Virginia “Inday” Segovia is the Missionary of Nissan Iloilo (S & J Motors), Inc.
Her face is as familiar just as her counsel is recognized and respected by almost all sectors of Iloilo society. This makes it all the more unusual that the first word that Virginia Segovia, everyone’s Tita Inday, would choose to describe herself would be “misunderstood. ”
I am fortunate enough to have been recognized for my efforts with the church, culture, and civic organizations, she admits with a laugh. “But it has always surprised me that I’ve never been taken quite that seriously as a business owner.
The comment may have been made in mere jest, but it is no mean feat to consider that indeed Tita Inday, while being visible in the public eye as a staunch supporter of the arts and an active member of the Catholic laity, has simultaneously been the driving force of one of the most formidable car dealerships in the country – S & J Motors – continuing a legacy founded by her late husband almost half a century ago.
Her accomplishments suggest a contradiction – in that the worlds of charitable service to society and car sales strategy seem to be opposites. “They’re not as disparate as you might think,” Tita Inday explains. “Because even in business, we at S & J recognize that service forms a quite large part of the selling process. Even after a purchase is made, our teams continually strive to be able to give the best after-sales service possible. It’s our distinctive brand of personalized customer relations that make us unique.”
The strategy has indeed worked for S & J for the past 45 years. In addition to 18 national awards for service and customer satisfaction in the last decade alone, the business received a Global Sales and Service Award in 2010. “We’re very proud of our team. The challenge is for every team member to maintain the standard and live up to the recognition.”
It’s always been my passion to live out the spirit of my faith into practice, and the focus has always been about service,” she adds, “I’m grateful that S & J has been able to prosper based on the same principle.”
Her singular philosophy has brought recognition from both the community and the corporate world, uniting two otherwise contrasting spheres through a humble expression of her spirituality. For Inday Segovia, nothing could be simpler: service = success.
Source: Ilonggo Initiatives published by Iloilo Business Club (2011)
