Q1: One of your competitors was first to launch a sugarfree bread variant in 2012, which captured a significant 15% market share in the wheat & health bread category. How did Gardenia protect itself from this competitive attack? A: Gardenia responded by studying further the consumers to understand their behavior and to know what they truly desire. We found out […]
Search Results for: Leadership
At the height of typhoon Yolanda a year ago (2013), I was sick and immobilized at home but I felt I had to do something to help those affected by the storm. Having initiated fund raising campaigns in the past for Zamboanga Fund for Little Kids (original name was Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation) and the Godparents Program of Markprof Marketing Leadership Bootcamp […]
Q1: When you were still with P&G Philippines and Singapore, you helped Pampers defend against EQ diapers, regaining leadership in 2003. You also found yourself doing the same for Whisper when you turned it around to win against Modess. What were your strategies then? When does a brand decide to defend or not to defend? A brand’s decision to defend […]
In my previous post, I wrote about the MarkProf Foundation Inc. which has been honing deserving graduating student leaders through a life-changing 7-weekend boot camp in Marketing Leadership. Just recently, MarkProf made official its roster of “Top 25 Marketing Management Trainees of the Philippines” through the graduation of its 11th batch last December 6, 2014. Kudos to the MarkProf scholars who successfully passed the rigorous training. On top of the mind-racing challenges, there was one exciting addition this year, a first in the MarkProf history – the Waters Video Challenge. Part of their overall grades would […]
Q1: I met you close to 25 years ago when you were country manager of Pioneer Hybrid Corn in the Philippines. Now you are Asia Pacific Corn Marketing Head for Syngenta, a merger of the agro division of Novartis and Zeneca. As a veteran in this field, can you share the highlights and developments that has changed the way business […]
The year was 1990. I was a rookie director of the Philippine Marketing Association and was in charge of the youth and academe sector. This position connected me with many marketing professors, one of whom was Prof. Emmanuel Fernandez, then Chairman of the Management Department of the Ateneo de Manila University. He heard me give a short talk in marketing and invited […]
Q1: Can you describe what the Uniqlo brand is all about? Other than being of Japanese origin, how different or similar is it with say Giordano or Gap in terms of fashion or customer base? We consider UNIQLO as LifeWear, which means UNIQLO is complete when it is worn and become a part of our customers’ Life. We are not […]
Q1: Before your retirement, you were associated with having mastery of the ‘masa’ market with strong gut feel but based on consumer pulse. Jollibee, Lucky Me! are just some local brands you handled that grew so big. What traits do you think you have that made you a specialist for the ‘masa’? I am masa. I lived masa. It’s my […]
Q1: You have been with Mary Kay for 6 years. During this period, the company’s business size under you grew by 255% while total number of active sellers grew 335%. What did you do to get these remarkable results?” Women from all walks of life enjoy selling Mary Kay products because of the rewarding opportunity and flexibility offered by our […]
Q1: You were the first non-Japanese woman to be President/CEO of two significant–sized, publicly traded companies in Japan for two very visible iconic brands – Levi’s and Starbucks. What advise would you give young people who would like to follow your path? These were the toughest assignments in my career but also the most rewarding. How does one prepare for […]