In 1995, Romy Sia’s young son was diagnosed with food allergies. His doctor gave a simple order: avoid anything with preservatives or chemical additives.
But when Sia walked through the aisles of Manila supermarkets, he was stunned.
“My son had food allergy and the doctor said don’t give him any food with preservative, with anything that’s chemical additives. So we went to the supermarket, but everything had preservative,” Sia recalls.
That frustration became the spark for Healthy Options, a brand that turned one father’s worry into a wellness empire.
The Problem That No One Was Solving
In the Philippines of the mid-90s, healthy grocery shopping was nearly impossible. Ketchup, soy sauce, chocolate drinks—even the basics were packed with artificial coloring and preservatives.
“Even ketchup had artificial color. Even Milo wasn’t safe. We were shocked because almost everything had chemicals,” he says.
Sia, who had lived in the UK, remembered a different kind of retail experience: shelves filled with natural, preservative-free products. Back home, those same products were nowhere to be found.
“When we were living in the UK, we could find food that was natural, with fewer preservatives. That memory stuck with me,” he explains.
He wasn’t the only one searching. Many Filipinos were asking friends and relatives abroad to bring home vitamins and natural goods by the suitcase.
“Even if you had a sister abroad, you could only bring one month’s supply. The demand was always bigger than what people could hand-carry home,” he adds.
Starting Small, Thinking Big
Armed with savings and a finance background, Sia opened his first Healthy Options store in Shangri-La Plaza in 1995. At just 106 square meters and tucked at the back of the mall, it wasn’t glamorous.
“Shangri-La back then wasn’t even high-end. Nobody really knew it. But there was an available space, so I grabbed it,” he says.
At first, Healthy Options sold preservative-free packaged foods. But soon, customers started asking for more.
“We learned it from the customer. It is the customers who had this healthy lifestyle who told us why don’t you carry supplement?” Sia shares.
By listening closely, Sia transformed Healthy Options from a niche grocery into a lifestyle destination.
More Than Just a Store
What set Healthy Options apart was Sia’s insistence on credibility and values.
“From day one, I knew I wanted to run the company the Western way—hire good people, pay them well, train them. I did not hire undergraduates for frontline employees,” he explains.
Instead of sales clerks, Sia recruited nutritionists, pharmacists, and science graduates who could advise customers with authority.
He also refused to stock popular brands that didn’t meet his standards.
“We don’t sell Coke. We don’t sell Milo. If it’s filled with chemicals, it’s not going on our shelves,” Sia says firmly.
And he built the stores to feel aspirational.
“I position Healthy Options as a lifestyle store. That’s why I always tell malls: don’t put me in the basement. Put me where the women shop, where the lifestyle brands are,” he notes.
The Philosophy That Built an Empire
Unlike most entrepreneurs, Sia didn’t chase rapid expansion or outside investors. He grew Healthy Options slowly, funding each new store with cash flow.
“It’s nice not to have money sometimes. It makes you more creative,” he laughs.
He often describes his philosophy as people-first.
“All my expenses, I will say they’re investments. Macy is my investment. My employees are my investment. They’re not expenses,” he says.
That mindset allowed Healthy Options to weather financial crises and build resilience.
“I didn’t set it up because I thought I was going to make a lot of money. I did it because I loved doing it,” he says simply.
From One Store to a National Brand
Nearly three decades later, Healthy Options has become synonymous with wellness retail in the Philippines. With dozens of branches nationwide, the brand is proof that a business rooted in advocacy can scale—without losing its mission.
“Anybody can copy our stores. They can copy the design, the products, even the layout. But what they cannot copy is how we treat people,” Sia points out.
What started with one father searching for safe food for his child is now a company that has reshaped the way Filipinos think about health and retail.
And it all began in a supermarket aisle, with the realization that Filipino families deserved better.
