Rags to Richest
Nanay Coring has always been in the retail industry. As a young girl, she
helped her grandmother sell fruits at the local market in their home province. Life
was hard and her mother decided to move to Manila to find better opportunities.
She attended a public school and took on many jobs during summer vacation –
from wrapping bubble gum to sewing buttons on shirts. After finishing high school,
her family did not have enough money to send her to college. She then worked as
a salesgirl at a bookstore. It was there where she met her would be husband,
Jose.
They opened a stall shop in Escolta. They named it National Bookstore, after
their cash register. But things did not go uphill from there. In the 1940s, a strict
censorship on books was implemented. Nanay Coring had to put the books away
and resort to selling soap, candies, and slippers. After the war, the whole of
Escolta was burned down. This did not dampen Nanay Coring and Jose’s souls.
They opened another small store. This time, they sold the books they had
previously put away and whisky.
Gathering their earnings, the couple bought more school supplies and books.
They slowly rebuilt National Bookstore. They ventured into postcards and
greeting cards. They also partnered with international publishing houses and
reprinted books at lower prices. Aside from selling products of well-known brands,
National Bookstore also now manufactures its own school supplies – Best Buy.
Keeping up with the times, they have teamed up with Kobo, a Canadian based
e-book seller. National Bookstore is also visible on social media and customers
can even shop online via their website. Students, office workers, and everyone
else will find what they are looking for at National Bookstore.
In the words of Nanay Coring, “Work hard, very hard. There is no express
elevator to success – you have to climb the stairs.”1
Tuvida (2016). Socorro Ramos: The Woman Behind National Bookstore. Retrieved from
http://primer.com.ph/business/2016/01/06/socorro-ramos-the-woman-behind-national-bookstore/