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WHEN
couple Greg and Honeylette Keyser and their friend Mae
Velilla returned from a vacation in Boracay in 2002,
they didn’t just bring back with them the usual bunch of
souvenirs for pasalubongs. Along with rosy tans
and happy snaps, they also went home as the proud new
owners of a 550-sq-m property, just a few minutes’ walk
from the Boat Station 1 area of the famous Aklan island,
which would eventually become the Escondido Beach
Resort.
Greg and
Honeylette, then first-time visitors to Boracay, were
immediately smitten with the island’s charms and began
pondering on how wonderful it would be to stay there
permanently. But unlike most of us who’ve had the same
discussion while plastered on a hammock while looking
out into the calm sea, they actually did something about
it. Apart from the obligatory island tours, the three
friends also looked at several properties that were for
sale. Among those was a lot near the less-desirable Boat
Station 3 area, which didn’t appeal to them right away.
There was another property shown to them that seemed
promising, except that the owner changed his mind and
decided not to sell at the last minute.
With
their vacation about to come to an end, the friends were
nearly resigned to let go of their dream.
Serendipitously, a room boy, who apparently heard of the
trio’s property-hunting trips, approached them about a
lot in Balabag, which had been used in copra farming.
The owner was desperate to sell, owing to a family
emergency.
Fortunately, Mae had just come from a business meeting
in Iloilo before going to Boracay. “That’s why I had my
checkbook with me,” she said, while declining to reveal
the negotiated sale price for the lot. “The price was
reasonable,” she said. They paid an “earnest” deposit
for the property, without any inkling of what they were
going to do with it.
Mae said
their original plan was merely to build a vacation
house. But there was an obvious opportunity to build a
small resort, which they did, opening just in time for
the start of high season the following year.
Greg and
Honeylette eventually moved to Boracay permanently with
their infant son, who now studies at the
Brent
School
branch on the island. They live in a native beach hut
within the resort. He handles the operations, while the
wife lords over the kitchen and the year-old restaurant
Boracay Crab House. Mae, on the other hand, still lives
in Manila, where she runs her main business: a
nutriceutical company, whose products include the Coco
Zen line of coconut oil-based items. She is also on top
of the resort’s sales and marketing.
No
business plan
THE trio
said the resort is a labor of love. Their friends
pitched in to help in the design of the main building,
which follows clean, modern lines but decorated with
antique Filipino furniture.
Curiously, the three hid the project from their parents
until they were ready to open. Greg shared that his
father was surprised when three container vans arrived
at their family’s warehouse in
Quezon City,
where Greg hid the furniture and appliances he bought
for
Escondido.
Greg
explained that he knew exactly what his parents would
say had he told them earlier about their plans—that
Boracay was too far, that they were not from the island,
and that they were unknown in the industry.
“Ayaw
namin na may ko-kontra pa,” Greg said. Actually, Greg
wasn’t a naďve newcomer in the tourism business when he
decided to build Escondido, since his family owned and
managed the Kisad Hotel in
Baguio
City.
Still,
Mae admits they jumped into the project without even
creating a feasibility study or a business plan. “It’s
good that we have the necessary background,” she said.
“But that [having a plan] would’ve been the better
approach.”
“It just
so happened that we were able to adjust and adapt,”
Honeylette added. “We were really total strangers here
in Boracay at the start.”
But not
once did they question their rather whimsical entry into
the Boracay tourism industry. “The only time I got
scared was when I thought we would not be able to finish
the construction in time since we already had bookings,”
Greg said.
Moreover, the size of the resort—initially it only had
12 rooms—was manageable for the enterprising trio. “It’s
not too difficult to fill this up,” Mae said.
With
their initial success,
Escondido
was able to double its lot size in two years. The
property now extends to more than 1,000 sq m—and they
have first crack at the remaining adjoining lots for
future expansion, which they hinted could be developed
into villas.
Crabs
and prawns
ESCONDIDO
started with a two-story building, styled like a
plantation house, with the rooms sharing a common
balcony that overlooks the landscaped courtyard.
Two
rooms—one designed for large groups—were added when they
built the Boracay Crab House, which can accommodate up
to 70 people in two al-fresco dining areas. As with the
main resort, the restaurant also features old Filipino
furniture.
Despite
the many restaurants serving seafood in Boracay, Mae
noted that there isn’t one that specializes in crabs and
prawns, which are usually served steamed or grilled.
At
Boracay Crab House, guests can pick from 12 different
preparations, including the house special which uses a
coconut cream-based sauce with the added goodness of
crab fat, or aligue.
This
doesn’t even include the two pasta preparations that
also highlight crabs and prawns.
But what
may truly set the restaurant apart is its rather large
selection of regional delicacies, including dishes from
the trio’s home provinces: Ilocos (Honeylette and Mae)
and Pampanga (Greg). Where else can one find a sinful
platter of bagnet or an authentic Ilocano pinakbet on
the island?
The
seafood are delivered daily from Roxas to ensure
freshness. “If ever we do run out, we can always buy at
the talipapa,” Honeylette said.
Near yet
so far
ALTHOUGH
Escondido truly lives up to its name—which means
hideaway in Spanish—the trio said its nonbeachfront
location isn’t a disadvantage since the beach is just an
easy two-minute walk from the resort.
Moreover, the resort is also within crawling distance of
Boracay’s hottest night spots—Cocomangas, Club Paraw and
Pier One—which makes Escondido also popular among the
younger crowd during the high season.
But Mae
admits that they need to work harder to promote the
restaurant. So far it has been thriving from sheer
word-of-mouth. “But after the lean season, we will put
up signages starting from the jetty port,” she said. “We
will also distribute flyers and leaflets.”
After
four years living in paradise, Greg and Honeylette said
they still feel as if they are still on vacation.
But is
there anything they do miss from city life?
“I
definitely don’t miss driving,” Greg said.
His
wife, however, shyly revealed one constant craving.
“McDonald’s and KFC,” she said, laughing. |
