The Manila Desk

In this captivating episode, Chef Princess Anne shares her inspiring journey from being a service crew at Jollibee in the Philippines to becoming an Executive Sous Chef at Melbourne's Marvel Stadium, one of Australia's largest venues. She reveals how she mastered Japanese cuisine, won the Australian Barbecue Championship with Filipino-Japanese fusion techniques, and overcame significant career set...

In this heartfelt conversation, Miko Santos interviews Tito Icon, a Filipino migrant who has built a significant social media following by sharing his experiences in Australia. Icon discusses his journey from the Philippines to Australia, the cultural adjustments he faced, and how he uses social media to help other Filipinos considering migration. With more than 100,000 followers on TikTok, Icon p...

This episode features Yassy Honorio, whose remarkable career trajectory has taken her from enlisted personnel in the Philippine Air Force to becoming a professional chef in Australia. Yassi shares how her educational background in International Hospitality Management laid the foundation for her current culinary career, despite a five-year detour in military service. The conversation reveals how mi...

In this eye-opening episode of "Unfiltered Conversation," host Miko Santos interviews Chef Rommel Cao, a retired executive pastry chef and co-founder of the Filipino Chefs Association of Victoria. Chef Cao shares his remarkable journey from working as a waiter in the Philippines to becoming an executive pastry chef in Melbourne's prestigious hotels. He discusses the challenges of the culinary indu...

Do you want to be successful in your Business? In this episode, Rose Davidson will teach us how we can do it in the right way. She also said being a success is not all about profit or generating profit from your business. Rose started her business, DOES Biz, in 2015, promoting the administrative services that she could provide female entrepreneurs; however, this did not light her up. In 2020, Rose...

In this episode, Maria Backer, founder, and director of Nobody’s Princess tells us the journey of becoming an entrepreneur and overcoming the challenges in a business. She also tells us the importance of knowing your niche market, starting to create a crowdfunding campaign, the importance of passion in a business, and how we can keep a positive mindset. She also explains she got into making fittin...

In this episode, Melissa Molinaro of Elitepartyz shares with us why you should never give up on your business. Melissa also reveals the ups and downs she has had throughout her journey as an entrepreneur in the event industry. She digs deep into the challenges and how she has managed to cope up with the covid-normal life. Besides, Melissa also offers great advice to any aspiring entrepreneur who i...

In this episode, Jenn Donovan, CEO of Social Medial and Marketing Australia tell us the story and inspiration in creating this 310k member group Buy from a Bush Business and supporting small business in regional NSW. She also explained in this episode why marketing is very important in small businesses particularly email marketing and social media channels. She added a Small Business Community is...

Got an idea or project you want to get off the ground? Or maybe you have many things running around inside your head, and you do not know where to start. In today’s episode, our guest Kerryn Vaughan of Get off the Bench will teach us how to kickstart our ideas. She tells us how she started from living a Rockstar to help others to achieve their dream and co-founded a non-profit organization to empo...

In this episode, we sit down with Rowena Bautista, co-founder of Ystilo Designs in Melbourne, Australia. She shares her inspiring journey from working in a Philippine call center to building a successful design and printing business in Australia with her husband. The conversation explores their transition challenges, business growth strategies, and how they've maintained their Filipino values whil...

Do you want to teach your brain and empowering you to build your confident mindset and achieve your goals? In today’s episode, Our guest Heidi Ricardo of Roar Confidence will explain to us and gaining Clarity about what you truly desire in life. Through guided meditation, you connect with your greatest vision for your life, then making a commitment to your vision and setting your intention. Be Cou...

If you thinking of trying to go on a franchising business? Think again. Franchising is good if you research and know what you are doing. and why we need to look after our customer first to grow your business. In today’s episode, our guest Jim Penman is the founder and CEO of Jim's Group will discuss franchising in Australia. He started mowing lawns part-time as a student job in the 1970s and now h...

Chef Ben Roquero shares his migration journey from working on cruise ships to becoming a successful head chef in Melbourne, Australia. He discusses his innovative Filipino fusion cuisine, his frozen Filipino sesame ball business (Breea’s Buchi), and offers advice to aspiring migrants. If you want to chat more about this topic, I would love to continue this conversation with you, over twitter @real...

In this episode, Lustosa Marketing Founder Celeste Lustosa discussed the Personal Brand vs Business Brand. She said having that clarity around your personal brand and who you are and what you stand for what kind of people you want to service, what kind of people you want to collaborate with? It's really important.. If you want to chat more about this topic, I would love to continue this conversati...

You are probably studying the best sales programs or reading the best sales books, but you have still not managed to get that breakthrough sale. What could you not be getting right? In today’s episode, we talk to Ari Galper, the founder, and CEO of unlock the game. Besides, he is the world’s number one authority in trust-based selling. Kindly tune in and listen as he shares how he lost a breakthro...

Every entrepreneur looks for tips to yield a higher return on investment. Digital marketing is one of the strategies to build your own personal brand and increase revenue. How do you identify your target market, clarify your message to your target audience and generate more qualified leads? In today’s episode, we speak to Prosper Taruvinga, a digital marketing expert and creator of Livelong Digita...

Do you have a great idea but you’re not sure where to start? Does your product or design strategy need refreshing? In today’s episode, our guest is Philippe Guichard an award-winning, international Industrial Designer, with over 25 years of experience in the industry. He specializes in designing thoughtful and profitable products that form part of integrated marketing, engineering, manufacturing,...

Do you want your business to outshine your competitor in a Google Search? Today’s guest is Danielle Phillips, Director of HelloSEO In this episode, Phillips will discuss how important is SEO to your business to get more traffic to your website and how to get more Google review from your happy customer, and her journey as women in business If you want to chat more about this topic, I would love to...

Do you want to create your own reverse Bucket list? This episode’s guest, The Bucket list Guys Travi Bell visited the Bootstrap Podcast to help our fellow entrepreneurs make their own Bucket list and also educate, inspire and encourage others to embrace their best life and stretch beyond the ‘norm’ If you want to chat more about this topic, I would love to continue this conversation with you, over...

Do you want to create your own reverse Bucket list? This episode’s guest, The Bucket list Guys Travi Bell visited the Bootstrap Podcast to help our fellow entrepreneurs make their own Bucket list and also educate, inspire and encourage others to embrace their best life and stretch beyond the ‘norm’ If you want to chat more about this topic, I would love to continue this conversation with you, over...

In this episode of our podcast, we dive into the inspiring journey of Ms. Johanna Nonato, a lawyer and migration consultant who transitioned from the IT industry in the Philippines to New Zealand and then to Australia. Johanna shares her experiences of adapting to new environments, the challenges of starting over, and the importance of being open to new opportunities. Johanna also shares heartwarm...

In this episode of Unfiltered Conversation, we explore the inspiring journey of a Filipino traveler who has set out to visit every country in the world. The discussion begins with the unique upbringing in a culture focused on survival, highlighting the resilience and adaptability of Filipinos. Our guest Kach Medina Umandap shares their personal story, starting with their first international flight...

In this episode of Positively Filipino, host Miko Santos welcomes Alex Apawan Sy from Atlas Business Consulting Services to discuss entrepreneurship for Filipino migrants. Alex emphasizes the importance of understanding your "why" before starting a business, as this passion drives success. He advises aspiring entrepreneurs to seek guidance from business consultants during the setup process and hig...

Today’s episode is brought to you by Empower your podcasting vision with a suite of creative solutions at your fingertips. In this episode, Dr. Alexia Maddox from La Trobe University discusses Meta's recent decision to move away from professional fact-checking towards a community-driven moderation system. She explains how this change could affect information quality on Facebook, Instagram, and Thr...

In this episode of Unfiltered Conversation, the host discusses the new measures for student visas in Australia. The guest, Herbert Legaspi, an immigration expert and director of HNL Migration, provides insights into the changes and loopholes in the student visa system that allowed some international students to switch their field of study. The episode also touches on recent frauds in the student v...