The difficulty of the home market turned out to be the competitive advantage abroad.
Startup · Topic
Philippines Company Stories — Page 2
In-depth business case studies of Philippine companies, conglomerates, founders and industries.
- 55 guides
- 11 subtopics
- Updated Aug 26, 2026
All guides · page 2
Philippine Airlines: The Cost of Being a Flag Carrier
National obligation is a real cost. Pretending otherwise produces airlines that restructure repeatedly.
Cebu Pacific: The Fares That Created a Market
Low fares did not divide the market. They created most of it.
Del Monte Pacific: The Plantation Kept Working, the Balance Sheet Did Not
A strong operating business endangered by a financial decision entirely separate from operations.
Rice Tariffication: The Reform That Worked Exactly as Predicted
Diffuse gains, concentrated losses. The arithmetic was positive and nobody was grateful.
Mindanao’s Fruit Plantations: Disease, Land and the Japanese Market
Export agriculture built on one variety carries a biological risk no financial hedge can address.
Philippine Mining: World-Class Geology, Unfinanceable Rules
Policy reversal damages more than policy severity. A permanent ban is at least something you can plan around.
Philippine Nickel: Selling the Rock, Watching Others Refine It
Resource endowment without cheap energy is an export business, not an industry.
Philippine Infrastructure: The Constraint Was Never the Money
Budget allocated is not concrete poured. The gap between them is where execution is measured.
Manila’s Water: The Privatization That Worked and Was Reopened Anyway
Connecting millions of people did not protect the tariff formula that paid for the connections.
Why Philippine Electricity Costs More Than Anywhere Nearby
Market reform allocates capital well. It does not lower prices when the cost drivers are unchanged.
Philippine Geothermal: The Renewable That Runs All Night
The most valuable renewable is the one that runs when you need it — and cost-per-megawatt comparisons miss that entirely.