Jose Maria “Joey” Concepcion III is the founder of Go Negosyo, a flagship advocate of his very own creation—the Philippine Center of Entrepreneurship which keeps him on his toes as a businessman and a mentor.
He says he usually wakes up about 6:30 a.m. to attend to multiple civic engagements apart from his routine tasks as president of RFM Corp. and chairman of the RFM Unilever Ice Cream Inc.
RFM successfully caught Filipino consumers’ preference for brands such as Pop Cola, Cosmos and Selecta Ice Cream. Joey says the popularity of RFM products did not come by accident.
The 65-year-old also sits at the board of Concepcion Industries Inc. founded by his father and namesake, Jose Concepcion Jr., more popularly known by his moniker “Joecon.”
Concepcion Industries account for roughly a third of the country’s air-conditioning requirements.
The La Salle University-educated businessman philanthropist was recognized as among the 50 richest men in the Philippines, with a net worth of about $174 million as of 2020.
Joey was conferred in 2018 the Padma Shri award, the highest civilian honor given by India for his work in trade and industry.
He is the grandson of two business titans and philanthropists, Joecon and Salvador Araneta whose family founded the De la Salle University where Joey studied.
Go Negosyo has been cited by Forbes Magazine in the field of philanthropy. His commendations and citations include a recognition by Time Global in its List of 100 Young Leaders for the Millennium 1994 and one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines (TOYM) 1995.
Go Negosyo is a non-stock, non-profit organization that advocates “change in mindset and attitude” among the citizenry to vigorously push the fight against poverty by encouraging the spirit of entrepreneurship.
“We believe that Filipinos can address poverty in the country by engaging in entrepreneurship and developing an optimistic, passionate, creative and innovative, resourceful, diligent and persevering character. We encourage everyone to take charge and make the most of their resources and abilities by utilizing and transforming these into viable enterprises,” the Go Negosyo policy statement reads.
“Through our Caravans, Negosems, multi-media [TV and web] campaigns and books, Go Negosyo hopes to demystify entrepreneurial success and popularize entrepreneurship as an alternative to unemployment, job-seeking or migration,” it says.
Go Negosyo considers itself as partner in improving entrepreneurship education and in providing a marketplace of ideas, innovations, business models and best practices.
“In short, we aim to catalyze the development of entrepreneurship in the country. An entrepreneurial culture would lead to an entrepreneurial nation and, consequently, to improved economy for the country. Go Negosyo do not endorse a particular kind of business or franchise. Instead, we provide links to our partner entrepreneurs’ businesses, to business opportunities, to entrepreneurship-related training programs, and to funding sources,” it says.
“Hoping to generate competitive Filipino entrepreneurs, we seek to be the institution that brings together all key stakeholders and enablers of different entrepreneurship programs.”
Concepcion was designated Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2005 and again by President Rodrigo Duterte in 2016. Under the President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administration, he was named chairman of the jobs committee of the Private Sector Advisory Council.
His father, Joecon who passed away on March 6, 2024, had a storied life. He served as president and chief operating officer of RFM which was founded by his father-in-law, Salvador Araneta, as a flour-milling company in 1965.
RFM eventually diversified into the animal feed milling, poultry and livestock industries and obtained a license from the American meat processing firm Swift to produce processed meats in the Philippines.
Joecon was a trustee of the Makati Business Club from 1984 to 1986. He was also chairman of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s ASEAN Committee, and Philippine head of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council and the East Asia Business Council established in 2002.[7]
Joecon pioneered the domestic use of radioisotopes meant to determine how much phosphorus was needed in fertilizers to promote plant growth.
Concepcion was elected to represent Rizal province in the `1971 Philippine Constitutional Convention. He was briefly imprisoned in Camp Crame following the declaration of martial law in 1972.
Then President Corazon Aquino named Joecon secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry during which he launched the “Yes, the Filipino Can” movement.
In 1983, Joecon revived the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) which mobilized thousands through his slogan “it is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.”
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