and practical storage bins and clothes hampers that can look attractive in bathrooms or dressing rooms.
And they’re not going to be content with retailing in their showrooms at the Marcatmic building on Sucat Road, Parañaque. They’re talking of the possibility of moving their showroom-cum- office to a much bigger place in a more accessible area. They may even consider incorporating a mini café within the place so prospective clients and buyers can enjoy tea and crumpets (unsweetened bread cooked on a griddle) before or after checking out the high-end furniture.
These happily married women value their friendship and camaraderie so much so that they do so many things together. Aside from the inevitable shopping binges, they enjoy going to far-flung places in search of things they can purchase to decorate their respective residences with or accessories they can add to their line of products.
Idle minds, they chorus, are the workshops of the devil. And they get all the support and encouragement from their doting husbands. The four declare that they’d rather spend their time productively than waste endless hours at the gambling tables. And if their homes were the bases, I’d say their activity gives them the vehicle to express their God-given artistic talents.
Quite down-to-earth, they’re holding on while waiting for the nation’s economy to improve. They proudly report that the response they are getting from satisfied clients is more than encouraging. With prayerful optimism, the four are eagerly looking forward to the day when they’d be filling up container vans with their products all bound for destinations in major cities of the world.
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At present, sisters-in-law Odette and Luhli Chiongbian, together with bosom pals Maureen Borja and Doris Bautista, make up SOTB. Before moving on, I must inform you that South of the Border is a budding company that retails a line of high-end patio or lanai furniture fashioned entirely out of a material that can fool the eye. It looks and feels more rattan than real rattan, but then since it is a product of science and technology, pieces made out of it can be left under the sun or rain and survive for years and years. If, indeed, the wonder bra is a great invention, these faux rattan pieces I swear are much, much better.
A piece of information reaching us led to my search and eventual discovery of this marvelous product. Desperately desiring to have something nice and different to furnish our recently added patio with, I had to beg the AAVA to disclose to me the address of Luhli Chiongbian who I knew resides in our village. With her phone number supplied, I wasted no time and called to inquire about the rumored furniture supposedly in her possession. She sounded friendly and promptly invited me to take a look at some of the pieces in her residence. Imaginatively positioned in her lush family garden, the pieces in delicious colors and au courant designs surpassed my expectations!
My fascination with the pieces led me to place an on-the-spot order for a patio set composed of a round table and a quartet of armchairs. They are in vivid cobalt blue, a color that I covet, which, by coincidence, matches the blue of the glass panes that are integrated into the railings enclosing the raised patio. Since the time they were delivered (two weeks after the order), the pieces have been mercilessly subjected to rain, sun and the daily dousing they get each time the hanging plants overhead are watered. Yet they continue to look as good as new.
We’re often frustrated, angry even, whenever we’re told that some pieces on display are for export only. I suppose these women know how it feels when somebody spots something she/he likes so much only to be told that they are meant to cater to the tastes of some lucky people living abroad. It makes them proud to feel some sense of achievement. First, they’re conserving the environment by sparing our rattan trees. Second, they’re providing livelihood for those who dye, weave and assemble the parts made of faux rattan, which is transformed into durable outdoor furniture. What this venture earns, the group considers as mere icing on the cake.
As of now, the group is quite happy with the volume of their business. Aside from the homes of some close friends or residents of the village, places like Tequila Joe’s at the Alabang Town Center and the Parque de España at Filinvest proudly use South of the Border pieces in their establishments. When we had a chat with the group, they excitedly showed me photos of forthcoming additions to their line of products. Rattan look-alikes are now being fashioned into attractive baskets and useful and practical storage bins and clothes hampers that can look attractive in bathrooms or dressing rooms.
And they’re not going to be content with retailing in their showrooms at the Marcatmic building on Sucat Road, Parañaque. They’re talking of the possibility of moving their showroom-cum- office to a much bigger place in a more accessible area. They may even consider incorporating a mini café within the place so prospective clients and buyers can enjoy tea and crumpets (unsweetened bread cooked on a griddle) before or after checking out the high-end furniture.
These happily married women value their friendship and camaraderie so much so that they do so many things together. Aside from the inevitable shopping binges, they enjoy going to far-flung places in search of things they can purchase to decorate their respective residences with or accessories they can add to their line of products.
Idle minds, they chorus, are the workshops of the devil. And they get all the support and encouragement from their doting husbands. The four declare that they’d rather spend their time productively than waste endless hours at the gambling tables. And if their homes were the bases, I’d say their activity gives them the vehicle to express their God-given artistic talents.
Quite down-to-earth, they’re holding on while waiting for the nation’s economy to improve. They proudly report that the response they are getting from satisfied clients is more than encouraging. With prayerful optimism, the four are eagerly looking forward to the day when they’d be filling up container vans with their products all bound for destinations in major cities of the world.
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