Filipino and proud: Meet 5 young Torontonians whose heritage is the 'fuel' for their success
Business owners using food, art and clothing to teach others about their culture
From food and clothing to arts, young Filipino Canadian entrepreneurs in Toronto are finding creative ways to express pride for their heritage and identity.
June is Filipino Heritage Month in Canada. The occasion is celebrated this month to mark Philippines Independence Day, which falls on June 12.
CBC Toronto spoke to five young Torontonians about being Filipino and how they are using business to increase the public's understanding of their backgrounds.
Xylk Lorena
As a child in Manila, Xylk Lorena would accompany his mother to her job as an art director at an advertising agency.
After his family moved to Scarborough at age 10, Lorena carried with him a spark of creativity that he had witnessed at the firm.
Now, Lorena is launching a business called WeLife. Design, a clothing company and creative hub that aims to connect the West and the Philippines in a meaningful way, he said.
"We're utilizing streetwear as a bridge, as a common ground," he said.
Being Filipino "used to be something that was hidden," he said, due to the pressure to assimilate.
"Now it's everything that I'm proud of and it's the fuel of everything that I'm doing now," he said.
Abby Albino
Basketball is a core part of identity for many in the Filipino community, according to Abby Albino. She's the co-founder of MakeWay, which she said is North America's first and only sneaker store for women.
Albino, who is also the head of business and brand strategy at Canada Basketball, grew up in Mississauga, but spent the summers in Scarborough with family.
"Growing up, my relationship with the Filipino community was pretty strong. Like most Filipinos, I played basketball because it is like a rite of passage," she said.
She played in the International Basketball Federation, where her love of the sport and sneakers grew, she said.
She and eight other Filipino Canadians started the non-profit Rise Tribe in 2016 to help support Filipino-Canadian youth, she said.
"It's really about connecting them with careers that they might have not thought they could achieve," she said.
Christina Tolosa
Growing up eating home-cooked Filipino food daily, Christina Tolosa wanted millennials of similar backgrounds to have easy access to the flavours of their childhood.
That's why she created Aunties Supply, an Asian convenience store in downtown Toronto that sells snacks and ingredients. She is a first-generation Filipino-American, and moved to Canada four years ago.
During the pandemic, Tolosa wanted to cook more food that reflected her heritage. But she struggled to find the ingredients she needed and had to go to multiple grocery stores to find supplies, she said.
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The name of the store reflects growing up in a Filipino household, she said.
"Everyone knows that there's just that one auntie who is hooking it up with really good food," she said.
Now in her 30s, Tolsa said she wants to become a modern "auntie" through providing an easy way for people to connect with their culture through food.
Luanne Ronquillo
Six years ago, Luanne Ronquillo was gifted an ice-cream maker by her brother. After her first dessert creations were a success, she bought herself a more sophisticated machine and launched her own business.
Ruru Baked, a shop in Toronto that sells multiple flavours of ice-cream from "Everything Bagel" to "Black Sesame," started to grow during the pandemic.
Ronquillo said, as a half-Filipino, half-Singaporean woman, her heritage is important to her and is incorporated into her business.
The store does collaborations with other Filipino brands and showcases flavours from the Philippines like Mais Con Yelo, which is typically a shaved ice dessert.
"The food is what keeps me grounded in the culture," said Ronquillo.
Justin Bella
Working in the hospitality industry, Justin Bella would speak to other Filipino people in the field about wanting to make an impression in the brunch scene.
That's why Bella, 37, launched BBs Diner. The name stands for "Bahay Ni Bella," which means "the home of Bella" in Tagalog, he said.
It's an homage to his grandmother, he said.
"[She] always loved to house people and the way that you showed hospitality was by feeding them," he said.
His recommendation for those dining at BBs is corned beef silog, which is fried rice and eggs alongside sinigang, which is almost like a sour pork bone soup, he said.
The food and community offered at the diner is an expression of growing up Filipino in Toronto, he said.
"Making BBs a hub for anything that highlights Filipino culture is always a priority to me," he said.
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