ASK anyone what’s
the best hopia in town, and he or she will surely
answer: “Eng Bee Tin” without really
thinking hard.
For almost 19
years now, Gerry Chua’s melt-in-the-mouth
purple yam (ube) hopia has been a staple in households
and ranks as one of the most sought-after welcome
treats by returning Filipinos. (No exaggeration.
After being away from the country for five years,
my ~lad asked me to bring him a pack of Eng Bee
Tin’s hopia ube at the airport.)
Proof of this
is the long line of customers at Eng Bee Tin’s
one and only store on Ongpin Street, Binondo. Whether
early in the morning or late at night, the store
is always packed with people buying different flavored
hopia and other Chinese delicacies as though it
would be their last meal. In fact, customers come
to Ongpin from far corners of the metropolis just
to sample the hopia ube that Chua made famous.
Many
people wonder why Chua chose to maintain the small
Binondo outlet when he could open a huge shop in
any of the major malls. Eng Bee Tin has such a huge
following that any shop he opens would surely make
good profit. But Chua has his reasons. He wants
the business to remain in the same outlet where
the first generation of Chuas manufactured the first
Eng Bee Tin hopia nearly 80 years ago.
It is also in
this same shop where Chua 3earned the most valuable
lessons in life.
Bittersweet
ENG BEE TIN’s hopia products may be rich,
sweet and delectable, but the story behind Chua’s
success is the exact opposite. The trials and obstacles
he had to go through would have made a person of
weak constitution lose hope. But nowadays, Chua’s
story is a source of inspiration and hope to others.
Here’s why.
Chua
took over the family business at age 21. As the
eldest of four siblings, he says he felt he had
to help his father when business really went bad.
Back then, Eng Bee Tin was just one of the hopia
makers in Ongpin, and one of the less popular ones
because their hopia was well, quite tough.
“The original
hopia we made was tough and quite hard; even I myself
didn’t enjoy eating the hopia that we manufactured.
But it had to be really solid because back then,
hopia was peddled in the streets in cartons behind
a bicycle. So if the hopia was made soft, it would
collapse in the pile,” explained Chua.
The increased
competition in the area contributed to the demise
of the family’s hopia business. Things were
so bad that creditors refused to deliver flour,
sugar and milk to Chua’s family because of
rumors that they issued bouncing checks, which actually
happened later on, he said.
On top of that, family friends deserted them.
So
when Chua decided it was time he helped, he was
all alone in his efforts. He made the hopia himself,
packaged it and delivered it to various markets,
reaching as far as Cavite and San Pablo, Laguna.
He struggled to make both ends meet for his family
while juggling life as a management siudent at PSBA.
Angel
in disguise
WHILE business
was miserable and life seemed to kick Chua harder
where it hurt, he was unaware that his kindness
toward other people was about to give him the much
needed boost.
Out of the blue,
a mete acquaintance in school dropped by at Eng
Bee Tin and handed Chua P10,000---- a loan he never
asked from the person, although he had practically
tried to borrow from everyone else he knew, but
to no avail. Ten thousand pesos at that time was
a big amount, and it helped bail Chua’s family
out of the financial problems they were having.
On top of that, Chua was selling a bit of hopia
to elderly people, whom he was popular with because
hee would take the time out to talk to them, help
them with their baggage’s, or give them extra
plastic bags although they shopped from another
store.
One day, when
he spotted a bottle of halayang ube in a grocery
store, the innovative Gerry had an epiphany, why
not make hopia ube? And he did, and he thought the
product had potential. But still, the new product
was met lukewarmly by the community so use to hopiang
munggo and baboy.
Then, it happened.
The ever-helpful Chua assisted the staff of Cory
Quirino’s then starting program CityLine interview
an owner of a Chinese drugstore; video a Chinese
Temple as well as interview members of the Volunteer
Firefighters group which Gerry greatly admired and
wanted to be part of since his childhood days.
So grateful was
Quirino that she promised to help Chua. CityLine
was the first to feature Eng Bee Tin’s hopia
ube on television. Little did he know that it would
forever change his life.
Reaping
the rewards
THE next
day Gerry was surprised to see his phone ringing
off the hook. He received dozens of calls from interested
customers, dealers and kibitzers.
Soon, Chua’s
personal quota of 50 pieces of hopia a day became
a foggy memory. He was receiving thousands upon
thousands of orders. Not one to be contended by
instant fame, Gerry even went to Pampanga to train
under the best halayang ube makers to perfect his
recipe.
As the years
went on, Chua’s hopiang ube sustained Eng
Bee Tin, which by the way means “Ever Beautiful
and Precious.” The small, dark store at the
corner of Ongpin Street was transformed into a well-lighted
shop where customers came in nonstop.
Nowadays,
Chua produces more than 15,000 packs of hopia a
day and this is distributed all over the country
and even exported now since his products have a
shelf life of one week outside the refrigerator.
So how
did Chua’s life change with his newfound success?
Not much. He simply had more time to concentrate
on the one thing he loved most to be: a volunteer
fire fighter. Yes, Eng Bee Tin’s success also
fanned the flames of his passion for firefighting.
With the deli doing incredibly well, Chua helped
support the volunteer group. No less than four purple
fire trucks have been donated by Eng Bee Tin.
Chua admits
that he never dreamed to reach this far. But, as
the old saying goes, kindness begets kindness, and
it seems only right that Chua be rewarded generously
for his good deeds.
