Menchu Lopez remembers holidays with her mom Glecy Tantoco

For people who like to buy their Christmas presents early, this is the time to do it, when the mad rush hasn’t yet set in and you can enjoy the store’s Christmas décor and ambience without being trampled by shoppers.

Matriarch and Rustan’s founder Glecy Tantoco used to start her Christmas shopping in September. Her daughter Menchu Tantoco-Lopez, who also heads Rustan’s Flower Shop, says, “To my mother, September was not too early to cater to those who want to decorate their homes before the Christmas rush, so we’ve adopted this early-bird practice by starting our Christmas display in September, too. My sister, Rustan’s president Nedy Tantoco, had a personal hand in getting all our Christmas displays out.  Our busiest months begin from Sept. 15 through October and go on for the rest of the year.”

Menchu’s daughter Maricar Tiangco says, “I remember Lola Glecy would start planning for the Christmas season as early as May and June. She would remind us that Christmas is the most important season for everyone because of the message of faith and love. That motivated our Lola Glecy to plan early.  She would draw a list of what Christmas themes to use for the window displays, the ad campaigns, the promotions and giveaways, the gift-wrapping and packaging and other attendant details.”

Mother and daughter, Menchu and Maricar, talk about Rustan’s this season and reminisce about holidays past.

PHILIPPINE STAR: Will you share some of your fondest memories of Christmas as spent in both the store and with your family?

MENCHU TANTOCO-LOPEZ:  Christmas is busy and hectic for all of us involved in the operations of Rustan’s and other family companies.  But when it’s Christmas Eve, we all draw breath and devote this time exclusively to the family and the grandchildren especially.  We gather to celebrate the birth of Christ with holy mass at our family home followed by noche buena shared among our siblings and loved ones.

For the family, we work extra hard and keep long hours because Lola Glecy always emphasized that we ought to give our best, in time, in effort and attention, to our customers.

We were not allowed to make any personal commitments or take overseas trips nor take leaves from Oct. 15 through to December 24. Lola Glecy made sure all of us were in our assigned offices and stores.

Do you have any advice about work and life in general that you learned from your parents and have passed on to your own children?

Menchu: Oh, my parents taught us a lot!  But the one thing I remember most was my mother’s advice to always be different.  Be ahead and anticipate what our customers want and what they will find interesting and useful.  That was so true whether one s buying or selling.

She also emphasized the importance of building a relationship with our employees, many of whom had been with us since we opened the business or had retired with the company, in fact.  “Treat all employees with care,” she stressed.

MARICAR TIANGCO: My grandmother taught us the importance of giving top service.  She said that for every item that was sold in our store, we must put a little of ourselves in it.  It was like stamping our name behind each product we carry and every service we provide.  She was very passionate about giving one’s best and being sincere about it.

Every year, you manage to delight your customers with your Christmas collection, what do you have up your sleeves this year? 

Menchu:  We always go for the traditional colors of red, green, gold, and silver but add a twist, a surprise, like purple accessories or something different to excite our customers and attract their interest.  Our colors remain predominantly classic.

Maricar:  We also make sure we have something for the children to keep them thinking happy thoughts over Christmas. We collaborated with three talented designers — Anton Barretto, Marissa Lopa and Tania Lichauco.  They lent us their expertise in designing our signature Christmas trees.     

 Tania designed the gold tree and the red cardinal tree.  The wintry white owl tree was by Marissa Lopa, while Anton Barretto and Marissa Lopa worked together on the eco-friendly tree of cones and leaves.  Anton also designed the whimsical toy tree for the young and the young-at-heart.

 Apart from Christmas angels, the all-time favorites, we are introducing the santos collection (holy images) this year.  You will notice that they are reminiscent of the olden days when families displayed their holy images in niches or on an altar, very much like what we would see in our churches.

How far advanced do you plan for your Christmas collection?

Menchu: A year, at least.  The items you see now on display were ordered from our suppliers from Europe, Thailand, China, and from our local suppliers.  It takes time to run the entire process of product drawings, styling, modifications and selection, up to having the items ordered, shipped and finally displayed on the floor.

What sets Rustan’s apart from other local retail chains?

Menchu:  We try to be different with our accessories.  We want to make sure that the items we have in the store are those that our customers would be pleased to use because they will not find them anywhere else in Manila, therefore unique and exclusive to them.  We make sure our items are reasonable and affordable, too. 

Maricar: We give extra service to meet our customers’ expectations.  For example, if our customers choose a particular color and its attendant accessories, our in-house artists can assemble and design a flower arrangement or trim a whole tree or other house décor for them.  We remove the headache and the work involved in putting together a Christmas theme. 

 Do you give your suppliers certain designs from your own think tank or do you allow them to come up with their own?

Maricar:  We discuss with them what we feel would be accepted by our customers geared toward a strong impact.  We encourage suggestions from our suppliers who also come out with fantastic ideas.

 In the retail trade, how do you nurture a business relationship with your partners, suppliers, importers, and other related services?

Menchu:  Our family has always championed product development, something that my mother had instilled in us.  But we also expect our suppliers to maintain a high standard of quality and we’ve kept them committed to this ideal year after year.

We built our company’s standing on honesty and integrity.  If you practice fair, good and sound work ethics, the relationship is fortified and it flourishes. 

 What makes the Flower Shop special to you, your “baby” in fact?

Menchu:  It was the first job that my mother assigned to me. When she opened our store in Makati in the late ‘60s, my mother thought of opening a separate flower shop to be attached to the retail store.

I had no inkling about running a flower shop.  Luckily, I love flowers and when you love something and enjoy being involved in it, you don’t consider it a task.  It was easy for me to grow into the job.   The flower shop is sentimental to me and it keeps the memory of my mother warm and intimate.

 Your family’s group of companies has expanded beyond the retail operation, what got you started in the coffee business, specifically with Starbucks?

Menchu:  Well-meaning friends and colleagues initially discouraged us but we were convinced that it was a new trend that Filipinos would readily accept given their natural love for coffee.  We were however surprised to break record with more than 180 branches now including those in Bacolod and in Cebu.

Cebu was a revelation; we thought we’d be lucky to get one or two branches running, at the most.  Now, we have eight branches in Cebu with the ninth opening soon plus a new one in Cagayan de Oro. 

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When some customers wandered around the Christmas garden, Menchu and Maricar paused to greet them.   That gave me a chance to take a closer look at Tania Lichauco’s red cardinal birds looking regal and pretty on top of snowy branches.

Cardinal birds are not found in our local forests.  In America, however, this bird has been called the Christmas bird for its spectacular red color that has become the symbol of the beauty and warmth of the Christmas season. 

It is also a loving reminder from Mother Nature to focus on our faith with the cardinal’s scarlet plumage representing the blood of Christ shed for the redemption of mankind.

The other attraction was the white owl on a white tree that designer Marissa Lopa mixed with silver balls, gas lamps and soft blue lights.  Owls are thought of as messengers and symbols of wisdom and the pure, unblemished spirit like the newborn Christ.

 The toy tree by Anton Barretto is also a winner for the joy and laughter it packed in its branches while the eco-friendly nature tree gave a subtle reminder to guard and protect our trees and forests if we are to prevent and avoid natural disasters.

I found more Christmas arrangements using leaves and flowers.  It got me thinking about what one author said about flowers:  “There are only three things that matter in life:  love, life and death.  And all three are celebrated with flowers.”

 “Handle our merchandise” has been the open invitation of Rustan’s to all who come through its doors.  During Christmas, it would usher once again the spirit of care and trust and sharing that would last the whole year through. 

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The Flower Shop is located at all Rustan’s retail branches in Metro Manila and in Cebu; in all the Rustan’s Fresh supermarkets; in St. Luke’s Hospital located in Quezon City and Taguig and the Asian Hospital in Muntinlupa.  Their service include decorating churches during the Christmas season like the Santuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park. Log on to rustansflowershop.com; Call 890-3888.