Building on relationships
REAL ESTATE is a highly competitive industry.
For Melesa Chua, 64, president and chief executive officer of CDC Holdings, Inc., the key to sustaining a successful real estate company lies in establishing deep, meaningful relationships with customers and stakeholders.
An Accountancy graduate from the University of Santo Tomas, Ms. Chua’s career began in the banking industry.
However, after building her own home in 1981, she realized that her true passion was in real estate and construction.
At the onset, Ms. Chua had no starting capital. What she did have was determination and resourcefulness.
Noting that her husband’s kitchenware and dining ware company had products with minor defects that were subject to disposal, she decided to consign these dining ware rejects with market vendors.
This practice allowed her to raise money to buy her first properties on installment. Ms. Chua then leveraged on these assets to grow her
capital into P3 million in three years, which formed her developments’ seed capital.
Ms. Chua explains that one of her first breaks happened before she formally founded CDC Holdings, when she purchased a piece of property near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at a low price. With adroit timing and diligent monitoring of the market, she was able to resell the property for a significant profit.
Ms. Chua then saw the growth, urgency and demand in real estate, leading her to eventually establish CDC Holdings, Inc.
Over the years, the company became known for being client- centered and for developing affordable and comfortable properties. From the planning stage to decorating, Ms. Chua, being hands-on, relates that she enjoys every facet of the construction process. Her projects have included building, construction and housing development for various socioeconomic brackets, socialized housing, mid- rise condominiums, townhomes and condotels.
Ms. Chua reveals that strong relationships are at the core of her business, a principle she continuously imparts to her employees, including after-sales service. “My relationship with my buyer shouldn’t end after I sell a property,” she stated.
Valuing and building client relationships, Ms. Chua explained that the company promotes pro-buyer policies. For example, when a property buyer loses his or her job and cannot pay the month amortization, instead of defaulting the clients’ purchases, the company sometimes suspends the property amortization until the client can continue the monthly payments. Because of such practices, CDC Holdings, Inc. has a backout rate of only five percent.
Besides clients, Ms. Chua also nurtures her relationship with the community. As a member of The Federation of Filipino- Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII), Ms. Chua gives back by building school buildings and providing rehabilitation assistance for typhoon Yolanda and Bicol earthquake victims.
She also endeavors to help people, particularly overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Back in 2006, Ms. Chua was invited to go to Saudi Arabia, describing the experience as an eyeopener. In Jeddah, Ms. Chua was welcomed by over 200 OFWs. Instead of focusing on marketing, she had a dialogue with the OFWs, in which she found out that the majority thought that real estate was only for the rich, and were unaware of investing in the future through property. Ms. Chua then realized her mission – to help the OFWs understand how real estate could help them with financial planning for their family’s future.
However, Ms. Chua knew that Saudi Arabia — a country where women are not even allowed to drive — would be a tough market to penetrate. Taking on the challenge, she used her relationships with sheikhs and ambassadors to speak to OFWs and learn about their needs.
Once she understood their problem, Ms. Chua focused on developing a solution: affordable mid-rise condominiums. The developments proved successful, addressing the concerns, financial capabilities and lifestyle of OFWs. In fact, several OFWs even bought multiple units, one for them to live in and others for rental income.
To this day, Ms. Chua continues nurturing her relationship with OFWs, sharing insights on how to protect and sustain their investments. Ms. Chua travels to the Middle East many times a year to meet with the OFW communities.
For her contributions to building schools and rehabilitation projects, Ms. Chua was recognized by the FFCCCII in 2015 for her civic service. She was also cited as one of the five leading women entrepreneurs in The Filipino Times in 2016.
Looking forward, Ms. Chua plans to continue catering to OFWs and opening up CDC Holdings to millennials. As an innovator, Ms. Chua is constantly looking out for locations and projects that will target the Filipino needs and that every property should be something that she herself would be proud to live in.
For would- be entrepreneurs, Ms. Chua highlights three important factors in building a business, namely: focus, planning and preparation.
“When you’re in this business, you have to be very detailed and hands-on,” she advises.
The official airline of the Entrepreneur of the Year Philippines 2017 is Philippine Airlines.
Media sponsors are BusinessWorld and the ABS-CBN News Channel.
Banquet Sponsors are Bench, Bounty Fresh Food, Inc.; CDO Foodsphere; Fiori Di Marghi; Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc.; Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc.; Intermed Marketing Philippines, Inc.; Jollibee Foods Corp.; LBC; SteelAsia and Universal Harvester, Inc.
The winners of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines 2017 will be announced on 18 October 2017 in an awards banquet at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel.
The Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines will represent the country in the World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2018 in Monte Carlo, Monaco in June 2018. The Entrepreneur Of The Year program is produced globally by Ernst & Young.