Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo on Entrepreneurship and "The Bagman"

Fresh off the launch of Coco Mama’s “Save Our Coconuts” project in General Santos City, Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo took the time to sit down with Metro.Style for an exclusive conversation about the many hats she wears outside of being a wife and a mom. After all, she is one of the most sought-after product endorsers in the country and also keeps herself busy with her Angrydobo restaurant business venture. She’s also a bankable superstar actress whose comeback with the upcoming series The Bagman is highly anticipated.

Her busy schedules included an advocacy project for one of her endorsements, Coco Mama, which saw her flying to General Santos City to lead a coconut tree planting activity to help revitalize the local coconut industry and help improve the livelihood of farmers, mostly made up of the B’laan tribe, in the community.

“With all the benefits we can get from it, hindi lang tayo ang nagbe-benefit dito kundi lalo na iyong mga farmers natin, mga pamilya nila, mga anak, apo, and all. It's a very important project that's so close to my heart and I want to keep doing these projects para malaman ng kabataan na hindi natatapos sa pagsisimula ng umaga na nasa social media ka na agad. Let's teach our children to plant, let's teach each and every one of them to love Mother Nature because it will love us back,” she thoughtfully states.

The superstar feels blessed that she gets to do brand work that is aligned with her core values and beliefs. This is why a brand endorsement isn’t just a simple task for Judy Ann. She shares her journey with Coco Mama as an example.

“Napaka-fortunate ko that when a brand gets my services, I stay with them for a long time and it’s such a blessing. When Coco Mama first approached me, my first question was: can I try it first? Can I taste it first? Because ako po kasi hindi naman sapat kung anumang p’wedeng isipin ng tao. When I endorse something, I want to believe in it. I have to use it,” she says, adding that she was so excited to endorse it because she loves gata dishes.

And because she’s also a professional chef and a mom who loves cooking for the family, Metro.Style asked her for some tips when working with coconut recipes.

“You have to get the freshest coconut there is in the market—[you can with] Coco Mama. Very convenient. Hindi mo kailangang pumunta pa ng palengke and at the same time, you know that it’s very hygienic. Of course, once na binuksan mo—either fresh gata or hindi—you have to use it agad-agad,” Judy Ann begins. 

“And then mas masarap kung mas marami [na gata], hindi ba? Para mas talagang magata, mas rich at mas creamy. For me, coconut milk or Coco Mama is [like] a very blank slate. You can do so much with it. P’wedeng pang-dessert, appetizer, at p’wede siyang salad dressing. It can be actually used for drinks. So it is something that I would advise each household—to have Coco Mama or at least a supply or a stock of Coco Mama at home kasi mabilis ’yang maubos sa supermarket,” she explains. The actress also shared that they have boxes of supplies at Angrydobo, her restaurant, for their dishes infused with coconut milk such as Laing, sitaw kalabasa, ginataang monggo, and some desserts.

On entrepreneurship

Like a real-life superwoman, Judy Ann is also a hands-on entrepreneur with their restaurant Angrydobo. She says she learned valuable lessons from the experience.

“Kailangang marunong kang mag-pivot with the market and with current events—kung ano’ng nangyayari. Like we had to pivot when COVID happened. Of course, at that time, ang main goal lang talaga namin is we cannot close down because we don’t want more people losing their jobs. So talagang trinabaho namin to keep us afloat just for our [crew] members to keep their jobs. Laban lang. Kapag entrepreneur ka kasi, hindi p’wede mahina ’yung loob mo e,” Judy Ann explains.

Being in the business also taught her that it’s okay to acknowledge perceived weaknesses so one can seek improvement in their offerings.

“I will admit there are times naman na kini-question ko rin ’yung credibility ko as a chef. ‘Worth it bang puntahan si Angrydobo?’ May mga ganu’n ka talagang moments and you will have to welcome that. Kasi, in those weaknesses, you find your strength. If you don’t have those weaknesses, there’s no room for you to grow anymore. So I welcome those challenges because I know, at some point, I will learn something from it,” she confesses.

Imagine the “Queen of Philippine Soap Opera,” on a break from acting duties, balancing the supply and demand, as well as the rising costs of ingredients at the restaurant. “Pivot kapag tumataas ang bawang, sibuyas, ang lahat tumataas—ako na lang ang hindi tumataas. So ’di ba? Iyong mga ganoong bagay, you have to know how to adjust your costing and just really go with the flow. Because hindi mo p’wedeng labanan ang agos ng buhay. Sasabayan mo lang talaga siya,” Judy Ann wisely concludes, cheering on fellow and aspiring entrepreneurs in their journey.

On the upcoming series, The Bagman

The teaser trailer for her new series The Bagman, co-starring Arjo Atayde and John Arcilla, has been out and much-anticipated. Judy Ann shares some updates about the drama which will see her playing the role of no less than the President of the Philippines.

“Actually, tapos na kami ng shooting ng The Bagman. We’re just waiting for a streaming platform,” she begins, raising anticipation to a whole new level.

Judy Ann also shared her gratefulness for working with Arjo, the son of her Esperanza co-star and friend Sylvia Sanchez. “It was nice to work with Arjo. Though this is our first time working together, I’ve known him since maliit pa ’yung batang ’yan. I’ve seen him grow up and now he’s married already. It’s nice to be working with him,” she says.

Despite reaching superstar status and working on numerous teleseryes, Judy Ann says The Bagman feels like a new experience to her. “It’s something new bilang presidente ng Pilipinas. Parang susunod dito, wala na akong ibang gagawing character kundi Mama Mary na ’yung susunod. Mataas na ’yung posisyon ko e. So, it was a fun set considering na napaka-heavy ng material,” she begins in jest.

Although it was a fun set, the weight of the responsibility and the work demand on that kind of series isn’t lost on her.

“It is a very, very serious task to me. Iyong pagme-memorize lang alone ng dialogue ng presidente ng Pilipinas—very intricate. Iyong mga words, hindi mo p’wedeng i-adlib kasi may meaning siya. At kailangan, medyo may command ’yung character. So it is something very new to me. Hindi pa ako gumaganap na presidente ng Pilipinas,” she declares.

She also understands the sensitivity of the character she plays and the correlation to real-life political scenarios that people might put meaning into. “Ayaw kong gumaya ng ibang president kasi ang dami nang opinyon ng tao. P’wede akong ma-refer sa kung sinumang politiko or something and I might hurt someone. So I had to create a different character as President of the Philippines which is quite challenging. I enjoyed it. I had to research kung ano ’yung mga nuances na hindi ko dapat gawin. Kasi otherwise, baka may ma-compare na, ‘Ah, si ganito ’yung ginagaya niya.’ So, kailangan maingat lang talaga,” she explains.

But that did not stop Judy Ann from relishing the experience as an actress. “At that time when I was doing The Bagman, na-enjoy ko lang ’yung moment of being president of the Philippines. At least sa studio, kung saan kami nagtatrabaho, Madam President ang tawag sa akin. Pero tapos na ’yun. Hindi na ako president ng Pilipinas. Maybahay na ulit,” the superstar concludes with a smile, clearly content and happy with fulfilling her real-life role as Mrs. Agoncillo and being a doting mom to Yohan, Lucho, and Luna.

Lead photos from @studio.24c