Remembering Nedy Tantoco — My patroness, friend and favorite subject
So much, indeed, has been said of the iconic and legendary Nedy Tantoco, Queen of Luxury Retail in the Philippines. I admire and respect her for her great achievements as a CEO and Rustan’s chairman, but I love her from the bottom of my heart for the cari
Working on the biography of her father, Bienvenido r. tantoco Sr., Philippine Ambassador to the Holy See, which was launched in 2019, and her mom’s, which has yet to be launched, has allowed me the joy and privilege of working with Zenaida “Nedy” r. tantoco (also known as Zrt to the rustan’s family).
While ours was a working relationship, between a client and his patroness, i had a few up-close and personal moments with her even outside of work.
the most recent was when she and her partner, the gentleman Patrick Jacinto, joined our DAILY TRIBUNE team in the celebration of our 23rd anniversary and the birthday of our lady publisher, Chingbee Fernandez. together with other viP guests, including rupert Jacinto, we sat in a corner of the Peak at the Grand Hyatt. Ma’am Nedy, as i call her, was most gracious, conversing with us and graciously shaking hands with the editors introduced to her. one could sense a certain shyness, and yet, she was all smiles and was asking questions about the DAILY TRIBUNE. A good conversationalist, she talked animatedly with the lady beside her, Chabeng, or Mrs. Winston Garcia. She and Patrick left in an hour, but not after partaking in some cocktail food.
the first time i met her was in the early part of the century when i was the principal writer of Seagull Philippines, a publishing house that specializes in coffee-table books. But it was for a freelance assignment for Hola Magazine that brought me to the beautiful tantoco home, her parents’, in North Forbes Park. As i expected, it was one impressive abode with artworks by the masters, mostly Amorsolo, and antique jars eliciting from a first-time guest awe and admiration.
equally impressive was an elegant merienda buffet spread of a leg of Jabugo ham, pasta and tiny sandwiches.
With us were Nedy’s sisters, Menchu lopez, Marilou
Pineda, Marilen and tokie enriquez. the article was about their memories of their mother Glecy. As the afternoon went on, it was obvious to me that her sisters loved, adored and honored her being their big sister.
Her mom’s foremost protege
Glecy had been a dedicated mother who taught her children the value of work, as each of them, at an early age, learned the ropes of the retail trade when they were still children, whether assisting in the gift-wrapping department cashier’s desk or package claims booth, as they would either hand out the deposited items or even carry them all the way to the customers’ cars. Nedy thus learned merchandising and personalized service from her mother Glecy at an early age. together with rico, the eldest and only boy in the brood, Nedy would accompany their mom and dad, or sometimes just their mom, to shopping expeditions abroad to buy apparel, cosmetics, toiletry and home ornaments that Glecy intended to sell in Manila. that early, Nedy met the likes of Christian Dior and other top designers and manufacturers. it was an early exposure that prepared her for the future.
Her closeness to her mom was palpable. She recalled once getting sick in her convent school in Madrid when, after a few hours, her mom arrived all the way from Manila.
“i was surprised and i thought that she had been informed of my illness, but it turned out she just had this hunch that i needed her and so she flew to Madrid fast,” she recalled. it was a connection between mother and daughter that would last for Glecy’s lifetime. Being the eldest girl, Nedy was her mom’s right hand and confidante.
“One learned from just observing her,” Nedy told me. “And she knew what to buy to bring home to Manila, knowing that a friend or this society lady would definitely buy it. And she would always be right.”
She recalled in one of her interviews how the grand lady of National Book Store, Nanay Socorro Ramos, had kept through the years a beautiful necklace that, she narrated to Nedy, That her mom bought it in one of her trips. “She wrote me a note saying that she found just the right piece of jewelry for me. To my amazement, it was exactly what I had been looking for,” the old lady reminisced.
It is that third eye, or intuition, that Nedy also developed through time. She simply knew what would click, and when she started Stores Specialists, Inc., which brought in prestigous foreign brands, she had in mind the many Filipinos who wanted only the best of the world for themselves. Nedy indeed understood what her mother wanted.
WRITING LOLO BENNY’S BIOGRAPHY
Immediately after my first interview with her, I wrote her a letter and proposed the idea of writing her father’s biography. After a few weeks, she wrote back and asked that I visit her. And that was when we got to know each other even better. On my part, as I laid my cards on the table and told her who I was and what my background was, I made sure to mention that my father was an older brother of a dear friend of her mom, Rosario “Chayong” Silvestre Lee, whose friendship with the Tantoco couple went back to the postwar days when they were just starting their businesses and recovering from the ravages of war. My uncle, George Lee, belonged to a clique that included Benny Tantoco, Al Yuchengco, and Romy Villonco, among other young businessmen. Later, my Auntie Chayong and Glecy Tantoco would even become closer when they joined the first Jaycerette chapter in the Philippines along with the young Eva Kalaw.
Nedy was elated to know that I was my aunt’s nephew, an aunt whom she saw a lot of both in their store and at home during parties and that somehow got us started on the right footing.
The next few months would see me constantly seeing the Tantoco family members all through the third generation, relatives and the friends of the old Tantoco couple and, of course, I would have an updating meeting with Nedy now and then. With all these interviews, it was like I was at home in the Tantoco residence, with Don Bienvenido himself telling the kitchen staff “to feed Jojo very well. Ayaw kong magugutom siya (I don’t want him to feel hungry).”
I am told that she was happiest when she was with her family and her bosom friends.
In time, when I had written the first draft, Nedy and I met once a week to discuss the various chapters. With us mostly were her sisters Marilen and Tokie who both contributed their comments and suggestions. But mostly, it was Nedy who was on top of how the book would go, including the choice of pictures.
In time, we finally launched it during the birthday celebration of Don Bienvenido in 2019, and Nedy made sure I would attend, of course. She gifted me with a beautiful suit from Rustan’s, no less than one of those top Italian brands. It was my first suit and I wore it to many events in the coming years until I could afford to buy one myself during the annual sales of SSI brands. And that, too, was how I got my first Ferragamo.
When her father passed on during the pandemic, she had me picked up by the Rustan’s driver and brought me to the family mausoleum at the Manila Memorial Park for the ninth day prayers. Her son Anton, the master of ceremonies, introduced me to the Rustan’s executives and family friends who were present. It was a special moment as I received a very warm applause. Earlier, during the funeral Mass before the remains of Don Bienvenido were interred, the Papal Nuncio, who presided over the concelebrated Mass read passages from the old gentleman’s biography, Ambassador Bienvenido R. Tantoco Sr. — An Appointment with the Vatican. It was an honor to be thus mentioned on that somber occassion.
A GENEROUS FRIEND
Later on, we would start the book on her mother Glecy, and it was going on smoothly and I had begun writing even if I also needed to interview more key informants. But then, along the way, I got very sick and had to undergo a triple heart bypass. Nedy called me and spoke of her concern. “Oh, Jojo, I just found out from Anton (San Diego) when we were having dinner. I am so worried about you. How are you?” She then sent me a substantial amount through my GCash number. And that Christmas, she sent me a large hamper of fruits and reminded me to stick to my diet.
The biography of Glecy Tantoco has yet to come out. Nedy passed on before I could show my first draft. We had agreed on submitting it to her at the end of February. I asked to be closeted so I could focus and she agreed. She offered a condo unit at the BGC, thanks to sir Patrick, and I was about to move there when she got sick.
I heard of her passing the morning after from her best friend Babette Aquino, who informed me that her friend Nedy “went home to the Lord.” It was indeed a piece of very sad news for everyone whose lives she touched but most especially for her friends, family and staff who worked directly under her including the loyal kasambahay and drivers.
It is that third eye, or intuition, that Nedy also developed through time. She simply knew what would click, and when she started Stores Specialists Inc., which brought in prestigous foreign brands, she had in mind the many Filipinos who wanted only the best of the world for themselves. Nedy indeed understood what her mother wanted.
I am told that she was happiest when she was with her family and her bosom friends, among them Babette, Mario Katigbak and the rest of their gang, including DJ Lopez when the latter had not passed on yet, mostly those she invited to her milestone celebrations and New Year’s Eve countdown parties.
PAPAL NUNCIO’S CELEBR ATION OF HIGH MASS MA DE THE DIFFERENCE
Last December, the Tantocos celebrated the birth centenary of Rustan’s founder Glecy. Nedy was on top of the preparations but a few days before the event,
she got sick and could not make it to the commemorative Mass. It was a successful event with no less than the Papal Nuncio, Mons. Charles Brown, leading the concelebrated Mass with another family friend, Father Tito Caluag. Nedy’s absence was felt, but no one needed to have worried of course, because, as we were all saying, she would be in the best position to be attended by the top doctors of the land. She would return to work on time, again even working overtime up to eight in the evening. But that was Nedy, who seemed to enjoy working even as she loved hosting dinners and being with her family.
I wrote a front-page story about Glecy Tantoco on her birth centenary, the whole of it devoted to the Rustan’s founding matriarch, with a large sketch of her beautiful countenance. Nedy was ecstatically happy. But first I asked for her permission to publish the accompanying story and she texted me back: “Very nice Jojo! Indeed our family would be eternally grateful if you could run a story of Glecy Rustia Tantoco to commemorate her birthday anniversary.”
The DAILY TRIBUNE gave her a hundred copies and Nedy distributed them to friends and Rustans’ executives and loyal employees including the retirees. The copies ran out, and she texted me, “Could you send 200 more?” My publishers Willie and Chingbee Fernandez immediately gave the gosignal, for they have been very supportive of Rustan’s and SSI, making sure Nedy got what she wanted.
Later, I followed it up with a story about the commemorative Mass itself. But before I published it, I wrote to her and asked if she did not mind that she was not in the story (having been indisposed at that time), considering that it was she who had orchestrated all the commemorative events of her mom’s centenary. Her reply opened my eyes to yet another side of Nedy, the selfless one who prioritized her family and valued her parents’ legacy more than anything else in the world. She said, “Jojo, my absence is not relevant to the story of this special occasion. My role in this celebration does not change just because I was not able to make it. I still planned, organized and implemented it with a group of very efficient staff and associates. That is what you can include in your story. THE BIGGEST PARTICIPANT WAS THE PAPAL NUNCIO! (all caps hers) He made all the difference. Your story must include the importance of THE HIGH MASS. Without the Papal Nuncio presiding, this could not have happened. The greatest gift we could give to Mom on her 100th birth anniversary is this most solemn HIGH MASS. In the eulogy delivered by Archbishop Charles Brown, he gave recognition to the honor bestowed upon my Mom by St. Pope John Paul II. To recognize her Service to the Catholic Church, she was given the Medal of Cross, Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice during Dad’s term as Ambassador to the Holy See. It meant SHE was active too during that time while my Dad served as Ambassador to the Holy See! Without this honor bestowed upon my mother by the Pope, the Papal Nuncio could not have been the Celebrant in this High Mass. These credentials given by the Pope to my Mom enabled the Papal Nuncio to celebrate this Mass. This High Mass with the Papal Nuncio is the main celebrant was what made the difference in our commemoration of our mother’s centenary.”
JOJO IS MY DEAR FRIEND
Sometime before Christmas, I attended the Club Bulakeño Ball. I was seated at a table next to where Nedy was seated along with her close friends Sonny Tanchanco, John Gaddi, Ping Valencia, Rose Zamora, Rupert Jacinto and David Lim.
I overheard Sonny whispering to her, “Nedy, at your back is the DAILY TRIBUNE Social Set editor, Jojo Silvestre.” Why Sonny said that, I would not know, but it must have been his way of warning her that there was someone from the media at her back. To which she replied, and to Sonny’s delighted surprise, “Of course, I know Jojo, he is my dear friend.” I then looked around and realized it was my patroness who was speaking, in an elegant green dress of mid-calf length.
Last July, when Nedy turned 77, my bosses Willie and Chingbee Fernandez sent her a bouquet of Ecuadorian roses. Nedy was very happy with their gift. She texted me: “Hi Jojo! I received the most beautiful, rare and fantastic GOLD ORANGE ECUADORIAN ROSES IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD (caps all hers). It was amazing. They just made gift-giving an art with their golden ecuadorian roses. Kindly thank Mr. and Mrs. Willie and Chingbee Fernandez! And the huge birthday cake!!! What can I say?”
So much, indeed, has been said of the iconic and legendary Nedy Tantoco, Queen of Luxury Retail in the Philippines. I admire and respect her for her great achievements as a CEO and Rustan’s chairman, but I love her from the bottom of my heart for the caring, sincere and generous benefactor, client and friend that she was to me.
No human being could take her place in that special corner of my heart. There will she always remain, along with the good times and happy times we shared.