Financial Adviser: 5 Business Lessons Everyone Can Learn from Nico Bolzico, Founder and CEO of Bolzico Beef

One of the greatest challenges in entrepreneurship is understanding what makes a business succeed in a particular market. Even entrepreneurs with industry knowledge can struggle when local conditions differ from their expectations. Argentine entrepreneur Nico Bolzico learned this through several ventures before building a successful business around premium Argentine beef in the Philippines.

Born and raised in Santa Fe, Argentina, Bolzico grew up in a family involved in cattle farming. Although agriculture was part of his childhood, his early career took him beyond the family business. He studied at Universidad de San Andrés, one of Argentina's leading private universities, before pursuing a master's degree at Universidad del CEMA, an institution known for its economics, finance and business programs. His graduate studies also took him to Regent's College in London. He later worked in international economic research, which brought him to different countries before he arrived in the Philippines in 2011.

His background in cattle farming eventually led him to introduce premium Argentine Angus beef to the Philippine market. Bolzico Beef initially supplied imported beef to restaurants before expanding into direct consumer sales. Together with his brother-in-law, restaurateur Erwan Heussaff, he later established Chingolo Deli & Kitchen.

In 2020, the partners opened Chingolo along Chino Roces Avenue in Makati, just two weeks before the pandemic forced restaurants to close. The establishment combined a specialty butcher shop with a restaurant that served Argentine beef. Despite the disruption, the business found new opportunities through online sales and eventually expanded to Molito Lifestyle Center in Alabang.

Today, Bolzico Beef operates through multiple distribution channels, including restaurant dining, retail sales, wholesale supply and online delivery. Chingolo has also become known for its Argentine steaks and dishes adapted to Filipino tastes. Bolzico is also developing a separate food cart business called Empanadas by Bolzico Beef, with plans to expand to as many as 100 outlets.

Beyond his businesses, Bolzico is widely recognized for his humorous social media presence and his marriage to actress Solenn Heussaff. However, his entrepreneurial career reveals another side of his personality, shaped by difficult business decisions, financial setbacks and the challenges of building a company in a foreign market.

How did Bolzico overcome his early business failures and build a successful food business in the Philippines? What lessons can other entrepreneurs learn from his experience?

Here are five business lessons from Nico Bolzico, founder of Bolzico Beef and co-founder of Chingolo Deli & Kitchen:

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Not every business venture succeeds, even when entrepreneurs have sufficient experience, resources and confidence in their ideas. Market conditions and operational challenges can produce outcomes that differ significantly from their original expectations.

Business failures become valuable only when entrepreneurs understand what went wrong and use that knowledge to make better decisions. However, learning from failure requires an honest assessment of past decisions.

Entrepreneurs must be willing to question their assumptions and acknowledge mistakes. Simply trying again without understanding the reasons for failure may only lead to repeated losses.

What stands out from Nico Bolzico's experience is his willingness to acknowledge his mistakes, accept financial losses and continue pursuing opportunities in an industry he believed in.

When his mechanized farming venture in Isabela failed, he did not blame Philippine agrarian reform or the fragmented landholdings that made large-scale mechanization impractical. Instead, he acknowledged that he had failed to conduct sufficient research before committing his savings. Entrepreneurs cannot learn much from failure if they attribute every setback to circumstances beyond their control.

Bolzico's experience also shows that expertise in an industry does not necessarily guarantee success in a different market. Having grown up in a farming family in Argentina, he understood the advantages of agricultural mechanization.

However, he assumed that methods successfully used in Argentina could be replicated in the Philippines without fully considering local operating conditions. His mistake suggests that technical knowledge and practical market understanding are not always the same.

Bolzico lost his entire investment in the mechanized farming venture, yet he subsequently established an agricultural laboratory, explored biomass projects and eventually entered the animal feed business. He regarded failure as a difficult experience but not necessarily a reason to stop pursuing new opportunities.

Despite repeated setbacks, Bolzico remained committed to agriculture while exploring different business models. His approach shows that entrepreneurs can remain passionate about an industry without becoming attached to a particular business idea. Knowing when to abandon an unsuccessful venture and pursue other opportunities is just as important as persistence.

“I was born into a farming family,” he says. “My family has been involved in farming for generations in Argentina. We raise cattle and grow corn and soybeans. I grew up surrounded by horses, cattle, and vast pieces of land. That's really what's in my blood.

“So when I came to the Philippines 15 years ago, the first thing I tried to do was replicate what my family was doing in Argentina. I traveled around the country and went to Echague, Isabela, where I saw how corn was planted where it was basically done with carabaos and by hand.

“That was how things were done in Argentina in the 1920s. They were using the same equipment to plant corn that we now have in museums in Argentina. It was a plow, you know, the one used to plow the land. That was still being used when I saw it in Isabela. So I sent a video to my dad.

“My dad said, ‘Let's help. Let's do something. Let's make a difference,’ right? So I said, ‘Okay, let's go.’  I put all my savings into importing agricultural machinery. We brought in a mechanical planter, spraying and fumigation equipment, and tractors. Although tractors were already available in the Philippines, we were also planning to bring in harvesters.

“We were supposed to have a deal to plant 2,000 hectares in Isabela. But there was something we were not aware of, and that was my lack of research. It was the agrarian reform in the Philippines, where you cannot easily consolidate large parcels of land.

“But the machinery was already there. It was big, and I had already paid for it, so we brought it in. Even the Argentine suppliers of the machinery were very excited. We were going to be the first to introduce this kind of equipment in the Philippines. There was a lot of excitement around it, so long story short, out of the 2,000 hectares we were supposed to plant, we were only able to plant 32 hectares.

“We thought there would be large parcels of land. Instead, they were all small parcels, right? Some were three hectares, others four hectares. It was very difficult to consolidate them. And it's almost impossible to operate that way.

“Imagine having a tractor with something like Optimus Prime behind you. Normally, you could plant 70 or 80 hectares per day. But if you have to move that equipment from one three-hectare parcel to another, all the efficiency of mechanization disappears.

“I tried to replicate what my family was doing in Argentina here in the Philippines. But I was very new, and I didn't understand how things really worked. So I went broke. I lost 100 percent of the money I invested because the machinery couldn't be used.

“After that, I established an agricultural laboratory because I felt there was a gap in the market. When you buy raw materials to produce animal feeds, or when you purchase agricultural products, you need laboratory analysis to determine their specifications and quality. At that time, I felt there weren't enough proper laboratories offering those services. So we established a laboratory in Makati, but that business also failed. Not enough sales, I guess. After the laboratory failed, I tried several other ventures.

“We explored biomass projects, but they didn't work. We also tried planting a particular type of grass that could be harvested and burned to generate electricity. That didn't work either.

“It was a very expensive learning process for me, but I love agriculture. I believe in agriculture. I feel that agriculture is not the most profitable business, and it's definitely not the easiest business. But for me, it's one of the most rewarding businesses. Take my dad, for example. We have a cattle farm in Argentina. If you look at the return on investment relative to the capital invested, it's probably only around two or three percent.

“That's very low. Most people today wouldn't invest so much money in cattle farming for such a small return. But my dad once told me, ‘What other business rewards you personally as much as producing food for people?’ And there's also the opportunity to be in touch with nature, to spend time outdoors, and to understand what this planet gives us.

“You can only experience those things when you work in agriculture. That's what makes the agricultural sector so unique. I think many people who work in agriculture are passionate about it. Because if it were purely about making money, I don't know if they would do it. So while I was involved in all these different ventures, I started with corn planting, and it also failed. I established the laboratory, and it failed. I tried biomass projects, and they failed. Then my partners and I established Vienovo Animal Feeds. We produce animal feeds for pigs, poultry, rabbits, cattle, and horses. For pigs, poultry, and other animals, we are a multi-species feed producer. We produce feeds for practically every type of farm animal, and that business is doing well today. That was the first company that didn't fail.”

Market conditions can change unexpectedly because of economic disruptions or shifts in consumer behavior. A business model that works well under normal circumstances may become less effective when these conditions change. Entrepreneurs must therefore recognize when their existing strategies are no longer suitable and be prepared to make adjustments.

When traditional sales channels become less effective, businesses may need to explore new distribution methods. The objective is to preserve the value offered to customers while finding alternative ways to deliver it. However, adapting to market conditions does not always mean abandoning an existing business model. It may involve modifying certain aspects of the business while retaining its core strengths.

Adaptability is not simply about surviving difficult circumstances but also about recognizing opportunities and responding to changing customer needs. Entrepreneurs who can distinguish between temporary disruptions and long-term market changes are better positioned to refine their strategies, manage uncertainty and sustain business growth.

Bolzico understood that changes in market conditions do not necessarily eliminate business opportunities. Sometimes, they create new ones. His approach suggests that entrepreneurs must distinguish between the fundamental value of their businesses and the methods used to deliver that value to customers.

When the pandemic disrupted restaurant operations, Bolzico understood that the closure of dining establishments did not mean demand for beef had disappeared. Customers still needed food, but they required a different way to purchase it. Rather than abandon Chingolo's business model entirely, he shifted to online sales while retaining the company's core strengths, including its premium Argentine beef and established supply network.

Bolzico was also willing to act despite uncertainty. Although he could not predict how long the pandemic would last, he based his decisions on something he understood: people would continue to purchase food. Effective adaptation does not require entrepreneurs to predict the future accurately, but it does require them to identify opportunities based on customer needs and available resources.

Adaptability also became necessary when Chingolo expanded. Higher sales placed greater pressure on production and preparation, which led Bolzico to establish a commissary. This decision reflected an understanding that business growth requires more than attracting additional customers. It also requires operating systems capable of supporting higher demand.

Bolzico's decisions suggest that adaptability requires entrepreneurs to understand what should change and what should remain. During the pandemic, he changed how products reached customers. As the business expanded, he changed how products were prepared and distributed. In both situations, he preserved the company's core strengths while adjusting its operations to meet changing market conditions.

“Once Vienovo was doing well, Erwan came to me one day and said, ‘Look, there's news that Argentina has just been approved to export beef to the Philippines.’ This was back in 2017, I believe. Then he said, ‘Why don't we import beef?’

“I said, ‘Okay, I know everyone in the beef industry in Argentina because my dad supplies cattle to many of the exporters, right?’ So we decided to start importing beef to test the market.

“Before that, Argentina had not been approved to export beef to the Philippines. You need country-to-country approval, and the Philippines had just approved Argentina.

“In the beginning, we were importing beef mainly for ourselves because I eat a lot of beef. But we also started supplying to different restaurants that were consuming our beef. That was how Erwan and I started the business together.

“One day, Erwan told me, ‘Look, there's a location along Chino Roces Avenue, next to the exit of Dasmariñas Village. Why don't we get it and open a restaurant?’ I said, ‘Okay.’ So we took the location and established a deli in front and a restaurant at the back. We called it Chingolo.

“We opened the restaurant just two weeks before the pandemic. At first, the restaurant was doing well. We were selling our beef, and the concept was somewhat similar to a steakhouse, but suddenly, the pandemic hit, just after we had opened.

“Erwan was in Australia at the time. He spent the first year of the pandemic there, so I had to figure out what to do. I told myself, ‘I cannot close another business of mine. How many businesses am I going to close?’

“So I went to the restaurant and talked to our people. I said, ‘Look, I don't know what's going to happen, but people still need to eat, right? So let's change the business model. Instead of feeding people in the restaurant, let's feed people in their homes.’

“We transformed the entire restaurant into a supply chain operation. We started cutting beef, vacuum-sealing it, and selling it online. Of course, during the pandemic, everyone was spending more time online. So the business did very well because we were selling a lot of beef through online orders.

“We actually thrived during the pandemic. That was also when the Bolzico Beef brand became more widely known. Bolzico Beef is the brand of our beef products.

“After the pandemic, we were happy because the business had survived. Our cash flow was good, and we were making money. It was still a small business, but at least we had survived. That was the important thing. When we reopened the restaurant, it became a destination. People liked the concept, and many customers started visiting our Chino Roces location.

“Then another opportunity came along. At that time, our Chino Roces restaurant occupied only about 100 square meters. We eventually expanded it to 200 square meters.

“But we also found this location in Alabang, which has approximately 700 square meters. We opened this branch about two years ago, and everything changed. Our sales volume increased significantly, and the business expanded. This location became a huge success.

“I think we're now serving an average of around 500 to 600 people a day here. But with higher sales came greater pressure on our operations. We needed to cut more beef, prepare more empanadas, and increase our production capacity. We realized that we had to expand our back-end operations.

“So we decided that we could no longer keep all our operations inside the restaurants. We opened a commissary to centralize our production and preparation activities. Today, the commissary supports our two restaurants. It handles the cutting and vacuum-sealing of beef before distributing the products to our branches.

“Customers can buy our beef from the deli or come to the restaurant to eat. We also continue to sell a significant volume through online delivery. The commissary gives us the capacity to expand into two additional restaurants.”

Authenticity can be an important competitive advantage. However, maintaining authenticity does not mean ignoring customer preferences. Even high-quality products may struggle to attract buyers who are unfamiliar with them.

Entrepreneurs must understand which characteristics make their products unique and which aspects can be modified to appeal to a broader market. Presenting unfamiliar products in ways that customers already understand can reduce hesitation and encourage them to try something new.

The challenge is to preserve the qualities that distinguish a product while making it accessible to customers. Striking the right balance can help businesses attract new customers without sacrificing their competitive advantage.

Bolzico balances authenticity with local preferences by preserving the quality and distinctive characteristics of Argentine beef while making it more appealing to Filipino consumers.

His decision to use unfamiliar Argentine beef cuts in familiar dishes such as sisig is particularly important. Customers may hesitate to order a product they do not recognize, regardless of its quality. By presenting it through dishes they already enjoy, Bolzico reduced the uncertainty associated with trying something new. This allowed him to introduce Argentine beef without requiring customers to understand its different cuts or traditional preparations.

Another important aspect is Bolzico's decision to preserve the characteristics that distinguish Argentine beef from competing products. His emphasis on cattle breed, feeding practices and traditional grilling methods suggests that authenticity forms part of the company's competitive positioning. These qualities provide a basis for differentiation in a market where customers have numerous alternatives.

However, authenticity becomes commercially valuable only when customers can appreciate the difference. Bolzico's strategy connects these product characteristics with benefits customers can recognize.

“We came up with the name Chingolo for two things,” he says. “First, it's a bird. It's my dad's favorite bird, which we have at home. It's a small bird that sings every morning at my house. But it's also a piece of beef. It's a small piece of beef that they call chingolo. And then it sounds funny, so Erwan and I decided to call it Chingolo, which is a bird and a cut of beef, but it has a good sound, right?

“We didn't come up with the name Bolzico Beef. What happened was that one of the restaurants buying beef from us at the very beginning, before we had our own restaurant, asked me, ‘What do we call your beef?’

“And I forgot to answer. I forgot to answer the message. This was the chef of Bondi & Bourke, who was an Australian guy. Then one day, I went to his restaurant, and I saw Bolzico Beef on the menu. He had written Bolzico Beef on his menu because I forgot to answer. So he put my last name and Beef. And that's where we got it.

“Then people started talking about it, and Wildflour also put Bolzico Beef on its menu. And that's how it started. The name stuck as Bolzico Beef. If you want the story behind it, my family produces beef and supplies cattle to our exporter, who is also our supplier.

“So maybe I buy beef from my family or maybe not. I don't know. But it's irrelevant because all the farmers who supply them follow the same standards. So that's why the story is Bolzico Beef, because it comes from my family farm.

“I think one thing we learned from the business is that if you need to explain what you're selling, it's hard to sell. But if people already know what it is, it's much easier. For example, Matambre is a cut of beef that you don't know. So it's very hard to sell. It's a very Argentinian cut of beef. But when we make it into sisig, everyone knows what sisig is, right? So then it moves a lot, and people try it. And that's how it starts moving.

“So what we're doing today is we're a steakhouse with pure Argentinian beef that we import, but adapted to the Philippines. We sell steaks, of course, but we also have a lot of Filipino dishes like sisig, salpicao, tapa, which is not Filipino but is known in the Philippines. So we have all these dishes adapted to the Philippines.

“Yes, so we have milanesa, an Argentinian dish. We also have tacos, which are a bit Mexican, but they're also known here. Argentinian beef, the beef that we import here, is 100 percent premium Argentinian Angus.

“For a cow to be Angus, it has to be 100 percent Angus. The mother and the father have to be 100 percent Angus. It cannot be a crossbreed, right? Sometimes you have Brangus, you have Braford. Those are mixes, right? Ours is 100 percent Angus.

“The beef that we breed here comes from youngsters. Youngsters means males weighing 380 to 400 kilos, no more than that. So they're a maximum of two and a half to three years old. That's very tender and cleaner.

“And then the other very important aspect is nutrition, right? What the animal eats. Our animals, like all the animals in Argentina, are pasture-raised and humanely raised. Basically, for two and a half years of their lives, the animals walk in the grass fields and eat only natural grass. And they have one hectare per cow, per animal. That's how they're raised in Argentina. Only at the end of their lives, maybe during the last one to two months, do they eat some corn to finish them. But they're mostly pasture-raised. So it's very natural.

“When you eat our beef, you can really taste it. It's very beefy. There's some marbling, but it's not crazy marbling like Wagyu or some American beef. It's beef that will make you busog, right? You won't feel like you've eaten so much fat, with so much fat in your mouth and so much fat on your palate.  That won't happen to you. It's beef that you will eat, you will feel good, and you will crave it afterward.

“But on top of all that is how we cook it. Here, we cook it on the grill, 100 percent on the grill, with charcoal and wood. Basically, when you cook it on the grill, the fat drops as you cook it. You're not cooking it in a pan where the fat melts and you cook the beef in it, right? On the grill, the fat drops, and you cook it more slowly.

“Plus, there's the smoke, so you will feel that smokiness, flavor, and smell when you try it. Combined with the beefy, soft taste, it’s not super beefy, but it has a soft beef taste. And there's some marbling that gives you that little bit of fat kick.”

Understanding customer needs requires more than collecting feedback or monitoring sales. Entrepreneurs must pay attention to customer behavior and recognize the factors that influence purchasing decisions.

Customers do not always express their dissatisfaction directly. Some may hesitate to complain, while others simply stop buying without explaining why. Entrepreneurs must therefore find ways to identify problems before they affect customer loyalty. Direct interaction and regular feedback can reveal weaknesses that may not be immediately apparent from sales reports.

Listening to customers is not simply about responding to complaints. It is about understanding their expectations and continuously improving products and services. Businesses that make customer satisfaction a priority are better positioned to earn trust and sustain long-term growth.

Bolzico believes that understanding customers requires more than relying on sales reports or feedback from restaurant managers. By personally serving diners, he can observe their reactions and identify problems that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Customers do not always express dissatisfaction openly. Some may say everything is fine out of politeness, even when they are unhappy with the food or service. Bolzico pays attention to customer behavior, such as unfinished plates, to understand what they may be reluctant to say.

Bolzico also understands that customer loyalty depends on consistent satisfaction. He estimates that 70 percent of Chingolo's customers are regular diners, which helps the business maintain sales even during slower months. However, loyalty requires more than delivering good service once. Customers must have positive experiences every time they return.

“One of the advantages of Chingolo is that we keep it simple,” Bolzico says. “We keep the menu simple. It's really based on beef. We import good beef, and we focus on being very competitive and importing large volumes of beef. So that translates into good quality but affordable prices. The moment you add lamb and other stuff, you start dealing with other things, and it becomes a way messier business model, right?

“How we mange our menu is basically, you first run the data, right? What moves and what doesn't move? Any dish that doesn't move, remove it. Because any dish that doesn't move, you have to remove it.

“And then it can be dictated in two ways, right? For example, when we order beef from Argentina, we order a full container. And I cannot say, ‘Give me the ribeyes and the striploins only.’ No, Argentina says, ‘You want good prices? You take a lot.’ So we take different cuts, right? And we have to take them. If I want a good price, I have to take everything they send us. I cannot choose and say, ‘Give me these two cuts only.’ Because if not, I have to buy from a trader, and they will sell it to me at double the price, right?

“So when they do that, it dictates a big part of what we're going to serve. For example, one of the cuts of beef that we need to buy a lot of now is skirt. So because of that, we created a dish called beef fajitas. People know what fajitas are, right? But if you read about it, our fajitas are 200 grams of grilled skirt.

“So you need to adapt. But what's also very important for us is that Filipinos need to know it. And then, of course, it's about understanding what Filipinos like. For example, what do you call it? Burger steak, like the burger steak they serve in Jollibee. So what we do is we make our Bolzico Beef Burger Steak. Filipinos know what burger steak is. They know the quality of our beef, so we put the two together and carry that dish.

“What I love about this business, besides the fact that it's more successful and doing well, is that I like the people around me, and it's about serving food. Serving food is very, very special.

“If you come here on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday nights, I like to serve the food myself. I think serving food has a couple of things. First, from the business perspective, it's the only way to know if you're doing well or doing something wrong.

“When you serve the food, first, you see how it comes out. You place it on people's tables, and you can see their faces. Then you can see what they eat and whether they really like it or not. That's very, very, important.

“And then you go and ask. Because the problem is, in the food and beverage business, I realized that if you make a mistake, you will not see the impact of that mistake immediately. You will see that mistake in three months. If we're doing something wrong today, our sales will be affected in two or three months.

“Because that's when you start losing clients, so you need to see that mistake way ahead. The only way to see that mistake is to be there. You have to see the people. You need to talk to the people. You need to get that information. My feeling is that I have to be there. I need to understand it.

“When you talk to people, you realize a lot of things. For example, if the manager asks, ‘How was everything?’ Sometimes people are shy, so they just say, ‘Oh, it was okay.’ And they will not say anything. But you need to be able to see what was okay and what wasn't. You need to understand. If it was okay, why is there still food on your plate? Why don't you want to take it home? Things like that.

“And I also feel it's part of the operation to understand the service. You need to understand the entire operation, from the moment the container arrives until you serve the beef on the plate. There are so many different steps and so many different bottlenecks that you need to understand all of them, because you might have a problem in one of them.

“Today, we have 70 percent regulars in both branches. So even in a low month like August, we're still good with sales because we have regulars. But the only way to build regulars is for them to be satisfied three, four, five, six, or seven times.

“And when they come for the eighth time, they're still satisfied. And if there was one time they were not satisfied, that issue was addressed properly so they still left satisfied. It's very different to have an issue and leave upset. You can have an issue, but you leave happy.

“And if we don't have that mindset in approaching the business, then we're not really understanding that we're in the hospitality business. So for me, the only way is that I need to be here. I need to see the people. I need to serve them. I need to understand them, to breathe with them. But at the same time, serving food to people is one of the most rewarding things in life.”

Employees are among the most valuable assets of any business. Their commitment, attitude and performance can directly affect customer satisfaction and the company's long-term success. Entrepreneurs must therefore create an environment where employees feel valued, respected and motivated to perform their best.

Taking care of employees goes beyond paying competitive salaries. It also involves providing benefits, recognizing their contributions and offering opportunities for career advancement. When employees believe that the company cares about their welfare and professional growth, they are more likely to remain loyal and take greater responsibility for their work.

Building a successful business requires more than hiring capable people. Entrepreneurs must earn their employees' trust and give them reasons to care about the company's success. A committed workforce can help improve service quality, reduce employee turnover and support long-term growth.

Bolzico treats employee welfare as an investment in business performance rather than simply an operating expense. His decision to offer salaries above prevailing market rates, provide private health insurance and distribute the entire service charge to employees reflects his belief that taking care of workers can produce benefits for the company.

His approach challenges the conventional practice of controlling labor costs to improve profitability. Although higher compensation increases operating expenses, it can also help businesses attract capable employees, reduce turnover and improve service quality.

In the hospitality industry, where customer satisfaction depends heavily on employee performance, these benefits can be especially valuable. Bolzico also understands that employee motivation goes beyond financial rewards. By promoting managers internally, he gives workers opportunities for career advancement while developing leaders who already understand the business.

More importantly, he believes that employee loyalty must be earned rather than demanded. By treating workers with respect and giving them confidence, he encourages them to take responsibility for the business even without constant supervision.

“One of the biggest lessons I learned from my failures is the importance of focus,” Bolzico says. “Don't try to do everything. Don't try to do many things. Like really focus on one thing and do it well. So, right now, I’m focusing on Chingolo. I wanna do this very, very well. I don't want to do many other businesses.

“I think, as a business owner, the role of a business owner should be to give confidence to Filipinos, and they will thrive. People are the number one asset of your business. If you want to succeed in business in the Philippines, you have to work with Filipinos.

“Second is value. People will only go to you if you are bringing value. For example, I always check that our beef is of very high quality, but I also always make sure that we have the best-priced beef. It doesn't matter if you have the best beef and you sell it for P10,000. Whenever someone sits, eats, and pays for it, they need to look at the bill and say, ‘This was good value. So I'm coming back.’ And value means good price, good quality, good service, good issue management, and good ambience. You need to feel like this is a valuable thing.

“Some entrepreneurs will tell you that you're solving a problem. That's how they approach it. I think the way that translates to restaurants is that you're bringing value. At the end of the day, it's like you're cooking for people. Good, fresh ingredients, properly prepared, properly served, with love, with care, and properly priced. You cannot beat that. You cannot beat that. So I think that's the thing.

“Filipinos and Argentinians are very similar, to be honest. It's because Filipinos are very Latin. Filipinos are not Asians for me, in my opinion. Like me, I'm from Latin America. I don't think I could live in any Asian country in the world but the Philippines. And the reason is that this feels like home. Because people behave pretty much the same. Very loud. Very family-oriented. You know, the mother is the boss, the wife is the boss. I can see all these things. It's all about getting together, friends, and family. So it's very, very similar. I think they're both very similar.

“If you ask me whether I have more issues with Filipinos or with foreigners, I have more issues with foreigners. I feel we should work with more Filipinos. But I also feel, and I don't know if it's the rule or not, that it depends on how you treat them.

“If you check the salaries here in Chingolo, we offer 30 to 50 percent above market for base salaries. One hundred percent of the service charge goes to the workers. The restaurant doesn't keep anything. They also have full health insurance. Not just SSS, but full private health insurance.

“So we're really taking care of them because when we take care of them, they take care of us. I don't have lazy people. I left for a month for vacation. When I came back, the place looked nicer than when I left. And that's when you feel that people are really taking care of the place, whether it's Makati or Molito. And it's because we take care of them.

“So I feel that sometimes, if there are complaints about Filipinos and all that, it's like, wait, how do you treat them, right? If you treat your people right, they will treat you right. I think it's a two-way thing, and I think that's one of our secrets here.

“We don't have people leaving. If someone leaves here, they leave because they're going to Dubai or because they're going to work on a cruise ship. But nobody is quitting in the sense of saying, ‘Oh, I'll go to another restaurant.’ We actually have a problem with other restaurants because their people are coming to us.Because we're a hospitality company. So if you have people who are not happy, how will that translate to your clients, right? Pay your people well. Don't try to cut them short.

“I also say that they should be able to progress. Like what I always tell them, ‘Okay, are you guys saving money? If you're not saving money, why aren't you saving money?’ It's because they're traveling, so they're saving memories, right? So there's progress in their lives.

“We don't hire managers. We promote managers. We will never hire a new person to be the boss of any of the people here. These people become the bosses. We hire people to start from the bottom and progress.

“I'm from Argentina. I've been in the Philippines since May 2011. That's more than 15 years already. I consider myself Filipino now. I don't consider myself a foreigner here because, for me, this is my home. My daughters are Filipino, my wife is Filipino, and I plan to live here forever. This is my home today.”

Henry Ong, RFP, is an entrepreneur, financial planning advocate and business advisor. Email Henry for business advice [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @henryong888