Sixty-one-year-old entrepreneur shares secret to her bam-i house business success

Jerry Gloria, owner of Mabolo Bam-i House, has grown her business and now offers 10 other food products aside from Bam-i, her specialty product. (CDN PHOTO/VICTOR SILVA)

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At fifty-four years old, most people this age could already be retired or would have been preparing for their retirement.

But not Jerry Gloria, who ventured into her food business six years before she became a senior citizen, with no formal culinary background except her experience in preparing bam-i for loved ones during special occasions.

Gloria, owner of the Mabolo Bam-i House along M.J. Cuenco Avenue in Barangay Mabolo, Cebu City, was not even bothered that she decided to give entrepreneurship a try at such a late time in her life.

“I really didn’t mind my age. I just didn’t want to be bored. I must have something to do. I guess that was what drove me,” Gloria, now 61 years old, told Cebu Daily News.

Business and family

She worked as an executive secretary for an Aboitiz company for 13 years and part-time as an insurance agent for PhilAm Life Insurance Plans before deciding to focus all her time on her food business.

That way, she would be able to spend more time with her husband and three sons since her venture was home-based.

Their family’s source of income then was her husband Cesar’s spare parts shop, JCG marketing, a portion of which eventually became a pick-up counter for Gloria’s bam-i business.

Today, the bam-i house already has its dedicated counter where customers pick up their orders.

Gloria admitted that when she started, the only recipe she knew was bam-i, a noodle dish made of canton (egg noodles) and sotanghon (vermicelli), vegetables, and spices, which she learned from her sister-in-law.

“I had no knowledge of cooking, only bam-i. I also had no background on operating a business,” she said.

Yet, Gloria did not let these circumstances keep her from achieving her goals. She was determined to learn.

Bam-i business

She founded Mabolo Bam-i House in 2010 after joining the Kapamilya Negosyo Na program organized by the University of San Carlos and ABS-CBN, where participants underwent seminars and were required to draft a business plan as a culminating activity.

The organizers chose 10 winners to receive P10,000 to jumpstart their proposed business as well as a grand prize winner to receive P15,000.

Gloria’s bam-i business proposal won P10,000 and was chosen as the grand prize winner of KNN batch 5 in 2010.

It wasn’t after three years that Gloria realized a food business was what she wanted to pursue for the long term.

Enhancing skills

In 2013, Gloria took up a culinary course at the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) and graduated with a National Certificate (NC) II.

She also continues to actively participate in post-KNN activities as well as mentorship programs offered by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Gloria said she only used to save P1,000 to P2,000 every week, but this has drastically increased over the last seven years.

More products

Since 2010, her business has grown to offer 10 more products including chicken lollipop, chicken rice, roasted chicken, chopsuey, cookies, empanada, fresh lumpia, lechon kawali, lumpia shanghai, and even packed meals.

What used to be a one-woman show has now grown into a three-member production team, made up of people whom Gloria said she trusts.

Secret to success

The secret to her business’ growth, Gloria said, was that it started small, giving it so much room to grow over time.

“When you start small, you learn as you go. When you’re the only one handling the business, you will know everything about it from A to Z,” she said.

Right now, Gloria is saving up to renovate her production area, which would require a capital of P5 million.

Gloria said she wants to elevate her production area so it will be safe from flooding during heavy rains and also put up a customer lounge in front of her pick-up counter where customers can have coffee while waiting.

She said she also hopes to set up a pick-up counter in the southern part of Cebu City five years from now so she could cater to customers there.