Welcome to Edition #115 of Gorick's newsletter, where Harvard career advisor and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Gorick Ng shares what they don't teach you in school about how to succeed in your career.
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→ Read time: 5 min
STORY
How Henry Sy reimagined Filipino life through mall culture
I came across a fun phrase recently: mall culture—used to describe countries where people spend a lot of time roaming around in shopping malls.
The top contenders? The United Arab Emirates, Thailand, China… and yes, the Philippines.
In the Philippines, “malling” is practically a national pastime. People don’t just go to the mall to shop. They go to “eat, watch movies, cool off from the heat, meet friends, attend mass, or even get their government documents processed.” The mall is the town square, the air-conditioned escape, the everything-everywhere place.
But did you know that the Philippines wouldn't have this kind of “mall culture” if a certain entrepreneur hadn’t taken a “trip to the U.S. in the 1950s?”
The year is 1955. 30 year old shoeseller Henry Sy decided to take a trip to the United States “to source merchandise and observe how American retailers were operating.”
While in the States, Sy visited shopping malls like Macy’s, Sears, and JCPenney’s—which had made the U.S. the “mecca of shopping centers.” From wide walkways and air-conditioning to movie theaters and food courts, Sy noticed that the mall was a one-stop destination for shopping and socializing.
Though Sy visited the US for tips to improve his footwear business, he returned with a seed planted in his mind for a completely different idea: shopping malls in the Philippines.
So, 20 years into building his shoewear business, when “the time was ripe for expansion," Sy opened his first department store that sold everything from clothing and shoes to toys and appliances.
Fast forward, and Sy expanded his business—first from small retail stores to department stores and then from department stores to full-scale malls.
In 1985—30 years after that pivotal life-changing overseas trip—Sy opened SM North EDSA, which is now one of the largest shopping malls in the world.
Over the next 50 years, Sy grew his mall business from one to dozens. Known as “The SM Group”, Sy’s company has since opened nearly 100 “SM” malls across the Philippines”.
What does this mean for you?
The next time you’re in a different place, look for the things they do differently. There might just be an idea or practice you can bring home with you.
UNSPOKEN RULE
Always be on the lookout for inspiration!
Henry Sy didn’t go to the U.S. looking for a billion-dollar idea. He went to buy merchandise and learn how others did retail to improve his own shoewear business.
But he kept his eyes open—and, in doing so, found a spark of inspiration that he could take home with him.
How can you apply Sy’s approach to your own career and life?
If you’re in school: Join as many different clubs as you can as early on as you can—and use the opportunity to explore a new interest and to figure out which friends you want to keep. Back in the day, I joined as many club email lists as I could (I’m talking 20+) so I knew what events were happening on campus. I attended the ones that seemed interesting (~7-10), kept attending the ones that were actually interesting (~3-5), and joined the boards of the ones that I really liked (~1-3). You’ll soon realize as I did that you learn more from extracurriculars than you do from coursework.
If you’re in your early career: If your company has an early career professionals ERG, go to their events, meet the leaders (and the executive sponsors), and get involved. If you’re moving to a new city, consider getting roommates (and attending housewarmings and parties of people) who work in a wide range of fields. Back in the day, I lived with people (and had friends over) who worked in investment management, consulting, corporate, medicine, academic research, startups, and more—and they helped me continue my “education” long after school ended.
If you’re in your mid/late career: If your life permits the move, consider doing a “tour of duty” (defined here!) in a different function or different geography—especially if this is a special (and ideally mission critical) project where you get to work with a rising star, an influential executive, or a major client. It helps you build cross-functional relationships, a portfolio of diverse experiences, and positions you as someone who can go deep and go broad (as I discuss in this story on how Mary Barra became CEO of GM).
Great ideas don’t need to be original! In fact, the cross-pollination of ideas from varying sources has led to success for countless people and companies (like Peggy Cherng of Panda Express). So, all that matters is that you’re the one who spots the trend—and the one who demonstrates your Three C’s by sharing how it can work for you and your workplace situation.
See you next Thursday for the AMA!
—Gorick
What’s an “unspoken rule”? They’re the things that separate those who get ahead from those who stumble—and don’t know why. You can learn more about these rules in the workplace in my Wall Street Journal bestselling book called—you guessed it—The Unspoken Rules.
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Sources:
- In the Philippines, “malling” is practically a national pastime.
- “eat, watch movies, cool off from the heat, meet friends, attend mass, or even get their government documents processed.”
- “trip to the U.S. in the 1950s?”
- “He traveled to the U.S. to source merchandise and observe how American retailers were operating.”
- “mecca of shopping centers.”
- “the time was ripe for expansion”
- nearly 100 “SM” malls
