When I started in 1988 in my mother’s backyard, I was completely alone. I worried whether I would ever be able to pay wages if I hired anyone. After all, I wasn’t even 18 years old at the time. I was not yet obligated to earn a living—much less start a business.
But life has a way of leading us forward.
In 1990, I began accepting export projects. That was when I realized I could no longer do everything by myself. The first people who helped me were my friends from basketball. I began teaching them—how to read a tape measure, how to measure properly, and how to operate power tools.
From there, something unexpected happened. I did not only build furniture anymore—I began building people.
In time, I found myself teaching workers from small workshops around Parañaque. I met many individuals, and many of them learned the craft alongside me.
I taught varnishing, joinery, furniture making, and eventually modular cabinet making.
When I decided to teach modular cabinet making more seriously, I gathered everything I had learned. I studied European standards and combined them with materials that are readily available in the Philippines. Then I adapted the system to fit the way Filipino families actually live.
Most importantly, I included the lessons learned from my own mistakes in the field of cabinet making. Every error, every failed attempt, and every problem I encountered eventually became part of the solution.
From all of these experiences, I was able to write the full curriculum for The Fundamentals of Modular Cabinet Making.
It has been a privilege to teach engineers, architects, interior designers, businesspeople, and aspiring entrepreneurs. But an even greater honor came when Powerhouse tools, one of the leading power tool brands in the Philippines, together with the College of Saint Benilde – School of Interior Design, invited me to share the Fundamentals of Modular Cabinet Making with the future interior designers of our country.
Sometimes I stop and reflect on how far this journey has come.
From a young man working alone in his mother’s backyard… to being given the opportunity to teach the next generation.
And it reminds me of one important truth:
Great beginnings are often very small. But when knowledge is shared, the work of one person can grow far beyond what he ever imagined.
Originally published on Benjie's Bench - Measuring Life's lessons in Millimeters
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