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Payag owner files lawsuit vs founder of RDR Cargo for fraud, ‘threat to kill’ (Part 1)
By Cristina DC Pastor They are two of the most visible business entrepreneurs in the Filipino American community until their friendship soured and they found themselves before a Queens court on charges of fraud, harassment and ‘threat to kill.’ On April 6, Rena Avendula, who is the owner of Payag Restaurant, filed a complaint of […]
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How Asian-Americans with $825B purchasing power influence buying behaviors: report
Asian-Americans’ impact and influence are shifting and growing, according to “Asian-Americans: Culturally Diverse and Expanding Their Footprint,” a Nielsen report released on May 19. Members of this diverse segment are starting businesses, creating jobs and contributing to the U.S. economy, with a current $825 billion in consumer buying power—which is expected to rise to $1.1 […]
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Lucio Tan’s crown jewels PAL and PNB now in the Theatre District
Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Philippine National Bank (PNB) recently transferred their offices from Downtown to Midtown Manhattan, near Times Square and the Philippine Consulate. The address: 561 Seventh Avenue. An office blessing, officiated by Monsignor Oscar Aquino, was held on May 7th attended by Consul General Mario de Leon Jr., company executives, Philippine tourism officials […]
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Filipino food: Tops in taste ‘but not pretty on the table’
By Cristina DC Pastor With lavish patriotic pride, we declare Filipino food to be the best in taste. But we also wonder: Why hasn’t the Kare Kare crossed over to mainstream American tables the way General Tso’s Chicken has? About 20 restaurant owners and chefs who gathered recently to launch Filipino Restaurant Week — from […]
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Tech company ordered to pay its Filipino engineers more than $160K in back wages, overtime
A federal court in San Francisco has entered a consent judgment that orders a Silicon Valley electronics manufacturer to pay more than $80,000 in minimum wage and overtime back pay and an equal, additional amount in damages to its workers after the U.S. Department of Labor discovered violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). […]
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Trail goes cold in case of missing ‘balikbayan’ boxes and vanishing freight forwarders
By Cristina DC Pastor This is a story familiar to many of us who have experienced shipping ‘balikbayan’ boxes around the holidays with relatives receiving them several months later, or worse, not receiving them at all. The story of Tess Madamba, a caregiver from Queens, is our story. She sent several ‘balikbayan’ boxes to her […]
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FilAms who live in affordable housing: It’s literally ‘winning a lottery’
By Cristina DC Pastor This article was written as part of the Business Reporting Fellowship of the Center for Community and Ethnic Media and funded by a grant from News Corp. For many years, “home” for Jocelyn Bernal Ochoa was her mother’s basement in Queens. There, she settled nicely when she was an unmarried accounting […]
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What the FilAm community needs to know about Multi-level Marketing
By Cristina DC Pastor This article was written as part of the Business Reporting Fellowship of the Center for Community and Ethnic Media and funded by a grant from News Corp. One can tell just by looking at her that Jen Furer, mother of four, is a fitness enthusiast. Her blog, GottaLoveMom, chronicles her weight-loss […]
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N.J. brothers race to protect their clothing brand from bootlegging
Two New Jersey-born brothers have created a lifestyle apparel company by combining their passions for drag racing and graphic design. Brian Mabutas, 30 and brother Francis, 36, are the owners of the clothing brand Eat Sleep Race (ESR) which recently moved into a large property in Edison, N.J. that serves as the warehouse, office, and […]