Pain and Struggle Before the Happy Ending: The Love and Success Story of Mr. and Mrs. Jeff and Trisha Geronimo of Aqua Skin Philippines

They may be new in the business. But Jeff Geronimo and wife Trisha Fabros-Geronimo have already dominated a fair share of the beauty and wellness market in the Philippines.

Jeff is the founder of Japanese beauty brand Aqua Skin in the country. With his hardwork, perseverance, and his wife Trisha's love and untiring support, Aqua Skin has now become a household name. Jeff also received numerous recognitions including the Asia Leaders Award, the most prestigious award-giving body in Asia. He was chosen out of more than 1,000 nominees who rose and succeeded amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

But do you know that the road for success was not easy for Jeff and Trisha whose company was built in the middle of the pandemic? They even left with no choice but to postpone their wedding because of the fear and uncertainty brought about by the pandemic. Their business partners even tricked them. There were even an instances of loss of sales. But they never stopped.

"Our road to success was not an easy one, but thanks to the untiring efforts of all our partners, wholesalers, and distributors, we have solidified our ground and achieved success for Aqua Skin Philippines," Jeff said as he recalled their humble beginnings.

Here is a narrative of their inspiring story as shared by Jeff himself:

Trish and I’s original wedding date was supposed to be March 18, 2019. But then we all knew what happened during that time. The pandemic hit, and because of it, we decided to postpone our plans move the date later when things are a bit better. Of course, you can imagine how hard it was to actually visualize when are we supposed to move it. At that time as we tried reaching out to our wedding suppliers, we had a lot of questions and uncertainties I’m sure other engaged couples had because of COVID-19. It was partly challenging but when Trish and I focused on the present situation, we grew even closer together, we got to know ourselves better in times of crisis and limitations too. And then it clicked to me, that maybe it was God’s way of reassuring us that we are where we’re supposed to be, that because we were just so sure of getting married, we would be able to wait for that perfect time. And thinking of it now, we are more confident and sure of our next step in life together.

Looking back when the surge came, sales were starting to go not-so-good. It went to the point that our passbook for the business account reached the negative figures. Raw materials were getting harder to find because of the trouble with importation of goods. Almost all of our suppliers struggled greatly in this pandemic.

I had good, industrious, and hopeful people with me, and I just couldn’t let them down because of the worldwide health crisis. As their leader, I needed to do something. So what I did was, I used my personal savings meant for our Church Wedding and to-be-constructed house. In short, aside from our wedding, being postponed, even our future home was put on-hold. What motivated me to do this is my Team. We even added more employees before COVID-19 came. To think that during the peak of the pandemic, a lot of people lost their jobs. Why would I allow my employees to experience the same hardships? No one wanted this pandemic to happen. Unlike other companies that closed down for good or retrenched their workers, I made sure they were kept well and safe. Their welfare is more important than the material things I dreamt of in that moment. And once I was able to establish keeping them, I spent the remaining of my savings in producing Aqua Skin products. It was as if we were all starting from scratch all over again. With that challenge, I was able to see how each and every one of the team pursued to make the brand work. I saw their dedication, loyalty, and trust not only with the brand but with me as well.

Up until now, our team is complete - growing in fact! I am utterly grateful for these individuals for putting so much of their heart and soul in Aqua Skin. And whenever I look back at the ordeal we’ve been through and I can never express the pride I have in them.

Aqua Skin’s success story is always worth telling. For just 5 employees working in an apartment unit years back, all that we have now has been a dream come true. We started out having little to nothing to invest, as well as no connections to aid us in climbing the market. My beginning was just from a humble home. All the success you are seeing now is the fruit of love, trust, and hard work of everyone from the team. Success never comes pouring instantly, it needs to take its time and flourish.

Despite the hurdles of being tricked by business partners, instances of loss of sales, and the grandest of them all: the pandemic, we never stopped. The moment you stopped working, you lose twice of what was already made in your craft. It’s okay to pause and to recollect, but never stop thriving if you want to be successful in business. Actually, the pandemic became our motivation to move forward. It works to focus on the solutions rather than the problem. Be proactive, as the say. That’s the best takeaway we can ever give anyone. Giving up is never an option, there will always be solutions coming your way. You just need to trust the process.

Aqua Skin Philippines is a Japanese brand focusing on improving beauty and wellness. Through extensive research and development, the company came up with premium products that became a hit on the market while providing the clients with a high-end and satisfying consumer experience.

Among its popular products were Aqua Skin Philippines Glutathione Capsules, Aqua Skin Gold, Aqua Skin Amino Collagen Powder, Aqua Skin Kagayaki Drink, Tsubaki Soap, Aqua Skin Lipstick, and its newest product, Kaizen C+.

Aqua Skin celebrity endorsers include Max Collins, Julie Anne San Jose, and Kelvin Miranda

For more information and to order Aqua Skin Philippines products, check out https://www.facebook.com/AquaskinPhilippinesOfficial on Facebook, or @aquaskin_ph on Instagram.