by Nimfa Estrellado and Anne Monfero June 2, 2022 Van Richard Villaraza, Samuelito owner LUCENA CITY - Filipinos are known for their resili...
June 2, 2022
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| Van Richard Villaraza, Samuelito owner |
LUCENA CITY - Filipinos are known for their resilience, and the Philippines is full of inspiring stories that will motivate you to do your best and pursue your dreams. One such story involves a former Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) who returned to the Philippines, jobless and unable to find work but set up a food stall, impressing those around him with his hard work, ambition, and strong will to succeed.
Van Richard Villaraza, 40, a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration graduate, shared his success story of becoming one of the pioneers of the Filipino-Mexican food stall "Samuelito" in Lucena City, Quezon, and his fascinating journey before becoming who he is today.
Looking back on his time as an OFW in Singapore in 2008, he saw it as a chance to work and manage three Mexican restaurants. His contract expired after two years, and he decided to return to the Philippines with his wife and son, Samuel.
When they returned to the country in 2010, he applied for a job in Lucena but was turned down. He claims that OFWs are overqualified because of stereotyping or accustomed to high salaries.
As a result, he decided to start a food cart business where he could put his knowledge or whatever he learned while working abroad to good use.
As a former manager of three Mexican restaurants abroad, he searched for raw materials, locally available ingredients, and alternatives that could be used before returning to the Philippines. After all of that, they decided to launch and open a Mexican concept food cart in a food park called "Samuelito" in honor of their son Samuel Villaraza.
With this idea, Villaraza explained why he chose the Mexican concept. He claimed that Mexicans are similar to Filipinos in that they are always festive and enjoy cheerfully greeting their fellow citizens with a "hi" or "hello," which is how the phrase "Hola! Samuelito”.
Its bestsellers: Quesadilla, burritos, Tacos, and Nachos. They also serve in-house beverages like the Chili-Pineapple Margarita, Strawberry Mango, Citrus Malunggay shake, and various food options.
They opened a franchise in the provinces of Laguna and Cavite about five years ago, in 2014 or 2015. At the time, they had eight franchises in total.
Because of the global crisis caused by the coronavirus disease 2019, also known as the Covid-19 pandemic, has three existing franchises in Quezon's Capitol, Metro Gaisano, and Tree House Food Park.
Aside from that, Villaraza happily announced that two more stalls will open in June at Red-Paseo V's De Lucena Garden Food Park and Anding's Food Park.
Villaraza stated that Samuelito is a self-sustaining business amid the pandemic. He reiterated that he only invested once in the previous 12 years of Samuelito's operation; he doesn't recall recapitalizing or re-investing in a store because it was simply operating continuously.
From 2018 to 2020, Van worked on another site management contract in the United Arab Emirates to help the company expand.
Aside from that, he admitted that they went through a lot during the virus's spread because people were not allowed to go out; this is why they adapted by launching online delivery in March 2020, which helped them a lot during those times.
They can now say that they are finally returning to normalcy due to two upcoming stores.
Villaraza spoke on behalf of small and medium-sized businesses that they are hopeful and confident that this is the beginning of a new season. He is overjoyed for what they have accomplished and endured during the pandemic because they have survived.
When it comes to Villaraza’s goal, he said he’s pretty ambitious.
One of their goals is to be the first to introduce the Mexican food and beverage restaurant cart concept in Quezon province, Region 4A, and, more importantly, the Philippines.
Samuelito is expected to spread throughout CALABARZON within five to ten years.
Samuelito's business strategy includes general operating guidelines for quality food, customer service, cleanliness, and safety.
When they follow these guidelines on running the operation, they can give quality food to customer satisfaction.
The general guidelines for operations are F.S.CS Quality, Food Customer, Service, Cleanliness and Safety.
They are constantly training their employees to provide better customer service. Cleanliness is one of the most important aspects of running a food business because it ensures the safety of both customers and employees.
Online promotion and marketing are also part of their strategy, especially now that social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Tiktok are popular. This method will entice potential customers.
Aside from online marketing, they also promote their products through verbal and print advertisements.
Because it is their culture, Samuelito employees are honest, always happy, ready to assist and easy to approah. They trained them to be positive because they want their customers to feel festive like it's a fiesta, and happy with their food while also being satisfied with their experience.
In terms of community service, Samuelito actively participates in simple donation drives in which they visit schools with their high school batchmates to sponsor and donate pad papers and typewritings and provide teachers' materials.
They visit communities such as Barangays 8, Barra, Ransohan, and others to co-conduct feeding programs; this is their way of participating in community service by repaying customers' support to less fortunate people, especially during the pandemic.
According to Villaraza, having this business is one of his callings because he did not give up in the face of adversity. He admitted that he is used to failing. It's simply a matter of accepting it and moving on because shortcomings are a part of everyone's lives.
Helping other people isn’t new for Villaraza’s family.
He is a firm believer that success is measured not by financial and material gains but by one's impact on the lives of others. He shared that he once helped one of his employees with his studies, and when they met, his former employee happily shared that he now has his own business and a fulfilling job.
For Villaraza, success is when you help someone grow by sharing your knowledge with them.
Samuelito helped Van's family so much in 12 years because they built something and learned something as a result of it.
His son Samuel,14, promised to study hard and carry on the Samuelito legacy because it is named after him. It was music to Van's ears, and he believed Samuel would be able to learn quickly because he had been exposed to the operation since he was a child.
One of his specific messages to his fellow business owners is to keep going; this is a new beginning and chapter for their companies. "Continue, and never give up hope that you will be successful one day."
Villaraza encourages young people to work hard in school because education is the best foundation for future success. "Grab those future opportunities because they are numerous when you study," he advised.
He concluded with the quote, "Be the best of what you will be," if that is what you want to pursue; study hard; it is difficult to get into something you don't know.
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Become a Franchise Partner of Hola! Samuelito. Contact them today. Visit their FB Page for more information https://www.facebook.com/samuelitoph.
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