Aristocrat Restaurant

The initial name of the enterprise was “Andy’s Rolling Store,” and it was going to be located near the Ateneo de Manila then along Padre Faura Street in Manila.

But Andy did not feel too proud having a moving kiosk type of store named after him. Thus, the story goes that when he told his mother that he did not want his name used, this upset Lola Asiang who declared: “Then, I will just name the store after your aristocratic friends!”

Thus was born The Aristocrat, 72 years ago in 1936.

CEBU CITY, Philippines - Coming from a family who loves to cook and eat, sisters Jill Urbina Viado and Grace Urbina Absin, knew their lives will always be connected to food.

It is no wonder that to this date, they are two of the prime movers of Laguna Group of Companies, which operate Cafe Laguna, Laguna Garden and Lemon Grass.

“The restaurant was started by my parents, who both hail from Laguna. My mother loves to cook because her mother was also good cook, so we adopted the culture of cooking and eating at an early age,” Viado said.

Viado said the family moved to Cebu from Laguna, in Luzon in 1975, when her father, a military doctor, was reassigned in Camp Lapu-Lapu, headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Central Command.

Becoming an entrepreneur is an exciting and daunting prospect because while you get to enjoy the benefit of being your own boss, you also carry the risk of a failed business venture.

Many neophyte businessmen have run the risk of trying out new ideas and business concepts on their own, only to run out of steam and funds a few months down the line. Others go for highly original franchise business models only to see their hard-earned capital slowly shrink to nothingness, their franchisor unable to lend even a hand to the erstwhile investor.

While such stories have made a lot of would-be investors think twice about putting up their own money in business, a group of young entrepreneurs and migrant workers-turned-businessmen have found and continue to enjoy the proven success of the world-class convenience store franchise known as 7-Eleven.

SM Investment Corp

SM Investments made the disclosure to the Manila stock exchange but did not give other details about its participation in the project. The company has interests in shopping mall, banking and property development businesses.

The 40-hectare Bagong Nayong Pilipino-Manila Bay Integrated tourism project consists of a casino, hotels, shopping malls and other entertainment facilities.

Another local conglomerate, property and food company Alliance Global Group Inc., said in a separate statement it had bought 2.4 billion shares in a Philippine gaming company, Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., for P2.38 billion ($57.2 million). Travellers has a pending application to participate in the PAGCOR-led project.