By Lorna Emata
Fiery, free, adventurous. These are just a few adjectives
that best describe our cover for this month. But this special lady has such a magnetic
personality that you can’t help but wanton get to know her more once you meet
her. She exudes this positive and radiant energy that is so contagious, making you
feel glad that you’re alive despite all the trials and challenges you might be
experiencing at the moment. That’s how inspiring and contagious her aura is. So
without further ado, I would like to present our November 2015 cover -
Ms.Imelda Pechera. The first time I met Ms. Mhel, I was immediately sucked into
her positiveness. No bad vibes for this unpretentious and vibrant lady. She’s
definitely oozing with zest and love for life. Not to mention the fact that she
has this eye-catching face and figure. Yes, she is gorgeous, a head-turner no
doubt. But these traits alone aren’t enough to fully describe the total person
Ms. Mhel is. This lady has depth, compassion and generosity as well. She is
also an achiever, a trademark of all the noteworthy individuals whom we had the
honor and privilege to grace in our past covers.
You’ll find out soon enough the reason why, as her story
unfolds.Ms Mhel started out as a plain housewife who was content to run a happy
home for her family of three lovely kids and a doting and hardworking husband,
who was the one running their business at that time. Unfortunately, her husband
passed away at the early stage of their marriage. Thus came the most difficult
time in her life. Imagine being suddenly left alone with three very young kids
and a family business, which by no means was a small one, to run. This was
indeed a very dark period in Ms Mhel’s life because she really struggled, and not
just once did she contemplate on giving up because she felt so alone at that time.
But she kept on going. And that became the turning point of her life. She kept
picking herself up and gradually, she was able to triumph over the desire to throw
everything away. And in no time, she learned and mastered the ropes of the
company, the legacy that her husband left her with. Pretty soon, she was doing
so well and enjoying playing the roles of both a mother and a businesswoman at
the same time. In her capable hands, her company thrived and her children grew
up to be great and responsible individuals whom a mother would-be proud of.
You may ask, how did she do it? How was she able to
overcome it all? The answer - her innate positiveness and strength. Plus the
fact that she was strongly motivated by her family and the people who worked
for them. She also realized just just in time that this was God’s plan for
her and that she was chosen to undertake these roles. So she did, with bravery
and determination, because she knew then that if she falls, everybody will go
down with her. And she didn’t let that happen. Ms Mhel took ownership of her and
her family’s lives, as well those of her people, whom she considered an
extension of her family. And once she started, she never stopped.
To give you a brief backgrounder on Ms Mhel’s business, the
company started as a trading business called“ACTIP” in Alabang and supplied
mostly manufacturing companies. It was in 2003 when iShip Logipack Inc was
registered as a Manufacturing Company and started operating inside the Export
Processing Zone. Full operation began in 2004,at first importing corrugated
sheets from abroad and in mid2005,it started its first extrusion process of
these corrugated sheets in the Philippines. This company was also the first manufacturer of
corrugated plastic sheets here in the country. These said sheets resemble
corrugated carton used for packaging or boxes. They assemble these sheets to
form packaging materials for the products of their clients both here and
abroad, reaching as far as Japan and the U.S.
They also design, assemble and supply pipe and joint
products which are alternates for the fabrication of production tables, racks
and trollies. Their products eliminate the ancient use of welding, replacing it
with a DIY method of clamping by joints, giving their customers the freedom of
customizing their needs with ease. On Ms Mhel’spart, she lets her managers and
staff do the day to day operations secured that she has good and competent
people. The group has management team that sets policy directions and
strategies. She is fully abreast of the goings-on in the business as she meets
with them regularly. She doesn’t go to the office all the time and this system
gives her more freedom to fulfill her other duties. Once Ms Mhel perfected the
craft of delegation and time management, she began to take on other roles
such as modelling and doing charity work outside of her comfort zone - her
immediate and extended families. For the past 3 years, she has been supporting Loma Elementary School in Binan, Laguna, which has been the beneficiary of her
modelling stints.
Her latest charity project is the upcoming fashion and
ballroom dancing event called “Brazilia”with fashion figure Boy Lizaso as her
designer. Of course, a portion of the proceeds of this occasion will go to this
privileged and lucky school. On a lighter note, this seemingly workaholic also
takes the time to pursue her personal interests, to keep her motivated. She is
into workouts, running, playing golf, hiking, trekking and mountaineering. Her
latest conquest is reaching the peak of Mt. Apo. You can’t find a more diverse person than this. Despite
all of these, Ms Mhel remains simple at heart. Her ultimate dream is to see her
company reach greater heights and her children taking over the business. But
she is not obligating any of them to do this, she is still giving them the
freedom to follow their hearts’ desires. Seeing her company continue to help
her people in terms of employment, success and livelihood is more than enough
for her. Having said all these, I leave you dear readers, a thought to reflect
on. That in times when it is darkest and we are weakest, we can find light and
strength, and eventually raise ourselves up along with the people we love. And as
long as we believe in ourselves that we can do it, then we can. This is what
Imelda Pechera is all about. She is truly God’s blessing to mankind - and a
gorgeous one at that!
