THE OCAMPO SISTERS: CONTINUING A FAMILY LEGACY (SINCE 1948)
Among the more distinguished and respectable names in the jewelry business are the Ocampos from Pampanga. Coming from a bloodline of hardworking entrepreneurs, the family has nurtured and produced generations of successful progeny engaged in all-around fine jewelry trade and other business interests.
The Ocampo sisters, Corito Rose (Tayag), Divina (Tayag), Evita (Florendo), and Finina (Galang) belong to the third generation of Ocampos to run the Jewelry business – the foundation of which was first laid by their grandfather, Santiago Lagman Ocampo in 1926. The four are the daughters of the late Evansuida (nee Gueco) and Ricardo Ma. Ocampo, the first born son of Santiago, and the founder of the Ocampo’s Gemologists & Jewelers Inc. Although the Ocampo ladies have families of their own now, they still look after their family business long after their parents have gone. In fact, under the concerted efforts of the enterprising sisters, the jewelry store their father built now has four branches in popular malls (Ali Mall, Araneta Center, Quezon City; Glorietta 5, Makati City; SM City Clarkfield, Pampanga and Marquee Mall, Angeles City).
Whatever accomplishments these Ocampo women have now achieved and enjoy are admittedly greatly attributed to the rich family legacy of hard work and intense passion for the business that was passed on to them. The four fondly look back at the very beginning of the Ocampo’s chain of business interests – the Ocampos were originally from Minalin, one of the smallest towns in Pampanga.
A man with a vision, Santiago was always moving and looking for new business opportunities. He did not believe in aiming for regular employment for his children – instead encouraged each of them to become entrepreneurs, no matter how small they start with. When his sons and daughters married and started their own families, he helped each of them to put up their own business in different places. He reasoned that if they had the same business in the same place, they would be competing with each other. On the other hand, their grandmother, Felipa Un Ocampo was a very religious woman. She started her day by attending Mass – and taught her children the value of integrity – thus the company slogan “Buy with Confidence”.
The second generation of Ocampos turned out to be just as hardworking and enterprising as their elders. Although not all of them finished college, all of them became as successful as their parents in their business pursuits. Today, Santiago and Felipa’s 10 children and their numerous “apos” have really made a name for themselves. The oldest son – Ricardo Ma. Ocampo – was a lawyer, but established a profitable business based in Angeles. With the help of his wife, Evansuida Gueco, and their four daughters (Corito, Divina, Evita, and Finina), he branched out in the metropolis. Ricardo and his wife died in 1983 but their daughters continued the businesses they built.
“My father was actually the first son to get married”. Corito relates. “My lolo set up a jewelry business for him in Angeles City, where my mother hailed from.” Thus, with the financial support and free use of his father’s credit connection, the young Ricardo and his wife Evansuida launched their own jewelry business, Ocampo’s Gemologist & Jewelers Inc. on October 10, 1948, during the Angeles town fiesta honoring the Virgen de la Naval. To better understand the trade and become an expert in the jewelry testing and grading, Evansuida enrolled and became the first Filipina to be admitted as a student in the prestigious Gemological Institute of America (GIA) in Santa Monica, California. Like her mother-in law, Evansuida believed in daily Mass as an ingredient to success, which she passed on to her four daughters. Today, the value of daily prayer, integrity, and hard work is deeply ingrained in the blood of the four sisters.
Even at a very young age, the four sisters knew what the family business was all about. The girls helped out in different capacities in the store. In fact, their parents’ love for jewelry and precious stones rubbed off on the girls. “When I was young, I was already resigned to the fact that I’d take over the business as my father did after my grandfather,” Corito explains. Just like their mom, the Ocampo sisters were also sent to GIA in California to become experts in the identification and grading of colored stones, diamonds, pearls, etc.
When their parents died in 1983, the sisters got their act together and divided the load among them. The poised and elegant Corito, being the eldest, is the current President and Chairman of the board. The second sister, Divina, takes charge of design and production and is the boss in their Metro Manila branches. Evita, who has an MBA from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, takes care of marketing and merchandising. She is currently in Massachusetts.
Finina, MBA graduate of University of Southern California,USA, tackles the financial aspect of the business. Corito and Finina are based in Pampanga but travel to Manila twice a week, while Divina oversees the daily operations of their Metro Manila branches.
Recently, Mia Tayag-Zapata (daughter of Corito), obtained her Graduate Diamond certificate and joined the business, taking charge of SM City Clark and Marquee Mall branches, while Denise (daughter of Divina) is training with her mother after finishing the diamond course in Hongkong continuing the family legacy to the 4th generation.
The four sisters work together like a well-oiled machine. They added another facet to the family tradition: that of a socially responsive enterprise. With their clients ranging from well-heeled to the working class, to young teens, the sisters challenge themselves every year to bring their products within reasonable reach of everyone. Like their predecessors, the four are bent on responding to the various needs of their clients.