Teachers who became business owners now hire working students to support them financially, knowing firsthand the hardships that students face in school.
Their move earned praise on social media, with many netizens hoping that they would become a role model for other business owners to emulate.
Teachers Quit Jobs to Open Taho Shop, Now with 11 Branches
It was in the middle of the pandemic that Camille Ona and Marvin Paclibare decided to open a business.
They’re both teachers and had thought about a milk tea business.
However, there are already so many milk tea shops, so they thought that it would be nice to try something unique.
So, they began to plan and experiment on a combination of taho and milk tea at Camille’s house in Valenzuela.
“And dumating na po ‘yung pandemic, ‘yung mga tao po is lalo naging health conscious, so parang naisip namin na i-combine na lang ‘yung concept ni milk tea and ni taho. Healthier version siya ni milk tea,” Marvin explained.
Hiring Working Students
Understanding the difficulties that students face in school, especially when they’re also having a difficult time with their finances, the former teachers decided to hire working students to support them financially.
Running a Business is Also Learning
They liken running their business to learning and teaching.
“In relation naman po sa pagiging teacher sa pag bu-business, so parang may similarities rin man o tinatawag na common denominator. Kagaya sa school, nag-aaral kami kung ano ‘yung mga tinuturo namin, ituturo namin. Dito naman natutunan din naman namin na makinig din Ma’am sa mga mentor, sa mga taong,” Marvin shared.
“Kailangan din kasi tanggapin namin na sa school marami kaming alam, sa field naman ng business kami naman ‘yung walang alam so kailangan namin maging estudyante at makinig sa mga taong may mas alam sa amin.”
Quitting Teaching to Become Full-time Business Owners
Teaching was their first love, their passion. But for Marvin and Camille, it would soon become a struggle to juggle teaching with their new business.
They decided to focus on their business instead – and it was a good decision! They now have 11 branches in Luzon and their business is continuing to grow.
Watch more about their story here: