1. John Gokongwei. Another self-made man is John Gokongwei who lost his father at the age of thirteen. He had to work hard to help support his family by selling simple products like candles, soap and thread in a small local market and was able to expand to sell more lucrative products. He did this for many years until he ventured into the profitable instant coffee business. Nescafe of Nestle was the only instant coffee readily brand readily available so he focused on developing his own brand of instant coffee – Blend 45. His company did incredibly well and generated enough profits to develop other brands. Almost all of the famous Filipino food and beverage brands Gokongwei created are now market leaders in their respective categories. He eventually made his way in the local retail industry by building and running his own chain of successful shopping malls.
2. George Ty. Yet another in a distinguished line of famous Filipino entrepreneurs is George Ty. Among the famous Filipino businessmen, he had perhaps the most comfortable childhood, since his family owned a large flour mill. At the age of 29, he founded Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company with several partners. Today, this famous Filipino owned bank is one of the biggest financial institutions in the Philippines.
3. Lucio Tan. Lucio Tan worked as a janitor in a cigarette factory. After a few promotions, he eventually resigned and started his own tobacco company. His tobacco company grew to capture a 60% share of the Philippine market. With its strong revenues, Tan was able to diversify. This famous Filipino businessman now owns several prominent Philippine companies, many of which are blue-chippers.  Among the top businessmen, Tan is arguably the most enigmatic.  Among his contemporaries, he is probably accessible and prefers to stay out of the limelight.