Background
He was a known ally of former President Ferdinand Marcos. Tan owns Asia Brewery, the second largest brewery in the Philippines, Tanduay Holdings, one of the world's largest rum makers, Fortune Tobacco, the largest tobacco company in the country - just some of the 300 companies that Tan controls. Though a non-smoker, he started a cigarette company called Fortune Tobacco in 1966. This venture, which was housed in a small hut in Marikina, proved to be the enterprise that would catapult Mr. Tan to success. From this flagship company emerged numerous successful ventures in agribusiness; banking, finance and securities; brewery; chemicals; distillery and alcohol; education; food; hotel; manufacturing; property development; steel fabrication and construction; and tourism and travel services.
In 1970, Tan brought to the country an advanced hog-raising facility from Taiwan and set up Foremost Farms in Tanay, Rizal. The farm now operates on a 146-hectare facility and has an average daily production of 50 metric tons of hogs for the domestic market making it one of the largest hog farms in Southeast Asia.
In 1977, Tan acquired from the Philippine government the defunct General Bank and Trust Company, which he renamed Allied Bank.
In 1978, Tan ventured into building and construction when he bought Riverside Steel Inc., which was renamed Grandspan Development Corporation. To date, Grandspan has been involved in the construction of power plants, high rise buildings, bridges, airport terminal and hangars, and other structures.
In 1982, after then President Ferdinand Marcos lifted the ban on the establishment of new beer companies, Tan established Asia Brewery, the second largest brewery in the country, with a 10% share of the Philippine market.
In 1985, Tan bought Century Park Hotel.
Tan established the Tan Yan Kee Foundation in 1986 in honor of the late Tan family patriarch (see below). In 1988, the Lucio Tan Group of Companies acquired Tanduay Distillery, the oldest maker of rum, from the Elizalde Family. Tan and his group launched a plant modernization and expansion program that increased Tanduay's production by almost 50 times.
Tan later bought the University of the East in 1990, which he considers his biggest feat in promoting education in the country.
In 1993, the country's national flag carrier, Philippine Airlines, joined the list of companies that Lucio Tan controls and manages.And has now turned over the business to Lia Tan.
In 1995, he founded yet another company in the aviation industry. The Macro Asia Corporation was envisioned to be the leading provider of aviation and logistics services. This vision has become a reality as Macro Asia Corporation is now the provider of technical ground handling, engineering and maintenance services, and catering services to the majority of international airlines.
In 2000, Tan became the primary stockholder of Philippine National Bank. The merging of PNB and Allied Bank is expected to be completed before the end of this year.
Read more about this topic: Lucio Tan
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