This 18-year-old teenager from Cavite is now earning seven figures a year from his kangkong business.
Josh Mojica said that he himself couldn’t believe how fast his business venture grew during the pandemic.
“Actually, Philippine STAR ‘yung kaunahang nakakuha ng story ko. Sila ‘yung nakakita sa’kin that moment na sobrang liit ko pa. I started it last June 2021. Tapos mag-isa lang ako no’n. Ginamit ko ‘yung business idea na ilagay sa packaging ‘yung crispy angkong recipe ng family ko. So ako lang ‘yung nag-pack and ako lang din ‘yung nag-market,” Josh recalled.
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Josh said that the power of social media helped him find the target market for his products. “In a month po, we [can now] produce 46,000 packs of kangkong chips.”
He was able to buy a van for deliveries and built a three-storey factory worth P4 million this 2022. In just a year, Josh also managed to expand his team.
“In 2021, 12 kami sa team. Kumikita lang siguro ako no’n nang four figures in a month. And right now in 2022, meron na ‘kong 100 employees and then kumikita na po ako ng seven figures a month. At first, sa kitchen lang talaga ako eh. And then no’ng tumagal, nagkaro’n ng backyard factory, which is mga tent,” he shared.
“Before po, lahat ng empleyado ko, all of them are my friends. Pero ngayon po, kumuha na po ako dito sa community lang din namin ng mga single parent, mga PWDs, and lahat po ng gusto talagang magtrabaho dito, kinukuha na po namin hangga’t kaya,” he added.
Looking back, Josh said he’s really thankful for his family who helped him run the business especially his mother, who raised him along with his grandparents.
“‘Yung mother ko po is part na din siya ng business. And siya na din ‘yung nagru-run ng finances. And halos siya na din ‘yung pinaka tumatayo sa business. Before po, ‘yung mother ko is [a] hotel staff and pinag-resign ko po siya para tulungan na po ako sa business,” Josh noted.
From being a home-based business, Josh’s original kangkong chips are now available in supermarkets and malls. He also has hundreds of distributors and resellers nationwide.
According to him, he took advantage of his age and the technology to make a name in the industry.
“Pinakamalaking factor ng business marketing eh. So, ginamit ko ‘yung pagiging bata ko, pagiging multimedia enthusiast na mga bata ‘yung magaling sa computer. Ginamit ko siya para mag-market ng business. So malaking factor po talaga ‘yon,” he said.
“Walang limit ‘yung pagiging businessman pero may advantage ‘yung pagiging bata. Kasi ‘pag nagsimula ka nang bata, marami kang power, marami kang energy, kumpara kung tumanda ka na. Simulan natin palagi nang mas maaga. Kasi mas maaga tayong mag-succeed,” he stressed.
Josh graduated senior high school at the Saint Augustine School-Mendez. For now, he opted to focus on his business. In the future, however, Josh said that he still plans to get a degree.
