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This week on Hustleshare, host Ron Baetiong sits down with Cristina “Indo” Ibanez, president of Scale NCR and head of Miriam College’s Innovation Center. From growing up in a family of entrepreneurs to championing collaboration among university-based incubators, Indo shares how she’s turning classrooms into launchpads for the next wave of Filipino founders.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcibanez/
Facebook (Scale NCR): https://www.facebook.com/SCALENCR/
Website (Philippine Startup Week 2025): https://www.phstartupweek.com/
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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Dave del Rosario, Program Manager of the DLSU Animo Labs and one of the organizers of Philippine Startup Week, discusses his 12-year journey in the ecosystem, focused on building the startup community from the ground up and inspiring young founders. He shares his origin story, detailing his start as an intern at IdeaSpace and his pivotal decision to move to Iligan, Mindanao, to bring opportunities and foster innovation at the grassroots level.
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode, we welcome Kevin Brockland, Managing Partner and Founder of Indelible Ventures. Kevin is a prominent investor dedicated to being an active, positive contributor to the Southeast Asian startup ecosystem, with a particular focus on the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia.
Kevin takes us through his journey, starting from a small town in Missouri (the "Show-Me state"), where he developed his entrepreneurial mindset through an early hustle of reselling bulk candy at school. He shares how being kicked out of high school limited his options and forced him to hustle, working a full-time job at an automotive firm and an overnight hotel shift while attending night school. This led to a period of extensive world travel and study in Europe and Mexico before he pursued his MBA in finance and Master's in international relations at Seton Hall, just as the 2008 financial crisis hit. Kevin then discusses his investment thesis, which centers on addressing the geographic and stage gaps in Southeast Asian institutional capital. He explains why he believes the market is at a tipping point to shift from consumer tech to enterprise/B2B technology and how his philosophy of "give first, get later" is key to building an active ecosystem. Finally, he offers his perspective on the current wave of AI in Southeast Asia and how it is changing the "build versus buy" dynamic for corporate SaaS.
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: The Philippines' leading fractional CFO services provider. https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode, we sit down with Dennis Velasco, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Prosperna, an online marketing and e-commerce platform designed to empower small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and real estate professionals in the Philippines.
Dennis shares his journey from growing up as an Asian-American in Texas to discovering entrepreneurship through his family’s businesses. He recalls his rise in Silicon Valley with companies like Salesforce, Cornerstone OnDemand, and Xero, and how launching a small business during the 2008 financial crisis shaped his entrepreneurial mindset. Ultimately, Dennis reveals what inspired him to return to the Philippines to found Prosperna, empowering SMEs to embrace e-commerce and digital growth.
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Phil Renner, co-founder and CEO of Dr. Shiba, to share how a German-born McKinsey consultant turned his love for pets into one of Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing pet care brands. Phil breaks down how his multicultural upbringing shaped his hustle, why he bet on the Philippines’ booming e-commerce scene, and how Dr. Shiba became a go-to brand for pet parents across the region. He also talks about scaling from startup to multi-market player, the tough calls behind culture and hiring, and what it takes to build a proudly Filipino-led global brand from the ground up.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipprenner
Website: https://dr-shiba.com
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Mansueto "Joel" Callao, Chairman and CEO of NYXSYS, to travel through his journey from a PUP graduate breaking into multinational sales to leading one of the Philippines’ biggest players in digital out-of-home advertising. Joel shares how persistence helped him land major clients, why a ₱26M billboard deal with no location became his first big break, and how a spectacular installation failure pushed him to level up. He opens up about shifting from static billboards to Asia’s largest LED displays, pivoting during the pandemic to build AI-powered audience measurement, and the leadership lessons he’s learned from working with Gen Z talent. Joel also gets real about staying true to your company’s “why,” keeping innovation constant, and why embracing failure is essential to long-term success.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mansueto-callao-73a110a4
Website: https://nyxsys.ph
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
PLDT Enterprise: MSME Fiberbiz and 5G SIM Only
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Mel Nava, founder and CEO of 1Export, to talk about her journey from hustling as a bazaarista and working in export sales to building a tech startup that empowers Filipino SMEs to expand globally. Mel opens up about the struggles of bootstrapping a company, losing her co-founders, and battling depression, and why she chose resilience over giving up. She also shares how 1Export turned a “rejected idea” into a fast-growing export platform, the lessons she learned from her MBA at AIM, and how the company is making compliance, documentation, and global market access easier for small businesses.
Episode:
[00:04:40] – Mel’s Hustle: From export sales to 1Export
[00:06:51] – Early Hustles: Selling toys and leading through volunteering
[00:14:01] – Bazaarista Life: Side business while working full-time
[00:23:41] – MBA at AIM: Competitions, networks, and new perspective
[00:33:05] – Birth of 1Export: Turning a rejected idea into a startup
[00:36:57] – Breaking Barriers: Bureaucracy, compliance, and relationships
[00:45:01] – Bootstrapping: Lean growth, IdeaSpace, and first customers
[00:53:13] – Resilience: Losing co-founders and battling depression
[01:03:42] – Word of Mouth: Scaling from 6 to 260 SMEs
[01:06:26] – Exporting Made Simple: Turning SME products export-ready
[01:18:58] – Advice to Entrepreneurs: Grit, honesty, and purpose
“You think about this after five, you think about this before you go to sleep, the first thing you think about when you wake up — it’s a whole different grind. If you don’t have a good support system, it’s going to be very, very difficult to execute."
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melnava
Website: https://1export.com/
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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Listen to our brand new podcast: Founders Only HERE
Diamond Supporters: Sarisuki, PayMongo, SeekCap, Shoppable Business, Qapita, GoTyme Bank, Sprout Solutions, UNO Digital Bank.
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Vincent Mendoza, founder and CEO of Farmvocacy, to talk about his journey from selling security systems door-to-door and launching beverages at URC to building a climate fintech startup that empowers Filipino farmers. Vincent opens up about the failures that forced him to start over, why he chose purpose over a stable corporate career, and how Farmvocacy is breaking the cycle of farmer debt with commodity-backed financing and sustainable partnerships. He also shares the lessons he’s learned from surviving multiple “valleys of death,” and how grit, humility, and faith continue to guide him as he brings Filipino innovation to the global stage.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincent-roy-mendoza-b39a64121/
Website: https://farmvocacy.com/
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Lester Cruz, CEO of Singlife Philippines, to talk about the journey that took him from his early sales grind and 15 years at Citi to pioneering digital banking at CIMB and Uno before leading one of the country’s most innovative digital insurers. Lester gets real about the rejections that built his grit, the leadership lessons he learned climbing the corporate ladder, and why he chose to take on the massive challenge of closing the Philippines’ insurance gap. He also shares how he’s redefining the insurance experience for Filipinos, and what running, resilience, and family have taught him about leadership and balance.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lester-cruz-0243ab122
Website: https://singlife.com.ph
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Nel Laygo, Founder and CEO of Peddlr, to unpack the wild journey that took him from hustling as a kid in Catbalogan, Samar to building one of the Philippines’ fastest-growing fintech startups for micro and small businesses. Nel gets real about how early side hustles shaped his entrepreneurial grit, why breaking through barriers in Region 8 gave him a chip on his shoulder, and what it took to scale Peddlr from idea to 250,000 downloads in just six months. He also shares how he tackled user trust issues, built a grassroots community that became their biggest growth driver, and what he learned moving from bootstrapping to finally raising investor capital.
Resources:
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nel-laygo-a2486686
Website:
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we explore the story of Carl Orale, a repeat founder and CEO of Ticket Nation Philippines—an innovative platform helping venues and event producers deliver seamless ticketing experiences. Carl takes us through his rollercoaster journey: from running his first internet café as a college student, to building a 50-person BPO, to enduring three bankruptcies—including a crushing collapse during the pandemic. He opens up about how his upbringing fueled his hustle, how gaming sparked his passion for tech and entrepreneurship, and the tough lessons learned from financial missteps, scaling too fast, and bearing the responsibility of dozens of employees. Most importantly, Carl shares how he found the grit to rise again—launching Ticket Nation in 2020 and generating over $1.4 million in ticket sales in under a year.
Resources:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-angelo-orale/
Website: https://ticketnation.ph/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ticketnationphilippines/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ticketnationphofficial
X (Twitter): https://x.com/ticketnationph
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we sit down with Clive Aranha, General Manager of Hotel Casiana, to talk about how he went from running bars on cruise ships to leading one of the top hotels in Tagaytay. Clive shares how growing up in the hustle of Mumbai sparked his love for hospitality, how he built and sold his own restaurant in Australia, and what brought him back to the Philippines. He also talks about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship, building strong teams, and how he helped turn things around at Hotel Casiana in just over a year—with the help of partners to fix key challenges and support their rapid growth.
Learn more about Clive Aranha
Official Website: https://www.hotelcasiana.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gmclivearanha
Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
PLDT Enterprise: https://pldtenterprise.com
- MSME Fiberbiz - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-fiberbiz
- 5G SIM Only - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-smart-postpaid
Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Stephanie Sy, founder and CEO of Thinking Machines, to unpack her journey from Stanford and Silicon Valley to building one of the Philippines’ leading AI and data science companies. Stephanie shares how her early startup attempts and time at Google shaped her hustle, why she made the leap back home to start from scratch, and what it took to grow Thinking Machines in a market that was still new to data science. She also gets real about the challenges of building an AI team in a resource-constrained environment, the scrappy moves that helped them thrive, and how purpose-driven projects are helping shape the future of tech in Southeast Asia.
Learn more about Stephanie Sy:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefsy
Website: https://thinkingmachin.es/
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we sit down with Jake Go, Founder and CEO of Springboard Philippines, to trace his path from coasting through a dead-end dev job to running one of the country’s most resilient niche staffing firms. He shares how lessons from his grandma’s tiny Recto canteen stuck with him, the career-shaping mentorship he got at Kalibrr, and the leap into entrepreneurship that saw him earn back his first investment in six months—completely bootstrapped. Jake talks about winning boardroom deals as a baby-faced 23-year-old, how teaming up with his wife brought a much-needed dose of frugality, and why balancing “push” and “pull” has kept Springboard profitable for over a decade. He also opens up about teaching at La Salle, mentoring students, and the leadership shifts that turned him from a people-pleasing founder into a decisive, purpose-driven leader.
Resources:
Email: jake@springboardph.com
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaakego
Website: https://springboard.com.ph & https://speedregalo.com
Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we sit down with Bimbo Adewoyin, founder and CTO of Doublesquare Networks Inc., to talk about how he went from installing DIY wireless setups in college to leading a nationwide tech company. Bimbo shares how growing up in Nigeria shaped his work ethic, how he adjusted to life in Bicol, and how he hustled his way into city-wide projects—all while figuring things out on his own. He also talks about building a team, learning the ropes of government procurement, and how PLDT Enterprise helped them grow through the toughest moments of the pandemic.
Resources:
Official Website:
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bimboblade
Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
PLDT Enterprise: https://pldtenterprise.com
- MSME Fiberbiz - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-fiberbiz
- 5G SIM Only - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-smart-postpaid
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Jessica Ouano of Kinabuhi and Nikki Sevilla of EcoNest Philippines sit down for a real, no-frills conversation on building businesses that put people and the planet first. From crafting handwoven fashion with artisan weavers to producing cassava-based bioplastics for everyday packaging, they share how personal values—and frustrations—turned into sustainable ventures. With support from Villgro Philippines, they talk about the highs and lows of bootstrapping, what it really takes to get quality and pricing right, and why staying mission-driven matters when things get tough. It’s a story about making room for impact, one challenge at a time.
Resources:
LinkedIn (Jessica Ouano): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-ouano-433321180
Website (Kinabuhi): https://www.kinabuhi.com
LinkedIn (Nikki Sevilla): https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikkisevilla2018
Website (EcoNest Philippines): https://www.econestph.com
Links/Sponsors:
Villgro Philippines: https://villgrophilippines.org/
Paymongo: https://www.paymongo.com/
GoTyme Bank: https://www.gotyme.com.ph/
SeekCap: https://www.seekcap.ph/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Alex de Leon, Group VP of Marketing at PropertyGuru, to unpack the wild journey that took him from tinkering with computers in Manila to working at Google in Silicon Valley—and eventually marketing for one of Southeast Asia's biggest proptech companies. Alex shares how growing up between cultures shaped his hustle, what working three jobs in college taught him about grit, and why it took 26 tries before he finally landed at Google. He also gets real about what it’s like starting from customer support, how being a generalist became his edge in tech, and why building from scratch in the Philippines was the most career-defining move he made.
Resources:
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandermdeleon
Website:
https://www.propertygurugroup.com/
Links/Sponsors:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
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Juvien Galano of Dewaste Solutions and Pamela Mejia of PAMMÉ join the show for a heartfelt, funny, and no-holds-barred conversation on building businesses with real purpose. From growing up beside rivers filled with garbage and surviving private school on a tight budget, to turning plastic waste into fashion pieces that sell in Rockwell and building waste systems from the ground up—they share how their personal stories shaped their paths. With support from Villgro Philippines, they talk about winning grants, bouncing back from big setbacks, and why relationships matter. It’s a story of grit, growth, and going back to your roots to create real change.
Resources:
LinkedIn (Juvien Galano): https://www.linkedin.com/in/juvien
Website (Dewaste Solutions): https://www.dewaste.solutions
LinkedIn (Pamela Mejia): https://www.linkedin.com/in/thepamelamejia
Website (PAMMÉ): https://thepamme.com
Links/Sponsors:
Villgro Philippines: https://villgrophilippines.org/
Paymongo: https://www.paymongo.com/
GoTyme Bank: https://www.gotyme.com.ph/
SeekCap: https://www.seekcap.ph/
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In this episode of Hustleshare, we sit down with Gerard John Deriada and Kareen Grace Lacorte of Agri Exim Global Philippines to talk about how they helped grow an organic agriculture company from a small 10-person team in Davao to over 1,000 employees across the country. Kareen shares how she stumbled into HR and built a career on empathy, grit, and a willingness to figure things out on her own, while Gerard looks back on the scrappy early days of wearing multiple hats and helping build systems from scratch. They get real about the challenges of hiring and retention, scaling with purpose, and staying aligned with a bigger mission. We also dive into how PLDT Enterprise helped power their digital transformation and kept them connected through the toughest moments of the pandemic. If you’re in the thick of building something meaningful, this episode is full of hard-earned lessons you’ll want to hear.
Resources:
Official Website: https://agrieximorganic.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/agriexim/posts/?feedView=all
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/agrieximorganic
This episode is brought to you by:
OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/
PLDT Enterprise: https://pldtenterprise.com
- MSME Fiberbiz - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-fiberbiz
- 5G SIM Only - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-smart-postpaid
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Jovy Gill of Altilium Green Energy and Cecilia Miranda of IslaTech sit down for a raw, inspiring conversation on building businesses that stay rooted in purpose. From turning pineapple waste into fabric to powering off-grid communities with smart batteries, they share how their paths—shaped by family, failure, and full-circle moments—led to ventures that serve both people and planet. They also talk about the slow, quiet grind before markets catch up and what it takes to juggle leadership. With backing from Villgro Philippines, they’re proving that you don’t have to leave to make a difference—and that the best solutions are built with community from day one.
Resources:
LinkedIn (Jovy Gill): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jovygill
Website (Altium Green Energy): https://www.altiliumgreen.energy/
Website (Isla-Tek): https://isla-tek.com
Links/Sponsors:
Villgro Philippines: https://villgrophilippines.org/
Paymongo: https://www.paymongo.com/
GoTyme Bank: https://www.gotyme.com.ph/
SeekCap: https://www.seekcap.ph/
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