MANILA, Philippines – It’s not everyday that you meet a successful Filipina entrepreneur in Singapore. Yes, there are successful businesswomen, corporate types assigned to regional offices of multinational corporations and professionals who sit on corporate boards, but how about those who have small enterprises (SMEs)?
It was thus so inspiring to finally meet 35-year-old Madzni Ahalul, she of the Dennis Coffee Shop clan of Jolo, Sulu who came to Singapore 14 years ago to work as a hotel staff. Having finished Hotel and Restaurant Administration at the Philippine Women’s University in Manila, Madzni had dreams of going abroad to work at a prestigious hotel chain. She had turned her back on the very coffee business that made all seven siblings finish school… a coffee shop in faraway Sulu.
But destiny had other plans for Madzni. After resigning from the stressful hotel job in Sentosa, she found out she was pregnant with her first child. “That was it!” she recalls. “It would not be easy getting hired when you’re pregnant, as employers need to give three months’ maternity leave ,” she continues.
But the turn of events was in her favor as she found herself starting a small enterprise in an unpopular corner of Lucky Plaza, the Filipino OFW’s haunt in downtown Singapore. “It was the sixth level, where no one ever went, but we did some market research and we soon became the Pinay OFW’s favorite clothing store,” she proudly declares.
That, however, would not last very long as some envious competitors wanted her booted out of that area. While the others sold used clothes also known as ukay-ukay Madzni and her husband Faisal sold brand new clothes which the Pinay market went for.
“I wanted our Pinay workers to have pride in wearing new clothes and not something old or used,” she says. These workers are known to send all their income home to the Philippines and end up scrimping on themselves.
“After working so hard, all you give yourself is used clothing?” she asked herself. This has been the practice of many OFWs, now numbering more than 120,000 in the city state. She told me of an OFW who fainted in the mall because she was overworked and would not even buy enough food to eat. “That’s the story for many of our OFWs who frequent Lucky Plaza,” she says.
The entrepreneur in Madzni was further honed by competition from envious neighbors and her desire to give better fashion choices to our Pinay workers. She speaks like a Masters in Business student who knows her risk management tactics, her marketing promotions and plans, and her real estate savvy. After closing her first store, she opened not one, not two, but four different stores in the same mall – all with her now recognizable blue signboard emblazoned with her brand SULU CONNECTION. You can’t miss the lighted sign, and her posters that seem to have a sense of uniformity, like a fashion chain. I kidded her that she was like Uniqlo or Zara, which occupy two store spaces on two levels of malls in many cities.
Four stores later she now speaks with the passion and firmness of a seasoned entrepreneur. She knows her numbers well and she knows her market. “I know how often they buy,” she says, “and that’s why I promised to have something new in stock every week at the stores.”
That’s her brand promise. She has it all figured out and true enough, there is something new every week for her customers.
She and husband Faisal (who has also quit his day job) manage the stores. With three growing children of school age, she needs to divide her time and make sure she can bring the kids to school and spend precious quality time with them.
“I cannot turn back time, so I want to give time to my children while they are growing up,” she says. This is why they have kept their trusted staff to man the stores while she performs her mommy duties.
“But Sundays are different,” she says. Sundays are peak times when all the stores go into full court press, as Sunday has the heaviest traffic in the mall.
How did she learn all these marketing secrets? Simple. She listens to her customers. She asks them what they want. She asks them what else they are looking for – new fashion, new trends, new designs.
“I want them to realize they can dress well even on an affordable budget,” she continues.
Her most popular promotion? Buy 6 and get a free dress (any dress of your choice) after the sixth purchase. She has regular customers who already know her staff, who know her and who feel her place is home. She even plays music familiar to her customers like OPM (Original Pilipino Music) for all ages. “That really makes them feel at home,” she says.
While hanging out at her store in Lucky Plaza, I had a feel of her target market and know what she speaks of. They choose their pants or shirts and just hand over the money to the cashier like in a grocery store. Most everything is priced at S$10 or P330, truly an affordable purchase when sometimes S$10 can only buy a simple lunch of noodles and a cup of coffee plus MRT fare.
Madzni has it all figured out for now. Run her four stores, bring new designs every week and keep her customer database ever increasing. Treat everyone well and talk to customers. Be savvy about real estate and learn what differentiates you from the competition. And lastly, be humble and have a good mission. Hers is “to make the Pinay OFW dress with pride at a price she can very well afford.” Now, that’s something to keep her going for many years to come.