BIZ BUZZ: When lightning strikes … a yacht

This controversial businessman, a co-defendant in a high-profile plunder case, dodged jail time several years ago as the charges against him were junked by the Sandiganbayan for lack of evidence.

There’s no escaping Mother Nature’s fury, however, as the businessman’s sleek sailboat was recently struck by lighting near the Twin Islands off the coast of Punta Fuego in Batangas. The yacht caught fire and eventually sank. It happened in the wee hours of April 30, the same day that dive boat Dream Keeper sank off the Tubbataha reef area in Palawan, according to the grapevine.

The businessman is still lucky that he wasn’t on board or entertaining any VIP guests when the tragedy struck. It’s also fortunate that his crew had enough time to get off the floating inferno and were all rescued.

The sailing community was, of course, shocked and saddened by the incident. Many are talking (and swapping tips) about how they can better protect their vessels from such random lighting strikes, which may only get more vicious with climate change.

—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla

Korean craze

Businessman and former Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis “Chavit” Singson seems to share other Filipinos’ obsession for Korean pop culture as he recently added under his portfolio a new brand from the East Asian country often seen in Korean television dramas.

Popular Korean restaurant and cafe brand O’Mango Six opened its first branch in Manila earlier this month, under a partnership with the Singson-led holdings company LCS Group and Korean company O’Mango Six.

This is the second Korean brand under Singson’s business empire, which also has corporate interests in the aviation, energy and mining, finance and telecommunications sectors.

To recall, the LCS Group, in partnership with Korean firm Genesis BB.Q, launched in November of last year the first store in the country of South Korean fried chicken chain ‘BB.Q’ at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig.

Singson told Biz Buzz earlier last year that he plans to expand his Korean chicken restaurant chain, opening more branches in the future.

For her part, O’ Mango Six chief executive officer Lia Oh said they also plan to open more of these cafes in the Philippines, meaning Filipinos will get more chances to experience a taste of the cultural atmosphere that we see in K-dramas.

—Alden M. Monzon INQ