The crafty outpaces the smart, these are businessman Edmar’s words-to-live-by. Tracking growth, business meetings and flexible time, and with a half-a-million salary per month, who would have thought that this Filipino businessman started from the humble beginnings of a carwash boy.
Edmar’s backstory was not a happy one. The anecdotes of his life were filled with tearful narratives.
His childhood was a series of hand-me-downs and being passed from one relative to the next. After years of being belittled by the families who took him in, Edmar thought he had a change of fate when his mother remarried and claimed him back.
However, the silver lining to his story was not yet in sight. Edmar received his parent’s spite and was made to live off the feeling of inadequacy and being a burden.
“Even so little as to turn on the television, or the fan would consume much electricity [they said]. Sometimes they would ask if I ate to make it a point to leave some for my sibling and stepfather. ‘The school allowance goes to you instead of your sibling!’” He recalled.
Although he grew up disadvantaged, his resourcefulness allowed him to survive the harsh conditions he lived in, he told a local TV program in the Philippines.
Growing up, Edmar explored possibilities to make ends meet in high school. He has tried selling vegetables in the market, directing drivers to park and watch over their cars for a penny or two. He even spent hours manning a computer shop, until he landed a carwash job that gave him P100 a day.
Like most Pinoys, Edmar believed that the solution to alleviate poverty is to go abroad, but life did not agree with him. He returned to the Philippines and took a course to become a barista in TESDA.
TESDA provided him with P8,000 per completed course, which provided for his capital in his first business venture.
Edmar recalled how he prayed for his humble coffee cart to earn just enough, but his hard-work even surpassed what he had asked for.
“I said, ‘Lord, just a mere two-thousand peso sales would be alright for me.’ But you know what? I earned P12,000 on my first day.” Edmar narrated.
His journey did not end there, he took advantage of holidays and weekends to make a fortune with what little he had. Families would drink his coffee in the cemetery on November 1 and during the summer, he would bear with the heat of the beaches to sell coffee.
Soon enough, he could afford a car, followed by a condominium and the one lucky charm he believes in, his wife. But he was challenged with problems that drove him to sell his car and wedding ring; he risked all his remaining on starting up food carts and he was back in business.
From the ground up, he built a business that has 20 different food concepts with 250 branches all over the country and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
The boy who used to watch over other people’s cars and wash them now owns several SUVs and delivery vans. His current salary is a big leapt from the hundred peso he started with.
“My business grew because I am resourceful, although I did not graduate and do not have a bachelor’s degree.” He remarked.
Apart from expanding his business, Edmar is now pursuing a college education for himself.
“I am not encouraging you to drop school. Education is important, that is why I am resuming what I left in school.”
