Filipino businessman Ben Chan recently underwent a series of grilling sessions in glitzy Monaco—but they’re the kind that should do every Filipino proud the world over.
Chan, board chair of homegrown Suyen Corp., was one of more than 50 finalists—and the only Filipino—vying for the prestigious 2014 World Entrepreneur of the Year (WEY) award organized by global accounting and professional services firm Ernst & Young.
Chan and other finalists underwent a four-day grilling by other esteemed entrepreneurs Ernst & Young invited to the event.
“Tough is an understatement,” Chan said. “For me, it was nerve-wracking. I guess it wasn’t so much the questions since they were all about Suyen’s past, present and future. It was more the caliber of people asking the questions and the atmosphere of it all.”
Now on its 28th year, the selection was initially limited to United States-based entrepreneurs. Its primary goal was to “celebrate” and recognize successful entrepreneurs so that they could share their stories with the world and inspire others.
By 1993, the program started to expand internationally. Today it spans more than 140 cities in 50 countries, representing more than 90 percent of the global economy.
The award was won by Indian national Uday Kotak, founder, executive vice chair and managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank.
However, Chan’s feat was no less worthy.
“A select group of previous World Entrepreneur of the Year candidates and winners choose the Country Entrepreneur of the Year winner for each country,” said Chan. “On the list of local nominees, I was fortunate enough to be chosen this year to represent the Philippines in the prestigious event.”
In good company
Chan is in good company. Among past Philippine country winners, only Jollibee’s Tony Tan Caktiong brought home the WEY award in 2004.
Over the years, there have been other country representatives from the Philippines: National Book Store’s Socorro Ramos; Cebu Pacific’s Lance Gokongwei; Hybrid Social Solutions Inc.’s Jaime Ayala; Alaska Milk’s Wilfred Uytengsu; Planters Bank’s Jesus Tambunting; Bounty Fresh Chicken’s Tennyson Chen and Aboitiz Power’s Erramon Aboitiz.
The man behind such iconic homegrown brands as Bench, Human, Kashieca and Dimensione and foreign labels such as Pedro, Charles & Keith and American Eagles Outfitters, Chan oversees 34 brands (11 local, 23 foreign) and 1,120 stores all over the Philippines and key cities in China, the West Coast and the Middle East.
