“Every successful person has a great story.

”
(Edgar Sia: Philippines’ Youngest Billionaire )

Hailing from Iloilo City, Edgar “Injap” J. Sia II dropped out of college to pursue his own laundry
and photo-developing business at the age of 19. In 2003, instead of earning his degree in Architecture, a
26-year old Sia decided to take a big risk in opening a barbecue fast food restaurant named Mang Inasal—
Ilonggo for “Mr. Barbecue.”
On December 12, 2003, the 30-something billionaire who founded the popular Filipino barbecue
chain Mang Inasal established his first branch in the most unlikely place in a 3-year-old unoccupied space
in Robinsons Mall Carpark in Iiloilo, his hometown. Due of his lack of track record, a number of suppliers
turned Sia down while he was still starting up his business. This prompted Sia to scout for suppliers in wet
markets as well as cooperatives in his community in Iloilo.
Today, the most famous barbecue chain in the country helps in alleviating the unemployment rate
in the Philippines. Utilizing banana leaves sourced from communities in Guimaras Island and bamboo sticks
supplied by several cooperatives in Iloilo, Mang Inasal gave endless opportunities to people who helped
build the empire. After establishing 26 branches in Visayas and Mindanao, Sia finally decided to open his
first outlet in the country's "make-or-break" city Manila in 2006.
So how exactly did Mang Inasal capture the hearts of Metro Manila consumers amidst numerous
competitors? Rice, the staple food for Pinoys, was the answer for Sia. During a rice shortage in the country
in 2006, Sia decided to do the unthinkable and offered the "Unli Rice" promo to Mang Inasal customers.
The big move, which was supposed to run for two months, attracted more customers. Today, Mang Inasal
is best-known for this promo.
Almost a decade after making a life-changing decision, Sia makes it to Forbes List of 40 Richest
Filipinos. The restaurant took off. When Tony Caktiong heard about Sia’s burgeoning business, he decided
to buy Mang Inasal for a total of P5 billion. Sia eventually put the sales of Mang Inasal to other investments
like banking and healthcare. At 42, he’s considered the country’s youngest billionaire.

Reflection Paper
(Edgar Sia: Philippines’ Youngest Billionaire)
 The life of an entrepreneur is not easy. Thus, dreaming of success is one thing and having the
attitude and the attributes to make it a reality is another. The most significant learning I have learned from
Edgar Sia is all about taking risks. We should always take chances and if ever it didn’t come out as what
we expect to be, we should never give up and perhaps take it as a lesson to grow.
People think that when they didn’t succeed, they already lose. For me, it was a wrong mindset
because we don’t lose when we fail, we learn when we fail. It is a common knowledge for everyone to be
very embarrassed if you fail at something. Most of the biggest businesses have failed many times before
they became successful. The question is the learning behind the failure. If you stop learning, then that is the
failure itself.
Mr. Sia is unpredictably genius from his success story his sense-making skill helped him interpret
what’s going on. His discovery skill helped him connect the dots and see things differently. His innovation
skill helped him recombine existing industry variables. His thorough preparation gave him courage to
execute his plan swiftly and his inspiring and soft-spoken ways influenced others to help attain his goals.
With that, I admire him and it was truly such an inspiring story for an aspiring entrepreneur like me.
Moreover, I have learned that stepping out of my comfort zone and removing my shyness to
discover and create new things are great factors of becoming a successful one. Most of the entrepreneurs
think outside the box and discover their ideas in the most unexpected way. Another learning from Mr. Sia,
is the importance of dreaming big dreams but at the same time learn to be content with less so that I can
reach contentment before I can achieve my dream.
To sum it up, becoming a successful entrepreneur, takes plenty of hard work, dedication, and
sacrifice. Keep in mind that the journey to entrepreneurship is transformative. Whether one will succeed or
not is irrelevant. At the end of the journey, one should emerge as a better person.