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OVER A CUP OF COFFEE
BusinessWorld Enterprises Section
24 August 2000 PAGE 9
By Catherine C. Junia, Reporter
  acked by a passion for the senses, Roberto D.S. Francisco, president of Boyd Coffee Co. (Phils.) Inc., (Boyds), braved a market whose concept of coffee was synonymous with the word "instant" and in less than a decade, established a business that helped reinvent and elevate the Filipino's concept of coffee drinking.
Having entered the coffee business in its infancy stage eight years back, Mr. Francisco, who is also one of the founders of the more popular Figaro Coffee Co., attributes his companies' success to both his "shrewd business sense" and ability to have fun.
"I just want to have serious fun! I find so much pleasure in the business but I never stop counting my beans… I am a bean counter and I know that aside from enjoying coffee, I also have to be very shrewd and cost-efficient to survive", Mr. Francisco said over a cup of his signature lattes.
Being no stranger to the food industry, Mr. Francisco traces his love for food from the day he stepped out of the university.
"Ever since I graduated, I have always been into food, either in production or management. I never had any formal training so I made sure to practice, I'd cook for my boss or cook for functions…I just always had to practice," he said.
Among his other achievements, Mr. Francisco boasts of his two-year stint as food and beverage consultant of the El Nido Resort in Palawan, where he claimed to have honed both his creative and culinary craft.
"With my job in El Nido and my job now, I have no choice but to be both creative and confident. I remember the time when I had to deal with very low food supply on the island, I had all the guests fish for their own food, like a contest … they all had fun and we had food to serve. Sometimes, you really just have to be very creative in this business," he added.
After El Nido, Mr. Francisco went into the food consultancy business, handling mostly clubs and restaurants, and dealing mainly with the kitchen design, staff training and customer service.
It was only in 1992 when Mr. Francisco, along with his cousins and siblings, decided to tap the coffee market and set up the first Figaro outlet in Ayala, which like many other businesses, started out as a mom-and-pop operation.
"The demand was there, only not as loud. We had a very holistic approach to coffee; we really hit all five sensed to promote our product. our design was really different, the smell of coffee was so good and we served real fresh specialty coffee," he added.
 ith foresight to match his taste, Mr. Francisco launched his own separate company, simultaneous with the opening of the Figaro store-San Francisco Coffee Co. (Sancoco) which later on became Boyds - dealing with mainly the industrial and wholesale clients.
"I knew that once Figaro succeeded, people would want to follow…people would want to put up their own "Figaro." When that time came, Sancoco was already in place and we were able to supply those people with machines, coffee beans and training necessary to set up their own business," Mr. Francisco said.
In its pioneering stage, Sancoco first tapped the bazaar market, where the budget shoppers and the industry "movers and shakers" met. He had no doubt, however, that the coffee business was bound to thrive. "We always knew there was a demand for coffee but we wanted to see how people will accept our products.. we did not opt for a surprise attack. Being on the whole sale side, Sancoco was very quiet, we started selling our coffee to retail outlets, restaurants and other institutional clients," he said.
Mr. Francisco admits, however, that being the guinea pigs of the industry, it was inevitable for both Sancoco and Figaro to go through a number of birth pains.
"With my two businesses, I really worked hard since I had to learn even more. I was not just an employee, I was both the owner and the server," he said.
Being the owner, Mr. Francisco said he became extra protective of his business, making sure every detail was followed to the specs, each recipe prepared to the littlest detail.
"I made sure the standards were kept by always being there. I could not get sick…there was no such thing as being sick, no matter how bad I felt, I was always hands-on in the business," Mr. Francisco said, recalling how he was both dishwasher and barista in the first Figaro outlet.
One factor that has kept Figaro on the top list of coffee places, despite the entry of international giants such as Starbucks, Seattle's Best and UCC, is its ability to listen to its customers.
Although demoralizing at times, Mr. Francisco has made it a habit to listen to what his consumers want, being a strong believer of the "customer is always right" philosophy.
"Whether you like it or not, you have to listen to your customers, even if they try to insult you maybe these people are telling you something what the public really wants," Mr. Francisco said. Adding "humility" to the list of must-haves, he said that although he is aware of the demand for coffee, listening to the consumers allows him to modify his product in order to attract a bigger market.
Moreover, Mr. Francisco said he exerts extra effort to keep himself updated in the coffee business, by maintaining his own coffee lab and going on seminars abroad.
"Being updated is an effort on my part. I want to do it, I want to know more about coffee so I read books and attend yearly conventions that are usually expensive, but I don't mind…I want to be ahead of everyone else, I want to be a perfectionist," he said.
Mr. Francisco also boasts of his recent partnership with US-based Boyd Coffee Co., which keeps the local counterpart updated on Western trends. The partnership was forged in 1999, resulting in a joint venture that led to the birth of Boyds Philippines or Sancoco.
Being a "total coffee solution" Mr. Francisco guarantees his clients the support and partnership needed to start up a coffee business.
"If you're starting up, you really need a company like Boyds to consistently give you research and development updates. Newcomers need a partner to give them the confidence…and that's where Boyds or Sancoco come in. Sancoco has the confidence for the next millennium because we are backed by a 100-year old company in the US," he said.
Another selling point of this coffee guru, is his focus and dedication to the business of good coffee alone. "Coffee has become my lifestyle. Unlike other companies, Boyds or Sancoco is more focused, and I make sure of that," he said.
 ocusing on the business of developing specialty coffee alone, Mr. Francisco makes it a point to keep an inventory of equipment and beans for his clients. "My competitors who are mostly kitchen equipment suppliers, are losing customers because they don't keep an inventory of coffee machines. Some call me for inventory...that is what I call poor planning, and that I what I will not allow in this company. My main business is coffee and I cannot sell coffee without the equipment," he said. Being a meticulous coffee drinker himself, Mr. Francisco said he protects his clients by guaranteeing them specialty coffee sold neither in groceries nor other retail stores.
"If you buy my coffee, you can really claim that coffee was roasted especially for you. One of the joys of being in this business is seeing my clients succeed in theirs," he said.
Asked about his thought on the entry of several foreign coffee franchises, Mr. Francisco welcomes such competition as a means to improve the industry as a whole.
"We're now on our toes with all the big names coming in, we are striving even more to give our customers their money's worth," he said.
Moreover, Mr. Francisco is confident his knowledge of the coffee industry will make his company stay for the long haul.
"I make it a point to educate my staff about the industry and the basics of coffee. I make sure everyone in the company knows the business and we all know what we are talking about," he said.
A very casual boss, Mr. Francisco encourages his staff to enjoy the business by learning something new, everyday. "I want everyone to have fun and feel inspired. If you're not having fun, it's difficult to do business," he said.
Meanwhile, for someone who has already established himself as a leader in the local coffee industry, Mr. Francisco is looking out for bigger beans in the future. "We are not only here to make money, we are here to support the local coffee industry. I would want local coffee to thrive and if you do not give business to the farmers, eventually the industry will die. When the time comes that you want local coffee, there might not be any…the time to support the local farmers is now," he said.
Along with other coffee companies, Mr. Francisco recently launched a barako-planting program in coordination with several local governments.
"My goal is to help make the Philippines recognized as a producer of …I don't know exactly how far I've gone but we continue encouraging people to make high quality coffee," he added.
Success is roasting at Boyds Philippines, and with Mr. Francisco as lead barista, the country is sure to see a future in coffee.
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