IT’S really quite a feat for any couple to reach the 50th anniversary of their union. That’s why each milestone in their journey through life is named after expensive metals and stones, such as silver for their 25th anniversary, gold for their 50th, diamond for their 60th and platinum for their 70th.
Even businesses have every right to celebrate every year of existence, and there are very few companies that can lay claim to being one of the oldest in the country. One of them is Aguila Auto Glass, recently celebrated its 65th founding anniversary on February 18 at their main office in Kapitolyo, Pasig City.
Posted on the wall of the penthouse, where the celebration was held, was a picture of company founders Atty. Lauro C. Aguila and his wife Maria G. Aguila taken during the early years of their business. Beside it were pictures of their first store, their very first delivery trucks with Atty. Aguila and his wife Maria standing proudly beside them—all in black and white. A short caption under the pictures proudly reads: “Amidst the booming Philippine economy, Aguila Auto Glass [Universal Glass Co. Inc.] was founded by the husband-and-wife team of Atty. Lauro and Maria Aguila. Our first store opened in business district of Avenida, Rizal, on February 18, 1952. We started with a 150 square meters of store space and 500 sq m of warehouse space.”
Those proud words were later punctuated with stories and anecdotes coming from the officials of the company, who now represent the second and third generations of the family, who are now running the business.
The company’s chairman, Ferdinand Aguila, shared the story of how their parents took their employees on an unexpected trip to Baguio just to escape the summer heat.
Pia Mirasol, the company’s president who now represents the third generation of the clan, shared even more interesting anecdotes on the colorful history of the company during her speech. She said, “On February 18, 1952, it was business as usual on Avenida, Rizal. The main business thoroughfare of Manila was booming with Fords, Bel-Airs, Studebakers, Buicks and Cadillacs. That day determined the family’s future for next three generations and [we are still] counting. Atty. Lauro and Mrs. Maria Aguila, our Lolo and Dada, proudly opened their first 150-square-meter store with a 500-sq-m workshop at the back.”
She added, “I would be told of how empty boxes would be stacked in the back of the display so that it would seem that there are more items in stock. Tito Roland and Tito Dinan were young boys, and would often be in the store, checking things out in their short pants. Mama was a baby lying in a bassinet on top of the estante filled with sealants and clips. There were so many stories of the early days that were passed on by our family, extended family and pioneering employees, who were already working students during the time of Manager Lauro Aguila.”
She shared that the company expanded even further during the time of her mom (Josephine) and uncles (Roland and Ferdinand) by opening more branches and hiring more people who manufactured safety glass in the country.
The untimely death of her Uncle Roland back in 2001 left a void in the company that the third generation had to fill, and this was exacerbated by the Asian financial crisis that hit the region at the time. With pride, she recounted that they overcame these and still emerged as the leader in the industry.
She attributes this to their company’s business values of trust, reliability and safety instituted by their founders during the company’s inception.
Nowadays, Aguila Glass remains the most recognized name in the Philippine glass industry, six decades after it first began operations in 1952. Today, they have 132 employees and 23 branches across Luzon, and their products proudly bear the Philippine Standard Mark of Quality, as well as the Import Commodity logo.
Fredrico Borromeo, company COO, proposed a toast to “another 65 years”.
By all indications, however, it seems the company is bound to last longer than that.
Image credits: Patrick Tulfo