"At the time, there was room for mid-range Philippine products as an alternative to expensive imported spirits," she says. "We gave them products of better quality, better packaging and very competitive prices. Better prices meant better profit margins than the mass-market products. And we stayed in this mid-range market."

Limpe-Aw moved up the ladder and in 1991, her father told her to take over the business as executive vice-president.

"When the responsibility is given to you and there is no one to lean on, that is when you learn the most. That is where you knock your brain to solve problems and turn things around. That is when you get to apply whatever you've learned and continue to learn. That is also when you realize that what you've learned is not enough," Limpe-Aw says.

The distillery stepped up its product portfolio by producing craft spirits using natural ingredients for niche markets, and exporting products to neighboring countries and regions.

Limpe-Aw notes that exporting whisky overseas, initially to Taiwan, opened doors to better profit margins. She says that the preferential tariff treatment for liquor producers within the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has also been beneficial to the company.

Under the ASEAN Free Trade Area, a trade bloc agreement in the region, Destileria Limtuaco further exported whisky and rum products under private labels to Thailand. The distillery eventually expanded its export markets to include South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia and Sri Lanka. It also exports its liquor brands to the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, and most recently to the United States.

"The export business was really my saving grace. If we didn't export, it would have been a different story. It would have been more difficult and more challenging for us," Limpe-Aw says.

More than generating better profits, the export business also meant better business processes for the distillery.

"Export is a different way of doing business. It is where we realized that we had to really adjust to other markets in terms of quality of products, packaging, and doing business. If you are able to cater to the market's needs well, then you will succeed," she says.

Destileria Limtuaco's whisky and rum products made headway outside the Philippines, but the company president kept her thirst for more business challenges. During overseas trade fairs, Limpe-Aw explains that foreign businessmen have asked her to bring a unique Philippine product.

Taking on the challenge, she steered the distillery to produce Paradise mango rum liqueur in 2002. Capitalizing on the superior taste of Philippine mangoes and premium-aged rum, the tropical drink caught the attention of the local and overseas markets.

"It was hard to market it in the beginning because there was no comparable product. We take pride in being the first and only mango liqueur in the world that is made with real mangoes."

Last year, she embarked on yet another challenge by coming up with a uniquely Filipino cocktail drink and exploring the zesty flavor of calamansi, a small citrus fruit that is common in the Philippines. Early this year, the distillery introduced yet another homegrown product, Manille liqueur de calamansi, which comes in a vintage-style clear bottle. The rum-based mango and coffee liqueurs are being exported to Hong Kong and the US.

Limpe-Aw notes that these products continue to gain solid traction, thanks to the innovative use of natural fruits and creative adaptation of vintage bottles.

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