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After losing his job in 2016, Jadon Herrenauw, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints from Dumaguete 1st Ward of the Dumaguete Philippines Stake (diocese), held on to the lessons from self-reliance and personal improvement programs of the Church to bounce back and try again.
Herrenauw, a graduate of both the Church's Starting and Growing My Business (SGMB) for Self-Reliance class and the Academy of Creating Enterprise (ACE) Philippines, did not let both unemployment and the COVID-19 pandemic dampen his commitment to provide for his family and to achieve his dream of being a successful entrepreneur.
Eventually, Herrenauw discovered that he had talent in making sushi and a determination to start a home-based business with what he calls, a "start-small-think-big" approach.
As customers grew to adore his products, Herrenauw established Ryu Sushi - a sushi shop in Dumaguete City that focuses on online marketing with delivery services, apart from the usual "dine-in" restaurant format. Ryu Sushi quickly gained a faithful following in the local area and is now known as a fast and delicious option for sushi cravings.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the Philippines in early 2020, like many micro, small, and medium enterprises, Ryu Sushi reluctantly closed due to health and lockdown protocols throughout the country. Despite this, Herrenauw remained committed and bravely continued making and selling sushi from home and through social media for the next two years.
When health restrictions were lifted, Herrenauw saw the opportunity to expand upon seeing more people go back to normal routines sans lockdowns. He again drew upon the lessons he learned from the SGMB program and ACE to craft compelling business plans and proposals to attract investors for more Ryu Sushi branches.
"In Doctrine and Covenants 104:15, it says: 'And it is my purpose to provide for my saints, for all things are mine.' [This verse] gave me confidence that I could do this [business venture] with my wife," Herrenauw said.
"Whatever we ask, as long as our intentions are good, [God] will provide. We also realized we wanted to serve Him, and the best way to do that is by becoming self-reliant so we can help and serve others as well. SGMB taught my family [and I] the principles to become self-sufficient," Herrenauw shared.
SGMB is a self-reliance group of the Church that helps participants learn to make wise business decisions as they start or grow a business. The goal of SGMB is not only to help them with their business; it also helps them act in greater obedience and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and receive His promised blessings of temporal and spiritual self-reliance.
Students of SGMB learn key business skills such as identifying customer needs, finding customers, and keeping good business records.
On the other hand, ACE was started by Steve and Bette Gibson in 1999 as a school in the Philippines designed to teach entrepreneurship to returned missionaries of the Church. From that beginning, the Academy has trained more than 60,000 individuals or families and has helped thousands of families become self-reliant.