A game changer
Even before A-list celebrities like Piolo Pascual, Liza Soberano and Marian Rivera became the face of canned products, a hardworking man by the name of William Tiu Lim decided to become a game changer in the local canned fish industry.
A few pieces of fish cooked in tomato sauce and placed in cans may be a comfort food for some but for majority of the population living below the poverty line, a can of sardines always saves the day and even the night.
And while a few brands have long been in the game and several more sprouting, creating a tighter competition, Mega Global, for the past 20 years, never stopped innovating and improving its products.
Mega Global Corp., producer and manufacturer of Mega Sardines, Mega Tuna, and Mega Prime, is an integrated catching-to-canning company that started the easy-open can, providing convenience to consumers and ensuring quality fish products.
“I always take things as a challenge and think of something that will improve what is being done. When we started, it was really hard because I did not have any knowledge. I used to join my crew in fishing and I get sea sick but eventually, I got used to it,” Mega Global Corp. chief executive officer William Tiu Lim said.
As they continue to supply to canners until the 90s, Lim noticed that companies only buy the second and third class fish, which are way cheaper than the first class that goes to the wet markets.
“At that time, it was all money-making for them. They don’t care about quality. Because their brand is known, consumers buy them. And we thought that the only way to compete is to let consumers know that there is such a product better than theirs. We want to compete in terms of quality not in pricing,” he said.
Lim took the leap in 1999 and started his own canning business with the Mega sardines brand in the frontline. But, cliche as it may seem, nothing worthy ever comes easy.
“When we tried to penetrate the market, some brands blocked shelve spaces so we cannot enter. It took a long time given the presence of the other brands. They easily priced down their products, because since we use first class fish, our price is a bit higher,” Lim said.
Even with some hurdles, Lim did not stop from looking for ways to gain an edge over his competitors. A few years later, Mega Global decided to use the easy open can.
“When we started with the easy open, we knew that we can no longer go back to the regular one. It was both a sacrifice and challenge. But when we did that, we set up the standard for the canning industry,” Lim said.
“Other companies also upgraded because if they don’t, they will be left behind. We set up standards that competitors follow and that is a good thing for the industry,” he said.
Just when things are slowly making sense, Mega Global got another setback when its application to export to Europe was rejected by the European Union.
“We already have the brand so we were a little bolder to export. Plus we do catching to canning unlike others who just buy their fish elsewhere,” Lim said.
But just like the trooper that he is, Lim and his group tried again and eventually succeeded in entering other markets such as the Middle East, Malaysia, Canada, US and Europe. Currently, 10 percent of Mega Global’s total production goes to the export market.
After several years of sweat and tears, Mega Global earned its biggest victory yet after it became the number one sardines brand in 2016, 16 years after it entered the canning industry.
“In 2015, we felt that we are closer to the number one position. Our trend was upward. Initially, our gap with the second place was just 0.3 percent then the next year, the gap widen to two percent,” Lim said.
“We expect to grow more in order to maintain that number one position. We still have to do a lot of things because it is much harder to be number one because you have to sustain that,” he said.
Over the last five years, Mega Global was growing double-digit in terms of sales and production volumes and it has to keep up by also increasing its capital investment.
It recently expanded the capacity of one of its two plants in Zamboanga. Both plants can now process 300 metric tons of fish on a daily basis. In terms of cans, the two plants can produce up to 1.4 million cans everyday, 55 percent of which goes to Luzon while the remaining 45 percent is shipped to Visayas and Mindanao.
“You have to look at the bigger picture and not just the specifics. We are integrated and we are in a better position because we can support our canning and that makes a lot of difference already,” he said.
Apart from the continued improvements in its sardines business, which takes up 95 percent of total sales, Mega Global is also expanding its line of products to tuna, mushroom and corn, among others.
“We continue to do things for the benefit and convenience of the consumers. We do our business very differently and I can say that we have capable people that help us grow the business. Everybody works and everyone contributes ideas,” Lim said.