Quintos (right) with Yeji Kim—CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
A shared interest in Korean skin care led Mikee Quintos to partner with her high school friend Onjeong “Yeji” Kim in putting up Tribute. The GMA Sparkle artist has long been a fan of Korean-made products, but wanted to take a more active role in choosing and developing the type of products to bring in.
“Yeji and I have been friends since we were in high school over a decade ago,” Mikee told Entertainment in an email interview. The first time I flew to Korea in 2022, we talked and that’s when the idea of starting a business together came up. We wanted something anchored to our passion which is a shared love for beauty and taking care of ourselves.”
On her Instagram (@mikee) where she has 1.9 million followers, Mikee is a real kikay—one who enjoys pampering herself with a wide range of treatments and services like dental appointments and facials.
“In this day and age, it’s easy to forget to make time for ourselves… that’s where the inspiration for Tribute came from. You pay tribute by putting something on a pedestal. And for us, that’s self-care. We want to put ourselves up there and encourage more Filipinas to be more confident with themselves,” Mikee said.
Mikee and Yeji said that while there are already a lot of Korean beauty products available locally, there are many more that are still relatively unknown.
Be a platform
“Tribute is a distribution company that partners with existing Korean brands that don’t cater to the Philippines just yet. We really want to be a platform for them to partner with and bring their products here. We’re like the bridge that connects Korea even closer to the Philippines.”
On the brand’s e-commerce site (tributeph.com), the range is currently limited to an “aqua calming” sunscreen and guasha sets for the face or body. They have plans to expand Tribute into a lifestyle platform offering decor and apparel. “We’re open to doing that,” she said.
Prior to the launch last month, Mikee went to Korea to personally check out the manufacturing company that produces the sunscreen exclusively for them. In a video posted on her Instagram, she tests it on the back of her hand, takes a whiff then describes the scent as “really calming.”
Hands on
How does she the find time to market her first business venture? “I’m very hands-on right now because I’m not part of any teleserye at the moment. I do mostly guestings. Since it’s just me and Yeji, it’s all about time management,” she said.
“I’m really proud of the both of us for braving a new territory. This is both our first time starting a business… It’s new—this feeling of nervousness, apprehension. It helps that we have very different personalities. Yeji is very calm, she’s an introvert while I have a high energy personality. We balance each other out so if one of us is feeling apprehensive, the other one tempers that.
Mikee said she is in for the long haul. “I like how it’s changing me, the growth that I’m feeling although it’s scary. I always like a good challenge.” INQ