How often do we get privy to a casual conversation between two of the richest and most powerful pillars of the Philippine business community?
Such a rare chat would prove to be enlightening especially for netizens who may have preconceived notions of opulence and grandeur, but may be in for quite a pleasant surprise to learn about the low-key and austere lifestyles of the truly rich.
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On November 26, 2021, BPI uploaded a vlog hosted by Ayala Corporation Chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala (JAZA), who interviewed JG Summit Holdings Inc. President and CEO Lance Yu Gokongwei.
Segments from the vlog resurfaced on TikTok, allowing netizens to react to the simple lifestyles of two of the country's most prominent and elite members of society.
The first clip feautured the two CEOs in a "True or False" segment.
[tiktok:https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSRvARWtF/]
COMPANY FREEBIES
(For Gokongwei): You have free airplane rides from Cebu Pacfic.
Lance answered, "That's true. For my personal travel, I have to pay. But for all my business travel, I do get a free ticket."
"Good enough. You never mix those two together, pretend one is the other, Lance?" Jaime asked.
"I tried to get away with it once, but uh, I got caught," Lance bashfully admitted.
(For JAZA): You got free telephone credits from Globe.
"False," Jaime answered.
"I pay all my bills. I do get a free phone, that I do get. But I have to pay all my bills."
SHOPPING
(For Gokongwei): You always visit your favorite Robinsons mall incognito.
"That's true. I visit the mall and my Robinsons mall people, I think they indulge me and pretend that they don't recognize me," Lance responded.
(For JAZA): You shop for street-style clothing.
"Well, I think that's true. I'm not quite sure what street-style clothing is, but if it's casual fare, shorts, T-shirt, and the like, yeah, I do buy them. I'm not always in a suit and tie."
AS A CEO
(For Gokongwei): You're a terror CEO.
"False. I don't think I'm a terror CEO," Lance laughed.
"But I don't think you're asking the right person. You might have to ask my staff."
Jaime replied, "I've always seen you as a nice guy, Lance. I doubt you're a terror CEO."
(For JAZA): You host secret Christmas get-togethers with your company CEOs every year.
"I say that's partly true. I don't know about the 'fully secret' but we do have small gatherings at Christmas time, and we have a chance to reflect on the year," Jaime confirmed.
"Not really secret, but they're private and low-key."
[tiktok:https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSRvAd9bJ/]
ROBINSON'S MALL
(For Gokongwei): There is a real Robinsons snake in the bodega of the mall.
"That's a definite falsehood," Lance asserted.
Jaime quipped, "Are you sure about that, Lance? No snake slithering around there?"
"No snake," Lance answered.
"And if there would have been a snake, my sister Robina would have caught it, and converted it into a handbag that she sold in Robinsons."
(For JAZA): There's a rumor that you secretly go to Robinsons to shop or to check out the competition.
"Well, I think true. I don't think I've gone shopping there, but it's always nice to go look at what people are doing, what new ideas they have," Jaime recalled.
"So I have been to your mall to scout it out and see what new things you guys are doing. That's true, that's true," he continued.
[tiktok:https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSRvAMcEp/]
Another clip that circulated showed Lance naming his top five favorite snacks, which include V-Cut, Piattos (cheese flavor), Nova multigrain, chicharon bulaklak, and nuts.
Here are some comments from TikTok fans:
"Same taste ako ni Gokongwei..."
"At least kahit sa chichirya magka-level kami ng taste ni mr. gokongwei..."
"Me too atleast kahit sa sitcherya kapantay natin sila..."
"hay salamat..naramdaman kong bilyonaryo ako khit sa snacks lang..."
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