Some businesses begin with years of market research and carefully planned product launches. Others begin almost accidentally through experimentation, curiosity, and unexpected customer feedback. For Katrina Ponce Enrile, the origins of Delimondo started not with a formal business plan, but with a simple request from her father during a politically difficult period for their family.
“In the early 2000s, my dad lost in 2001 after the impeachment of Erap, so he was out for three years,” Enrile recalls, referring to former senator Juan Ponce Enrile.
According to her, the period unexpectedly gave them more time together.
“During that time, I made my dad the president of JAKA,” she says. “Since he had nothing to do, we spent a lot of time experimenting.”
One day, her father made a request that would eventually change the direction of her entrepreneurial journey.
“And then one day, my dad told me, ‘Katrina, can you make me carne norte?’”
At the time, Enrile had no intention of launching a premium corned beef brand. She simply approached the request as a personal challenge.
“I said, I would try my best and do some research,” she recalls.
That experimentation eventually led to the first version of the product.
“That’s when the corned beef happened.”
Starting Without a Formal Brand
When Enrile completed the initial product sample, she gave it to her father to try.
“When I finally gave him the sample, I made him eat it,” she says. “I said, ‘Try this,’ and he liked it.”
Encouraged by the feedback, she decided to produce small quantities.
“So I said, o sige, I’ll put it in cans.”
At the time, however, the product was still far from becoming a commercial brand.
“I canned it generically, no label, nothing, and gave it to my dad,” Enrile recalls.
Her father’s response was straightforward.
“He said, ‘Oh yeah, supply mo na yan.’”
The story reflects a common entrepreneurial pattern: many successful products begin not from large-scale market studies, but from solving a small, specific need extremely well. In many cases, founders first create products for themselves, their family, or close communities before realizing broader demand exists.
For several years, Enrile treated the corned beef mostly as a personal gift item rather than a formal business venture.
“That Christmas, I started giving away that carne norte, that corned beef, to our family and friends,” she says.
The gifting continued year after year.
“For several years, that’s what I would gift them every Christmas.”
This stage became an informal form of product testing. Instead of launching aggressively into the market, Enrile allowed the product to circulate organically among people she knew personally.
Ironically, one of the most important moments came not from a formal retailer or distributor, but from a conversation with a relative.
Discovering Demand Through Word of Mouth
“Until one day, one of my Titas told me, ‘You know, I finally tried the corned beef you’ve been giving me,’” Enrile recalls.
Her aunt’s reaction surprised her.
“She said, ‘Yes, it’s actually good.’”
Then came the question that changed everything.
“Then she asked, ‘Where can I get it?’”
Enrile explained that she made the product herself.
“I told her, ‘I make it.’”
Her aunt immediately responded with interest.
“She said, ‘Really? Can I buy from you?’”
That moment triggered a realization.
“I said, ‘Sure, you can.’ That’s when I thought, what if I make my own brand?”
The exchange highlights an important entrepreneurial insight: genuine customer demand often reveals itself naturally before formal commercialization even begins. In many successful businesses, founders first notice demand through unsolicited customer behavior—people asking where to buy the product, requesting repeat orders, or recommending it to others.
This type of organic validation is often more powerful than aggressive advertising because it reflects authentic consumer interest rather than manufactured hype.
Returning to Entrepreneurship
At the time, Enrile already had access to a manufacturing facility through the family’s existing food operations.
“So I said, since there was already this facility, okay, now it’s my turn,” she recalls.
The opportunity allowed her to build a new business without starting completely from scratch.
“I’m going to make my own brand. I’m going to build my own business.”
For Enrile, the experience also marked a personal transition back into entrepreneurship after years spent focusing on larger corporate responsibilities.
“I had to go back to being an entrepreneur,” she says.
The story behind Delimondo illustrates how many successful brands emerge gradually rather than through sudden large-scale launches. The product was first tested informally among family and friends, refined through personal experimentation, and validated organically through customer reactions before eventually becoming a commercial business.
What started as a request to make carne norte for her father eventually evolved into one of the Philippines’ most recognizable premium corned beef brands—built not through elaborate market studies, but through experimentation, word of mouth, and a product people genuinely wanted to buy.
