Jerry Sibal. Image: INQUIRER.net/Armin P. Adina
Filipino floral designer Jerry Sibal has been based in New York for decades now, and some of the clients he has worked for are A-list celebrities Oprah Winfrey and Celine Dion, and Sir Richard Branson of the Virgin Group.
“I’m very blessed. That’s why I said with that kind of blessings, I think God has sent me a message [that] ‘you’re not alone, the more you share, the more you get all the blessings,’” he told INQUIRER.net on the sidelines of the launching for the first-ever Philippine International Flower Festival (PHILIFF) held in Makati City last month.
He is mounting the first-of-its-kind festival in the Philippines with the support of government and private entities, and it will take place in One Ayala next month.
“I’ve reached the age of 66 where I’ve gotten more comfortable, I don’t have to compete with anybody, and just competing with myself. Because I wanna make sure that I deliver, and I keep on inspiring people. Part of that is learning from what you have, and you don’t have, too,” Sibal continued.
He has had several works for Branson, the British billionaire who controls more than 400 companies in different fields. Sibal designed for him when Virgin launched its first London-to-Chicago trip, and returned when the airline company launched its first-class seats for flights on the same route.
“I love Richard Branson, he’s the most unaffected person in the world. You know, even [if] he’s a billionaire, it means nothing. He’s very down to earth. He said, ‘are you Filipino?’ and said, ‘yes!’ It struck me. That’s why I always tell people and our kababayan (compatriots) when I went to Rome with Citibank, and I went to Qatar, I always tell our kababayan, ‘treasure, your experience, treasure your relationship with other people, because that’s how you’re gonna grow.’ You don’t grow because you’re talented. You grow because you interact with people. You have that kind of sincerity to give back and allow people to also understand you, you know?” Sibal shared.
His encounter with Winfrey was for the multimedia giant’s “O” magazine launch. “It was in New York, that’s her office there. So we did the grand opening, the launching,” Sibal said. It was launched in 2000 as a monthly print publication, before transitioning into a full-digital online magazine in 2020.
As for Dion, Sibal said he designed for the Canadian singer’s private party for her “biggest” concert at the Madison Square Garden, also in New York. “I’m so blessed, that’s why I keep on counting my blessings despite all the heartaches, all the challenges I have. But it’s okay, because that makes me very strong. And that makes me want to continue, and seek more challenges,” he said.
And for Sibal, the most challenging work he has done was designing for more than 20 properties that a resort casino chain opened on the same day. “I almost had a heart attack. I thought that it’s gonna be easy for me, but doing 22 casinos opening at the same time, we have different time zones, and I’m up like 24 hours in a whole three days, nonstop, no sleep and everything. It almost killed me,” he said, vowing that he will never take a similar job ever again.
“It’s no longer fun. When you wanna do things, you have to make sure that it’s fun for you. I’m in New York and you have to do projects in New Jersey, in Louisiana…that’s why it’s challenging for me. It’s a lesson learned, but it’s all good. It turned out to be good. I don’t want to repeat that kind of experience,” Sibal said.
His decades-long career spanning across the Pacific has also showed him cultural differences related to his work. “I like working with foreign clients because they’re very straightforward, you know? It’s not emotional. But Filipinos, because we’re Asians, are very emotional,” he said.
“For the Westerners, what’s in your mind, you can express it. But for Filipinos you have to blend. Make sure that it doesn’t turn to be a very personal comment. It should always be about the work for Americans, but for us, it’s about the relationship. Americans are very pragmatic, which I like also in a way, so I can balance both and I say every work every project is a challenge for me,” he added.
Sibal is back in the country to pursue a “passion project” that he has been mulling over for years. In hoping to uplift the flower industry in the Philippines and boost players across the country, including farmers and designers, he has produced the first-ever PHILIFF. “I want to bring the dignity to our farmers. Let us be united in helping the farmers grow our economy as well,” he said.
The four-day event, scheduled for Sept. 19 to 22, aims to highlight floral designing and garden landscaping through trade shows, ikebana, bonsai and orchids exhibits, and even a floral fashion show.