Lifestyle icon, award-winning TV host and bestselling author Martha Stewart visited last Monday some famous Manila landmarks, including SM Mall of Asia. And she fell in love with Kultura, SM’s specialty boutique of Filipino handicrafts and products.

Stewart is in town this week for a leadership talk organized by ABS-CBN News Channel, held yesterday at Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila.

According to Steven Tan, chief operating officer of SM Supermalls, Stewart expressed her admiration for Filipino craftsmanship on seeing the Kultura merchandise.

“You can see the pride of the people who made them,” Tan quoted Stewart.

Stewart was supposed to stay for only an hour but stayed for two, most of which were spent at Kultura.

“She loved the barong Tagalog. She was so impressed with the piña fabric and the embroidery. She said the small mother-of-pearl spoons would be perfect for caviar.”

Bed and table linens

Stewart also bought some fashion accessories.

The American’s first stop was The SM Store, where they looked at various products like bed and table linens. She has an eponymous lifestyle brand and expressed interest in doing business with the Philippines, said Tan.

Stewart, who was with her team, attracted some attention from early-morning mallers. She made a stop to watch xiao long bao (steamed buns) being made at one of the restaurants.

“Her team asked her hosts where Filipinos usually go, and they said SM. They thought Monday morning would be the best time to go to a mall since there was probably not many people. They were surprised that there was already a good crowd in the morning, so different from the malls in the US,” Tan said.

Of his impressions of the global icon, Tan said Stewart was quite knowledgeable about pop culture, even basketball. “I can’t believe she’s already 78. She was sprightly and elegant. She was quite gracious, not a diva at all. When I walked them to their car, she kept saying thank you.” — Cheche V. Moral