D&L, ICTSI cited among “Top 50 Global Challengers”

Alvin Lao

Two Philippine firms – the country’s leading chemical producer D&L Industries and port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc. – landed on the “Top 50 Global Challengers” listed by London-based publication Campden FB.

This roster was drawn from a research made by Campden FB, in partnership with Citi Private Bank, on family businesses with impressive growth rates and turnover of between $200 million and $6 billion. To qualify, the companies must be at least 50 percent family-owned and have second generation or later generation family members involved in the business.

D&L ranked second in the “Top 50” list while ICTSI ranked 16th. The ranking was based on average sales growth in the last two years.

Enrique Razon

The list was topped by Meridian Health Plan, a family-owned health plan operating in Michigan and Illinois, US. This year’s roster also includes the likes of fashion houses Hermes and Gianni Versace, Indian airline Jet Airways and Dutch contracting firm Van Oord.

Campden FB covers family businesses across the world. In its 70th special edition copy, the magazine also featured a list of top 50 family business leaders making a mark in different parts of the globe.

D&L Industries president and chief executive officer Alvin Lao, together with second-generation managing directors Dean Lao, Jr., Lester Lao, and Vincent Lao were also included in Campden FB’s list of Top 50 Family Business Leaders of 2017.

ICTSI president Enrique Razon Jr. was also featured in this roster.

Campden FB evaluated the featured leaders based on the following criteria: 1) adherence to exceptional corporate governance and succession planning, 2) outstanding entrepreneurial talent in the context of the family business, and 3) crucial contribution to the successful running of the business which helped underpin its revenue growth and profitability.

The publication noted that D&L’s export growth last year amounted to more than 20 percent as the second generation was building on the successes of the founding generation. It said that “clear succession rules require external experience before family can join D&L Industries.”

“It’s an honor to be mentioned alongside such outstanding business families from all around the world,” Alvin Lao said. “Our first generation were entrepreneurs and built a strong foundation for our business. We in the second generation are working hard to keep that spirit alive, as evidenced by our company-wide focus on R&D (research and development) and innovation. Going forward, we want to set the right framework for our business to prosper beyond the third and even fourth generation.”

This year, D&L has earmarked up to P420 million for capital spending.

Campden FB also noted that after Razon inherited control of ICTSI in 1987, he ‘has grown it to one of the largest corporations in Asia providing container port terminal services,” adding that the company had been growing by 12 percent annually since 2013.