NBS College

Successful Entrepreneur and his Story

“Bernie Liu- Founder of Penshoppe”

QUINTO, Leanne Joyce H.

BSA-1A

GED 106

The Entrepreneurial Mind

August 27, 2019

Bernie Liu

“There’s nothing wrong with dreaming big”

Did you know that Penshoppe, the hip clothing brand known for bringing in celebrity
endorsers, didn’t earn profit in its first 10 years of business?

“Penshoppe was not widely accepted back then,” said Bernie Liu.

Photo retrieved from https://mycebu.ph/article/bernie-liu-journey-penshoppe/

Bernie Liu is the founder of the first Penshoppe store in 1986 and later diversified the
business into several clothing brands.

In 1986, right after the People Power Revolution, Bernie together with close
friends from college and supported by his family who were then garments manufacturers,
conceptualized, produced and marketed an initial product line of one-sized T-shirts with catchy
prints–all targeted at the youth market. And so Penshoppe was born! 

Liu began his journey to success after graduating architectural studies. During the years
he was studying architecture, Liu designed graphic tees with a group of friends on the side, to
earn extra income in school. So even when he was already a licensed architect, Liu decided to
pursue the retail business instead.
 Although Liu studied architecture, his parents supported him when he proposed the
opening of a fashion retail store. The first Penshoppe grew out of Liu’s hobby designing graphic
tees.

Photo retrieved from https://www.google.com/url?

sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwih3enwrKDkAhXVc3AKHaGID_kQjRx6BAgBEAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org
%2Fwiki%2FPenshoppe&psig=AOvVaw0UpYndEzO0gJCLZSkj7t4c&ust=1566902497488287

Liu said his

company continued to move forward, fueled by a passion for what it does and its vision to
become the most admired fashion brands company in Asia.

But make no mistake, as mentioned above, that Penshoppe didn’t earn profit in its first
10 years of business, the brand was never an overnight success. The last three decades have
been coupled with costly closings, along with severe setbacks. But Golden ABC CEO Bernie Liu
believes the one thing that keep them thriving is its passion to succeed.

From one to seven brands and a single outlet to 700 stores some 30 years later, the
fashion retail journey of Golden ABC, Inc. is a story of hard work, perseverance, and triumph
over failure.

Liu said that for aspiring entrepreneurs to succeed, they should not only set clear goals,
but more importantly, they should know the steps on how to reach those goals. He firmly
believes in pray hard, work hard, and play hard.

Again, Bernie Liu, an architect by profession, is an entrepreneur at heart with a dream

and a vision. 
References

Limpag, M. (2016, August 4). Bernie Liu’s journey from 1 store to clothing empire: A story of
hard work, resilience. Retrieved from https://mycebu.ph/article/bernie-liu-journey-penshoppe/

Mejia, A. (2016, June 14). Golden ABC’s Bernie Liu: ‘There’s nothing wrong with dreaming big’.
Retrieved from https://www.rappler.com/brandrap/tech-and-innovation/135762-penshoppe-
bernie-liu-business-lessons

Jarque, E.(2002). Penshoppe boss Bernie Liu works hard, prays hard and plays hard. Philstar
Global. Retrieved from https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/travel-and-
tourism/2002/01/27/148508/penshoppe-boss-bernie-liu-works-hard-prays-hard-and-plays-hard

Bernie H. Liu (n.d.) Retrieved from https://filentrepreneurs.weebly.com/bernie.html