Naho is on the road to great things. With preparations in entering show business, preparations as an entrepreneur, and setting up an institute, there’s a lot keeping her busy.
“On top of preparing for the grand launching of my beauty clinic, my associates and I are setting up an institute […] which will cater as a training center,” she begins. “Our main focus would be to help the underprivileged, especially the out of school youths to have proper training and to get jobs here and abroad.”
With a heart for helping and for advancing humanitarian advocacies, Naho isn’t just in the business for herself, she helps lift others up, too. It’s a huge feat, and even more extraordinary because even as a non-local, her heart feels for the plight of Filipinos, too. She has also been doing it for a while as well. Naho has already conducted outreach with friends and she has been around the Philippines to do it. Whether it’s for the Aeta community in Zambales, the Tondo and Smoky Mountain kids or to help those in Davao — she has been on-the-go, keeping the momentum with spreading the kindness forward.
2020 may be a difficult year for many, but it also didn’t stop Naho from helping out. While others may talk about the highlight of their year concerning something they’ve gained. Naho considers it as a highlight when she is able to give. She recalls having the chance to safely distribute some essential goods to people in need despite being at the height of the COVID pandemic. “I witnessed the world is still a great place to live [in] in spite of plague and crisis,” she remarks. “[My motivation] is to help provide livelihood programs to empower the less privileged [and the] poorest of the poor to fight poverty, be self-sufficient, and attain their goals to a more comfortable decent living.”
In an era where many are more concerned with what to take rather than what to give, the ambition of Naho is refreshing. Surely, it takes a lot of courage especially when people are concerned not only for their health by keeping minimum contact with others and also with safeguarding their own financial safety nets that makes giving sometimes take the backseat. And yet, Naho gracefully persists. “Being in business as my chosen career for a long back in my hometown, I am already used to the stress and pressures that go with it. But I guess venturing into a new one at a foreign land with much different culture, ethics and ways, notwithstanding the language barrier by far Is what I consider as my bravest career move,” she comments, self-aware of the challenges of being an entrepreneur in a foreign land.
With a profound sense of what beauty is, Naho has developed an understanding that goes deeper than what’s on the surface. “Beauty starts from within,” Naho says. “Being happy and feeling good are the keys to exude that beauty. The main thrust of my products is to work from within to enhance the whole being of people who would like to be beautiful from inside out.” And to hear an entrepreneur not just sell, but also believe that beauty is something everybody already has and can be tapped within is nothing short of a surprise. Naho believes in her products as much she does believes in its users — without having to pick not just one, she brings out the complementarity of her product and the market.
With many surprises up on her sleeves, even at a time when there’s a lot of uncertainty, Naho’s courage is sure: even in times of difficulty, everybody can still choose to be kind, everyone has a gift to contribute to the community. And this mindset, not only it is admirable, it is also an inspiration.
Keen about the local show business industry too, Naho is enthusiastic to work with people who are passionate about helping and those who make others’ lives better as well. When asked if she would assemble a dream cast and who would be part of it, she mentions Ms. Universe 2018 Catriona Gray — citing her beauty and kind heart for sparing time with the children of Tondo — and also mentions Vice Ganda for his sunny disposition and humor. Naho lightly shares that she shares Tagalog jokes too and that her friends find it funny when she cracks Tagalog jokes herself.
Entering showbiz for a larger reason than just fame, Naho sees it as a tool to influence — an instrument where she could help change others’ lives, not just hers. “Entering showbiz may help me also support children of the Philippines,” she muses. “That inspires me so much to work harder— to impart the blessings […] both on my personal and showbiz career.”
It’s a delicate balance that Naho gracefully walks in — to see the people surrounding her and to recognize the help the people in need, but at the same time, without missing the beauty that is present in the world amidst the difficulty. To acknowledge the improvement that society needs without ignoring the fact that there is no shortage of things to be grateful about. This mindset — and how it is apparent in her work ethic and her interactions with people even at a foreign country — make her so easy to admire, so easy to root for.
Her success doesn’t only remain her own — she also shares it with others.
And to have an icon like Naho on the television and movie screens is to step in the direction where more and more of our celebrities are not only known for how they look but for who they are within. To have an example where people are seen — not only in the superficial sense, but also for what they need and how they could be helped and lifted up. Naho’s success is an optimistic note of what our public figures could symbolize, but it is also an example that the view from the top is not only about staying in the same spot— the real view of success is also about how it can be shared with others’ too.
Photo Von Buenconsejo
Assisted by Lito Napolitano
Styling Patrick Henry Mergano
Make Up Mauri Estrada
Hair Fidel Tango
Story by Danielle Arcon
Location T.E.A.M Studio
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