WOW Pinoy

Asian business awardee is Batangas widow who runs food empire

Patricia Berberabe and good friend Rosita Merciadez sit quietly at the lobby of the Time Warner on Columbus Circle, admiring the glossy lobby and seemingly amused by the hurried pack of people rushing in and out of the building.Looking rather schoolmarmish in a boyish haircut, white turtleneck and embroidered coat, Pat is one of four Filipino recipients of this year’s Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business Awards. The event, organized since 2001 by the Asian American Business Development Center (AABDC), honors achievements made by entrepreneurs and corporate professionals.


Pat, 67, is president of Phil-Am Trading, Inc., an importer/wholesaler/distributor of Philippine food products to Oriental groceries throughout the East Coast. The company brings fresh Goldilocks pastries and sukang Paombong, among other tastes of home, to food-homesick FilAms and caters for special parties. They own a chain of turu-turo eateries.


Sharing honors with Pat are fellow FilAms handbag designer Rafe Totengco of New York; litigation adviser Sean D. Reyes of Salt Lake City, Utah; and CEO Benjamin Santos of United Staffing Registry in Queens, N.Y.“Ay, ako lang pala taga New Jersey,” Pat notes in mild amusement, turning to her friend Rosita.There is a touch of pride to the thought that she is representing not only the Filipino American community but the state of New Jersey as well. The Garden State has been her home for more than 30 years, her current address is in leafy Cedar Grove.


AABDC President John Yang says businesses were chosen on the basis of steady growth, innovation and overall excellence. The minimum requirement is that businesses should be operational at least two years and report sales of at least $1 million.
Gone are the days when Asian Americans were in traditional fields and industries, says Yang. “They now contribute to the larger economy,” he adds, citing this year’s awardees are in a variety of fields such as real estate, restaurant and entertainment, education, health care, law, technology, and travel.


“Hard work siguro,” the soft-spoken and deeply religious widow tells Philippine News is the secret to her company’s success. Pat’s husband Ernesto passed away in 2005. Her daughter Florence and son-in-law have stepped in to assist her, she says.What started as a small grocery -- Phil-Am Food Mart -- started by the Aguila sisters (Pat, Angie Ferrer and Flory Santos are from San Jose, Batangas) and their husbands in 1973 is now a sprawling empire that includes groceries, restaurants, catering, bakeshops, and soon the franchise to Max’s Chicken, scattered throughout New York and New Jersey.The first Phil-Am grocery – with an adjacent bakeshop and restaurant -- remains a landmark on Newark Ave. in Jersey City. Where there are large FilAm populations, Phil-Am can’t be far behind.


In 2002, after almost 30 years, the family decided to split up the business into three companies: the importer/wholesaler division Phil-Am Trading remains with the Aquino-Berberabe family; the grocery division Phil-Am Merchandising went to the Aquino-Santos family, and Casa Victoria restaurant-cum-bakery is managed by the Aquino-Ferrer family.
“We decided to divide the business since our children are grown up and wanted to join us,” says Pat, an engineering graduate from UST.


Pat belongs to a large family of 11 siblings. Her parents – plucky buy-and-sell entrepreneurs both – ran a small grocery and gathered fruits from Batangas to sell in Manila.“Business-minded talaga kami noon pa,” she recalls. “But when we started here in the U.S., it was a struggle.”Discipline, hard work and commitment to honest service are the business models the Aquinos learned from their parents, says Pat. “Because we’re a family business, me and my sisters maintain open communication.”


Many FilAm businesses come and go, but Phil-Am seems unshaken by the rollercoaster ride of the U.S. economy.
Explains Pat: “Some don’t have market analyses or feasibility studies. Before we started our grocery, my sister would travel to the Philippines to study the buying patterns of balikbayans…Just because you know how to cook doesn’t mean you can open a restaurant.”


The franchise to Max excites Pat. The “house that fried chicken built” is targeting a grand opening in the Fall.
“Now that I got the franchise of Max, we’re just waiting for the architectural design plan from Max Philippines. Hopefully we can start renovating the place. We had six weeks of training. Last October we went to Hawaii for training because that’s where they have all their modern equipment. From there, we proceeded to Manila for another 10 days training. There’s going to be another round of training in Glendale, California,” she shares. Pat flatly rejects plans to establish businesses on the West Coast and hopefully duplicate their success across the country.
“Hands-on kami eh,” she says firmly.

Pat, a community leader – the Philippine American Friendship Committee (Pafcom) and Pan American Concerned Citizens Action League (Paccal) are only two of her affiliations – says “visibility” keeps her connected with a community of senior citizens. Monthly, she buses them to Atlantic City for a day at the casino or a stroll by the boardwalk. She is organizing a dinner dance in June at the Holiday Inn, her way of getting elderly FilAms to do something for themselves only – not for their children nor their grandchildren. In her own quiet way, Pat sets things in motion and gets her family and friends to join her. There is no lonelier journey than being alone at the top.

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