Robert Lester Aranton got the hang of the whole logistics and value chain as a working student trading coffee in 1984.

“I was already a working student when I graduated from the University of the Philippines School of Economics. We dealt with a trading company, trading coffee. It was 1984. I was in charge of the documentation for the export of coffee. Slowly, I got the flow of the documentation. After that was the actual and physical handling of goods,” Aranton said during a guesting at DAILY TRIBUNE’s online show Pairfect. 

His job required him to visit warehouses, hire trucks, and talk with suppliers. The company had hit a business jackpot by buying coffee and selling it for a bigger profit. 

“At that time, coffee was vulnerable to weather. If there were a frost or not so good weather in Brazil, the biggest coffee supplier in the world, there would be a supply shortage. Supply and demand… supply is low, demand is high, so the price is high. That time, we had stocks, so that’s what we sold,” he recalled.

Soon, the company expanded. It ventured into establishing a buying station in Davao. After three years, Aranton went there to talk directly with farmers. 

“I was learning along the way. Of course, not consciously or deliberately. I had to learn it because it’s business. When you say business, you’re at stake. Tomorrow, if you will not handle it well, you’re done. I was serious about it,” he said. 

His journey is a testament to the power of perseverance and vision in driving economic growth and fostering community development.

Today, Aranton is a dynamic leader in the business world as the president and chief executive officer of the Warehouse Management Inc. (WMI) Group of Companies. He also serves as a board director for the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and is an Alumni Regent and president of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association (UPAA). 

Significant challenges, seeing hope

While growing WMI, Aranton had his fair share of hurdles. 

“The number one challenge is, of course, financing on the part of the producer. Because there are traders who are at the same time financiers. They advance the payment before the crop is harvested,” Aranton said. 

Traders are then required to have enough financial backup to get the goods. This situation is being taken advantage of some businessmen, according to Aranton. Interest is charged high at the expense of the producers who are the farmers. The system will not progress, he said, because the producers can’t get what they deserve at a certain price. 

“They can’t buy fertilizers to maintain their farm. Even the production will be affected. We were net exporters before, but now we are net importers at 90 percent. If this does not improve, we will be

import-dependent with coffee. It’s already happening now.”

Because of the big demand in the domestic market, the Philippines is still importing coffee. 

He said, “Before, we were exporting. Now we are importing. Just imagine the impact. What could have been done to prevent that from happening? Well, of course, let’s say government support for the production. But it’s really a holistic approach. Finance, marketing and then post-harvest facilities.” 

He continued, “We were already in the coffee industry before it became a big thing. Back then, we had a fund. A common fund just to advertise that coffee is good for the health. Looking back, we were the ones who ‘made’ coffee.”

Rope of plans

Aranton also became involved in another multinational company, The Codage Group, which bought abaca and processed it into rope — Manila hemp. It used the same principle, connecting directly with the producers, the farmers. 

“This had a value added. The only problem was that the market price went down because of plastic, the resins. That’s it. Abaca industry was gone,” Aranton recalled. 

He also worked for the Foundation for Resource Linkage and Development which is supported by the United States Agency for International Development. The international agency has a program on market linkage that electronically connects farmers and buyers. 

It was 1992 when Aranton came back to Manila to work for the Development Bank of the Philippines. After two years, he put up his own company, where one of his clients was Mitsui Trading, a Japanese trading company. From this experience, the astute businessman honed their expertise in the logistics sector.

For the logistics industry, the Japanese started it all, Aranton said. “JIT. Just-In-Time Delivery. They outsource the non-core business in the company to a third party. For example, if you’re a manufacturer, your core business is quality, technology, manufacturing, marketing. Warehousing and logistics? It’s not core. It’s outsourced. It was introduced to me by the Japanese. This is our system. Others don’t know that.” 

Evolving

“So it’s a logistics game. So the definition of logistics is delivering goods needed on time. The problem is warehouse is lacking,” he said.

Logistics is really a cost center of a company. If a company is to offer a logistics service, the number one thing to consider is the cost.

“Logistics should be about efficiency when you talk with a client. Through technology, we leverage technology to be efficient in our operations. Number one, we can use AI then a guided materials handling equipment. Then there are the electronic platforms which will interconnect all of the activities of the company. At the core, at the center, is the logistics. All of them are there. We are the first touch, and we are the last touch,” Aranton said. 

His company started as a team of five, with him sometimes acting as the messenger, collector and in-charge of documentation. 

“It’s important to have imagination. At that time, I wasn’t discouraged. It’s really your support group. First, your family. Number two, the people around you who are helping you. And, of course, I graduated from UP. What they taught us in UP  is that you have to be resilient. You have to be determined,” Aranton mused. 

Leadership style

The roles of being a UP Alumni Regent and CEO of WMI Group of Companies shaped Aranton’s leadership style. 

“In UP, we have a lot of extracurricular activities. There’s a joke: don’t let your academics interfere with your education,” he said, laughing. “I joined organizations. I joined the Upsilon Sigma Phi. I was also exposed to networks with people. The people I was with are also the people I’m with now.  They all supported me. That kind of education is not just limited to the classroom, but mostly outside of it,” Aranton said. 

Then there’s the environment of the university. 

“That’s where I appreciate the academic freedom. The independence that they’re really pushing you to develop. I took advantage of that. I met a lot of people from all walks of life,” Aranton said. 

“When I was young, I really wanted to excel. So, who’s the head in our community? I want to be like that. So, that mindset coupled with your support system?

“Your support is important — that you can do it.”

Citing as well the educational environment in UP, where reliance on one’s own powers is honed and excellence is bred, Aranton added, “And then, of course, I’m from the province. I have a little inferiority. They’re already here. But just give me enough, let’s say, a couple of months, I can already adjust. Then I can excel. It’s like that.”