Built by visioning, innovation, boldness, management excellence, and service to country and people
By Tony Lopez
The late John Lim Gokongwei Jr. (1926-2019) was the quintessential Filipino industrialist and serial entrepreneur. He was bold, almost reckless, innovative, pioneering, and not at all intimidated by challenges and roadblocks in pursuit of a business or a venture, or even something that catches his fancy.
John was unafraid to take on challenges bigger than his capacity—or resources—to cope with or succeed. “I chose to live my life unafraid even during times I was afraid,” he said.
His formula for success? Basic. Hard work, frugality, integrity, responsiveness to change, and most of all, the boldness to dream.
His focus was the basic services—food, clothing, shelter, electricity, and connectivity, such as airline and telco.
Big John made entrepreneurship an exceedingly fulfilling endeavor of a lifetime—for the good of family, people, the community, and the country. He devoted the last two decades of his life to heavy investments in education and scholarships for poor and deserving students. The education philanthropy reaches 50,000 mentors and benefits 1.5 million people.
Why education?
“Going back to the university for studies gave me an appreciation for the beauty and the breath of business life, something I would never have gained if I stopped my education,” he said.
Why entrepreneurship?
“Choose to be an entrepreneur because you create value. Because the products, services, and jobs you create then become the lifeblood of our nation. Most of all, because then, you desire a life of adventure, endless challenge, and the opportunity to be your best self.”
Gokongwei was Management Man of the Year in 2017. His message to the Management Association of the Philippines which gave him the coveted award: “The Philippine economy must continue to grow from strength to strength.”
John died near midnight on Nov. 9, 2019. Born Aug. 11, 1926, he was 93. He was bedridden for six weeks. He is survived by six kids.
Lance took over in 2018
The Gokongwei Group has continued to grow from strength to strength.
John’s only son, Lance Y. Gokongwei, 57, became CEO of the family’s listed holding company, JG Summit Holdings in 2018.
John claimed he retired from active management in 2007. His marching orders: Bring JG Summit to “even greater heights.”
Lance is exceedingly well qualified to be the steward and helmsman of a 21st century big business. He has a double summa, Finance and Applied Science, from the University of Pennsylvania. He began in the Gokongwei Group marking and selling women’s underwear, literally from the bottom up. And of course, he learned the ropes from the best of the Filipino tycoons, his dad.
Lance has his father’s height, good looks, and boldness in business.
JG Summit’s remaining family-owned Big John had explained “would imbue the business with the stability, strong culture, and long-term vision necessary to see our investments grow.”
$24 billion aircraft deal
Lance has just presided over the largest aircraft purchase in Philippine history for 152 aircraft—102 on firm order, plus 50 in additional purchase rights, for deliveries over an eight-year period, from 2027 to 2035. The aircraft deal is valued at $24 billion. Financing is a combination of loans, operating leases, and commercial debts.
JG Summit is today one of the Philippines’ largest and most diversified conglomerates, with a market capitalization of more than P180 billion ($3.15 billion), certainly undervalued considering the strategic nature of many of its enterprises and a booming economy that is one of the strongest in Asia, total assets of P1 trillion ($17.54 billion), equity of P467 billion, and net debt of P54 billion.
Substantial interests
Per its stock exchange disclosures, JG Summit has substantial business interests in foods; agro-industrial and commodities; real estate and hotel; air transportation; banking; and petrochemicals. The company also has core investments in telecommunications and power generation and distribution. The company was listed in 1993.
JG Summit conducts its businesses throughout the Philippines, but primarily in and around Metro Manila and in the regions of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. JGS, through its subsidiaries, also has branded foods businesses in the People’s Republic of China, ASEAN, and Oceania (New Zealand and Australia regions), and a core investment in a property development company in Singapore.
Profits doubled
JGS’ subsidiaries include JG Summit Olefins Corporation; CP Air Holdings Inc.; Universal Robina Corporation; and Robinsons Land Corporation. The Company owns 11.2% interest in PLDT Inc. and 26.4% of Manila Electric Company.
In the first half of 2024, JGS doubled profits to P18.1 billion on revenues of P188 billion.
Gushes Lance of this year’s first-half results:
“We continue to post overall topline growth despite the lingering effects of inflation which dampened consumer sentiment. We have seen a divergence of results from our operating units with the strong demand for travel and leisure benefiting our air transport and real estate businesses. Our food and beverage unit continues to deliver higher sales volumes, but the product mix has changed into lower price point categories, while increased plant utilization in our petrochemicals unit pulled up revenues in the first half. Coupled with our initiatives to drive productivity and better operating leverage, we have now seen improvements in margins.”
“We will continue to execute our commercial strategies to drive topline growth while implementing overall operational discipline to ensure we sustain the year-on-year recovery in core net income and margins,” promises Lance.
John was an entrepreneur at 13
At 13, when his rich father died, leaving him with a widowed mother and five siblings, John had to rebuild the family business empire from scratch, using a bicycle and plenty of guts.
He began by sending his brothers and sister to China where the cost of living was lower. He began doing business with a bike. John was 15 when the war erupted.
With the bike, young John peddled anything, from 5 in the morning to late at night—soap, thread, candles. Said John of that experience: “If I could compete with people so much older than me if I could support my whole family at 15, I could do anything.”