Weaving a sustainable future

The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 Philippines has concluded its search for the country’s most visionary leaders shaping opportunities and transforming industries. It is a program of the SGV Foundation, Inc., with co-presenters: the Asian Institute of Management, Department of Trade and Industry, Philippine Business for Social Progress, and Philippine Stock Exchange.

Anna Losanta Marie R. Lagon
Co-CEO and Chief Creative Officer
Bayo Manila, Inc.

FOR MANY ORGANIZATIONS, marrying business and sustainability is something like a pipe dream, an aspiration that’s too good to be true. For some, it’s more of an afterthought — a social responsibility that they need to fulfill. However, for sustainability to make an impact, it should be rooted in a sincere desire to do something good and be part of the solution. This was the case for Anna Losanta Marie R. Lagon, co-chief executive officer (CEO) and chief creative officer at Bayo Manila, Inc.

Bayo is a homegrown fashion brand that takes pride in being Filipino. In 2013, Ms. Lagon and her husband Leo acquired and co-managed Bayo. They took over the company during a tumultuous time in the local fashion industry. Bayo was also an ailing business then, facing a lot of internal difficulties.

Against all odds, they were able to turn things around and stabilize the company’s finances. From 31 branches, Bayo now has 64 branches in the Philippines.

This accomplishment was an amazing feat. However, what truly made an impact was Ms. Lagon’s remarkable story of how she transformed Bayo from a local fashion brand to a sustainable company that celebrates Filipino heritage and is passionate about community engagement.

In 2019, she launched the “Journey to Zero” initiative — aimed at reducing textile waste, raising consumer awareness and promoting Earth-friendly fashion practices. Through this effort, she showed that large-scale commercial success can coexist with sustainability goals.

Some of the steps she took include implementing measures to reduce the company’s fabric waste from 35% to a minimal 10% and using environment-friendly fabrics and low impact dyes. Now, she is awaiting approval for her application for a utility patent that would create construction materials from a mixture of residual plastics, with the remaining fabric waste that would otherwise end up in a landfill.

Over the years, Ms. Lagon has received recognition from numerous award-giving bodies for her sustainability efforts. She showcased how businesses can benefit from adopting eco-friendly practices, which is also aligned with her goal of creating a circular economy.

In her words, “In whatever things we do within our business, it all boils down to creating ripples of circles… everyone doing something not just on their own, but really replicating it. All of that contributes positively to others, to the environment. But everything becomes realistic because there are tangible results that really affect the positive side of how we are as people.”

Ms. Lagon’s passion for sustainability also trickled down to her other initiatives. When she committed to integrate sustainability into every aspect of Bayo, she also tapped into local resources and talents. By working with local artisans and using locally sourced materials, she in turn supported the local economy. Having seen the positive effect of giving people hope for a better future through sustainable livelihood, community engagement also eventually became one of her priorities.

“The essence of the Bayo brand is not just really in the numbers. But I think our impact is really from how we evolved into balancing our community development works and also stabilizing the business,” said Ms. Lagon.

This is evident in the Bayo Manila Foundation and their Creative Community Hubs, where they train people in various crafts. They also have the CommUNITY Partnership Program (CPP), where they travel to communities far and wide to partner with small associations that practice traditional Filipino crafts.

Ms. Lagon demonstrated through Bayo that businesses have a bigger impact on communities than they realize. And while her passion for sustainability and community engagement may not be immediately visible to the public, at the end of the day it’s her conscious and sincere efforts to do something good that make a difference. “Little things like that empower the entire community,” she said.

Media sponsors are BusinessWorld and the ABS-CBN News Channel. Gold sponsors are SteelAsia Manufacturing Corp., Uratex, and Converge ICT Solutions, Inc. Silver sponsor is International Container Terminal Services, Inc. Bronze sponsor is Lausgroup Holdings, Inc.

The winners will be announced on Oct. 23, 2024. The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2024 Philippines will represent the country in the World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2025 in Monte Carlo, Monaco in June 2025. The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year program is produced globally by Ernst & Young (EY).