The 'father of luxury retail' in the Philippines was 100 years old
Bienvenido R. Tantoco Sr. has passed away, a member of the family confirmed on the morning of July 6, 2021. The former ambassador to the Vatican, known to many simply as Lolo Benny, was 100 years old.
Together with his wife, the late Glecy Rustia Tantoco, Lolo Benny built what has become the Rustan’s Group of Companies from a store based in their house in Manila. Today, Rustan’s is considered to be the largest luxury retail group in the country. His daughter Nedy, currently the chair and CEO of the Rustan’s Group, once described him as “the father of luxury retail in the Philippines” and the country’s original “retail therapist.” Considering how Lolo Benny and his wife Glecy worked hard to build Rustan's, these descriptions are very apt.
Lolo Benny leaves behind six children—Bienvenido Jr., Nedy, Menchu Lopez, Marilen Tantoco, Merl Pineda, and Tokie Enriquez—as well as 21 grandchildren, 40 great grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild.
READ MORE: Lessons from Bienvenido Tantoco