THIS IS YOUR SOONG: Among things he’s good at, this industry legend wants to be known best for ‘knowing when to exit’

Just a few years ago, that building along Buendia was a Jaguar/Land Rover showroom. From behind the tall, spotless glass display, sat cars whose lowest price tag exceeds P4 million.

You pass by that spot and immediately feel a sense of awe. Or downright contempt. Depending on how you woke up that day.

But one thing’s undeniable. It was a showcase of opulence, power and beauty. Qualities that are only seen in the top one percent. All encased in the sprawling ground floor of the ENZO building.

A lot of things have transpired since those days. Now the place has been undergoing major transformation which should be completed by end of the year.

It was buzzing with activity the day the DAILY TRIBUNE paid it a visit. The employees for the boss’ other businesses were all behind their desks; workers went about finishing works both in the old showroom in front, and mini museum at the back.

And inside the board room sat Wellington Soong. He just had lunch. And was finishing a glass of red wine.

At that instance, I was fighting the temptation to whip out my notebook to write about what I was seeing.

Like how quickly he ordered an assistant to serve me an avocado ice cream plopped on coffee. Or the memorabilia that lined up the room, including certificates on how he played record consecutive rounds of golf.

Only problem was a day earlier, Soong sent a text message that read: “This is just a quick chat. No interview. No feature story.”

Hey, it’s not every day that you spend an afternoon with somebody who collects things. Let alone somebody who collects luxury cars, among other things. Somebody who is a legend in high-end cars, the type of which you only get to see in movies.

When you get right down to it, Soong is himself larger than life. Especially that afternoon when he rocked that Loudmouth shirt — the brand characterized by striking designs and brazen color typified by its endorser, golfer John Daly.

So, when he began recounting how he came up with the idea of writing a book, I felt compelled to ask if I can at least record the conversation.

He didn’t have to answer. I knew already from the way he smiled back. So, I put my notebook and smart phone down, and let him fire away. I told myself whatever is forgotten is not meant to be written.

For backgrounder, Soong has brought us the famous Racks (which stands for Real American Country Chicken Style), Bose Speakers, Steelcase Furniture, among others.

The back of the office was home to 17 high-end cars. That day they were wrapped under plastic bags to avoid the dust from the construction.

The cars will form part of his planned mini museum which will also include his fascinating “glass wall” a collection of 1,500 glasses and mugs from around the world.

Soong first carved a niche for himself in the 1960s by establishing Electro Systems, which provided sound system to big offices in the country as well as major concerts and events, including the 1974 Miss Universe.

Yet people knew him best for bringing the big car brands into the country as the distributor of Ferrari, Jaguar, Land Rover and Maserati.

He’s been there, done that. Many times, over.

And even now that he’s divested of his holdings from the luxury car business, Soong has long cemented his legend in the auto industry where he spent 25 years.

But that’s not what he wanted us to talk about that afternoon. It was about the book he just wrote. The glossy, 278-page hardbound was not for sale. Yet if ever he decides to put it on bookstores, that’s only to put quantifiable “value” on it.

Soong would receive visitors to his offices, most of them close friends like the Barrettos of show business, and he would give them copies.

“I will not give you a copy without me writing a message on it,” Soong told this writer as he gave me mine.

Soong, now 82, would discuss the parallelism between the book’s title (Knowing When To Exit) and a handful of momentous events in his life.

These include the passing of his dear wife, Maureen; and the business misadventures he had with once trusted “partners.”

On the whiteboard behind his desk, he would write the timeline from when the book was conceptualized up until it was published — which took years.

Soong commissioned author Alfred Yuson to help with the writing. But every thing that was written was straight from Soong, through several interviews.

And that fabulous cover photo?

“They just told me to meet the photographer (Mark Nicdao) whom I haven’t met before. I didn’t bring any extra clothes because I thought we’d schedule a separate day for shooting,” recalled Soong.

The photographer told him to grab a jacket sitting nearby and asked him to fling it back like “he’s gotta bounce” to another business elsewhere.

Perfect shot.

“On hindsight it was a great idea. Because it allowed for a more relaxed, natural look,” Soong said.

By and large, that might as well be his take on life.

Nothing is forced. Just let it take its course. He may have collected things along the way, but most importantly, Soong was collecting memories.