The four pillars of success and the Filipinos' indomitable spirit

Text and photos by Leony R. Garcia

Imagine a young man in his early 20s trying to eke out a living and raising a family by knocking from one door to another selling shampoos and retractable clothing lines among others. He also peddled products on the streets with items such as non-stick woks and video cleaners in the streets of Penang and East Malaysia.

In 1984, the enterprising Malaysian went to the Philippines to promote his invention, the Super Slicer, to test his unwavering resolution to succeed in a foreign land. He started demonstrating his kitchenware product in shopping malls. Sooner than he expected, Sam Low Ban Chai and his products became household names.

Slowly but surely, Sam Low has successfully adopted the network marketing business model in his company, Edmark Philippines, Inc., and has brought hope and the opportunity of entrepreneurship to thousands of Filipinos nationwide.  

Now a multi-million dollar company with market presence in 26 countries, Edmark Group of Companies, has diversified and is presently involved in various business interests from manufacturing, exporting, distribution, and real estate development, touching lives and improving finances of more than 200,000 people worldwide.  

“Filipinos are the most talented people in the face of the earth,” Sam Low told the BusinessMirror during the annual Edmark Expo held in Quezon City on February 6. The event also coincided with the book launch and book signing ceremony by Edmark founder and chairman himself entitled ‘4 Pillars of Success.’

“My business partners are Filipinos. In the 26 countries abroad where Edmark is present, I work with my team of Filipinos, mostly those who have worked with me for the past 32 years. I truly believe in Filipinos, I appreciate them, and consider them my family. And with the upbeat economy of the Philippines now, Filipinos are luckiest.  I consider myself lucky as well because I am half Malaysian, half Filipino at heart,” Sam Low explained.  

Over the years, Edmark has truly become one of the world’s successful brands and a company known for synergizing dynamic business principles with spiritual foundations.

Inspired by the  Filipinos' indomitable spirit, Edmark's innovative health and household products plus the opportunity to realize one's financial freedom are made known across all continents, communities, and cultures through the Edmark Education System supported by its own manufacturing and production arm -- Edmark Industries -- which operates its manufacturing plant in Selangor, Malaysia.

According to Sam Low, Edmark has invested over USD30 million for the construction and relocation to a brand new factory since 2010. This new facility now stands on a 4.5-acre land with a total built-up area of 145,000 square feet. To cater to its upsurge of demand of Edmark products worldwide, the factory has been upgraded with state-of-the-art equipment, industrial robots and energy saving features. As of 2015, the built-up area has been expanded to over 250,000 square feet and the factory has been installed with fully automated machines to speed up the manufacturing process to meet the escalating global demand.

During the book launch of ‘4 Pillars of Success,’ which took six years in the making, Sam Low said that “it is my story, and the success story of Edmark.”

“In Edmark, we reach out with these four pillars as a foundation to guide Edmarkers and the people we help towards founding a loving and happy society, he said. 

These are: The Pillar of Gratefulness -- "where we see everything as perfect.  It is a perfect business, opportunity, and product.”  When we appreciate perfection in creation, according to Sam Low, we will have a big heart to make it better, do more and achieve greatness.

The Pillar of Big-Heartedness “is where we value every thing we have and have everything we value.  There is aplenty in the world where people from all walks of life gather to create a world that is full of riches and prosperity, happiness and harmony, friendship and partnership,” Sam Low said.

LOVE

The Pillar of All-Inclusiveness “is where we embrace you as who you are.  Loving you for what you believe and moving with you to achieve your dreams.  We believe that every man and woman deserves to live life to its fullest, with passion and excitement,” the CEO said.

COMPASSION

The Pillar of Humaneness “is where everyone treats everyone as oneself.  What you want for yourself, you want it for others as well.  Peace is always shared.  You want harmony, smile more. You want to be successful, help others to be successful.  In Edmark, that’s what we do,” he explained.

With good products and hardworking Filipinos around him, no wonder his company has known to be a company where everyone feels good.

“We want everyone to feel good now,” Sam Low stressed.

Privileged to have known the man of the hour, Edmark Founder Chairman Sam Low Ban Chai, whose rise to fame and success in 26 countries globally is brought by sheer dedication, hard work, love and compassion for his fellowmen. With us here is my BusinessMirror buddy Vanessa Manuel.

Sam Low and book writer Tham Chee Wah with myself and fellow media representative Ms. Becky Vismonte