How a janitor started multi-million peso business by Vincent Paul A. Garcia, - It was 1995. Steve Tamayo just woke up and headed straight for the kitchen. There, he prepared exactly 15 packed lunches and placed them inside his bag. He then proceeded with his daily routine: a jeepney ride to Espana; a short walk to Centro Escolar University where he would sell the packed lunches; another jeepney ride to Quiapo; and a long walk to Heritage Hotel where he worked as a waiter. Caterer of the Stars Steve Tamayo of Tamayos Catering is featured on ABS-CBNs My Puhunan. Courtesy of My Puhunan Facebook page This was how Tamayos Catering began. And in ABS-CBNs My Puhanan, host Karen Davila found out how these packed lunches became a multi-million peso catering business that hosted parties for the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Sarah Geronimo and other celebrities. But it was a series of unfortunate events, a series of ups and downs, that led Tamayo down the path towards catering. Born into a family that carried the burden of a paralyzed father, Tamayo was forced to work at the age 4 in the local wet market. 4 years old pa lang ako humahawak na mga balde ng mantika. Nakikipagsabayan talaga ako. Halos matanggal na yung braso ko pero kailangan mag-hanap buhay, Tamayo said. Naranasan ko pang ulam namin asin, he added. And in order to finish college, Tamayo had to work as a janitor which he hid as a secret to his friends, family and other people he met. Honestly, hindi ko sinasabing janitor ako. Sinasabi kong timekeeper ako, Tamayo confessed. Sobrang baba ng tingin sa janitor noon 1970s, he added. So Tamayo convinced himself not to settle and to keep dreaming for a better life. Pinilipit ko na maging mataas ang standard ko, he said. Going abroad Tamayo then dared to go abroad at the young age of 21 after finishing college. In 1981, he boarded a flight to Saudi Arabia to work as a waiter. It was there that his nature of being ma-diskarte shone. Pumunta akong palengke tapos nakita ko na tinatapon nila yung mga ulo ng isda at mga buto-buto ng karne. Sabi ko puwede kong gawing negosyo. Kinausap ko yung mga Arabo. Sabi ko wag nila itapon, kukuhanin ko yan. So ang ginagawa ko, pagadating ko sa bahay, lulutuin ko yoong bulalo tapos yung mga ulo ng isda, ginagawa kong sinigang, said Tamayo. His first foray into the food business was an instant success, especially to the other Filipinos in the country. But, true to his nature, Tamayo was never satisfied. He then brought capiz ornaments from the Philippines back to Saudi Arabia and sold them for almost 18 times the original price. Kapag gusto mo talagang yumaman, magagawa mo lahat eh. He then kept looking for different ways to earn more. And in 1985, Tamayo bought a shop at the local business district down in Kuwait. With the opening of his store, he began earning more than P100,000 a day selling clothes and different items. Para lang akong namumulot ng pera doon, he added. But his fame and fortune abroad wouldnt last long. In 1990, sparked by the Iraqi troops invasion of Kuwait, the Gulf War in the Middle East began. Rich and famous ako tapos in 30 minutes, in-invade ni Saddam, washed out, he said. Sabi ko Lord, i-uwi mo lang ako sa Pilipinas ng buhay, iiwanan ko lahat ng investments ko kuwait, Tamayo added. Caterer of the Stars And when he arrived back in the Philippines, he had to start from scratch, again. Rich and famous ako sa Kuwait tapos nag-umpisa ulit ako sa umpisa. Naging vendor ulit ako. Rich and famous, he reiterated. But he said with a smile, basta buhay, may pag-asa. And this time, with his small packed lunches, Tamayo earned the title of Caterer of the Stars. His first break came when he was offered catering stints by local parish Our Lady of Mount Carmel. But he was reluctant. Hindi ko kayang mag-cater. Walang puhunan. Hindi naman pwede mag-cater ng packed lunch sa wedding, he quipped. But this was where Tamayos diskarte took center stage again. After striking a deal with a friend that allowed him to rent the equipment needed to start a catering, Tamayos Catering never looked back. There would be no downs from here on out. In one years time, nag fo-fourteen weddings na ako in one day, Tamayo shared with disbelief. Today, Tamayo now earns millions of pesos every month, has 4 hotels, a group of companies and over 1,000 regular employees. I consider to be very, very blessed...Its a very good and very strong foundation pag nag-umpisa ka sa baba. Wag kang mahiya, Tamayo humbly said.
Posted on: Tue, 29 Oct 2013 00:20:19 +0000