Eastern Textile Factory

Overview

Eastern Textile Factory was a major textile manufacturing facility in Manila, Philippines that employed 2,000 workers and served as the career foundation for both Jesse and Betty Chan from the late 1950s through 1968. The factory was significant not only as a workplace but also as a community, providing housing for management families and serving as the setting for multiple family milestones.

Business Structure

Scale

• 2,000 workers employed
• Major manufacturing operation
• Board of Directors governance structure
• Management and worker housing provided

Leadership

• Board of Directors (multiple factions)
• Purchasing Manager: Jesse Chan
• Payroll Supervisor: Betty Chan
• Other management positions (to be documented)

Operations

• Textile manufacturing (specific products to be documented)
• Weekly payroll for 2,000 workers (Betty’s responsibility)
• Supply chain management (Jesse’s responsibility)
• Everything the factory needed, Jesse was responsible for purchasing

Jesse Chan’s Role

Purchasing Manager

From Jesse’s description:

“I am the purchasing manager. I just buy things. Everything the factory needs, I’m the one who buy it.”

Responsibilities:

• Procuring all materials and supplies for factory
• Managing supply chain for 2,000-worker operation
• Critical role for factory operations
• Required business acumen and negotiation skills

Board of Directors Member

• Served on Board of Directors
• Strategic decision-making role
• Elevated position beyond operational management
• Involved in governance and major decisions

Basketball Team Owner/Manager

Jesse also ran the factory basketball team:

• “I’m the owner. I have the place there.”
• Hired workers to play basketball
• Also hired professional basketball players
• Team competed against other companies’ teams
• Company sports team was common in Filipino business culture

Betty Chan’s Role

Payroll Supervisor

Major responsibility:

• Supervised 4 people in payroll department
• Prepared pay envelopes for 2,000 factory workers
• Paid every Saturday
• Handled Petty Cash
• Cash in envelopes (not checks) - physically prepared 2,000 envelopes weekly

Scale of Operation: From Betty’s 80th birthday narrative:

“Payroll Supervisor…prepared pay envelopes (with cash) for 2,000 factory workers. Paid every Saturday.”

This was enormous logistical operation requiring:

• Precise calculation
• Cash handling and security
• Supervising team of 4
• Meeting strict weekly deadline
• Accounting accuracy for 2,000 individuals

Working Marriage

Unusual arrangement:

• Both Jesse and Betty worked at same factory
• Both in management positions
• Both essential to operations
• Coordinated work and family responsibilities

Housing

Factory-Provided Housing

Before Louis was born (1965), family built/received house at factory:

“Family moved into house built for them at Eastern Textile Factory before Louis was born.”

Living Arrangements:

• Transitioned from Santa Mesa Compound (60 people) to factory housing
• More independence for nuclear family
• Closer to work (convenient commute)
• Benefit of Jesse’s Board position

Timeline:

• 1957-1964/65: Lived at Santa Mesa Compound
• 1965: Moved to Eastern Textile housing (before Louis born)
• 1968: Left for Taiwan

Significant Events

The Knife Incident (Date Unknown)

Brave confrontation:

• A worker came asking to borrow money against future salary
• Jesse refused the request
• Worker later returned to gate with a knife, wanting to stab someone
• Office called Jesse
• Jesse went to gate and talked to the worker
• Jesse said: “Give me the knife”
• Worker gave Jesse the knife - crisis averted
• Betty’s comment: “Daddy’s really brave. He is over brave.”

Significance:

• Shows Jesse’s bravery and crisis management
• Demonstrates respect workers had for Jesse
• Jesse’s ability to defuse dangerous situations
• Foreshadows later brave acts (saving Kaitlyn, chasing thieves)

Board Split (1967)

Crisis:

• Board of Directors split into two factions
• Serious governance conflict
• Business disagreements (details to be documented)

Resolution:

• Jesse’s faction decided to sell shares
• Sold at par value plus 20%
• Provided capital for next venture
• Prompted decision to leave Philippines

Impact:

• Ended Jesse’s 10+ year career at factory
• Ended Betty’s career at factory
• Triggered relocation to Taiwan
• Transition from employee to entrepreneur

From interview:

“Board split into two factions. Husband’s faction sold shares at par value plus 20%.”

Workplace Culture

Company Sports

• Factory had basketball team
• Jesse as owner/manager
• Hired both workers and professionals
• Competed against other companies
• Common practice in Filipino business culture
• Built company morale and external reputation

Management-Worker Relations

The knife incident suggests:

• Some tension between management and workers
• Workers would come to management for financial help
• But also respect (worker gave Jesse the knife)
• Jesse known among workers (they called for him specifically)

Family Business Aspect

• Both spouses working at same company (unusual)
• Housing provided (paternalistic business model)
• Long-term careers (Jesse 10+ years)
• Board membership (ownership stake?)

Business Context

Filipino Textile Industry (1950s-1960s)

• Major export industry
• Protected by tariffs and regulations
• Family-owned businesses common
• Chinese-Filipino business families prominent
• Manufacturing hub for Southeast Asia

Eastern Textile’s Position

• 2,000 workers indicates major operation
• Board governance suggests incorporated structure
• Provided housing (indicates resources and paternalistic model)
• Had basketball team (invested in employee morale)
• Multiple factions on board (complex ownership)

Transition to Taiwan

Why Leave?

1. Board split created untenable situation
2. Friend in Taiwan offered business opportunity
3. Taiwan’s economic growth attractive
4. Philippines political instability (martial law approaching 1972)
5. Opportunity to be owner vs. employee
6. Capital from share sale enabled entrepreneurship

What They Took

• Business experience (Jesse: purchasing, board governance)
• Management skills (Betty: payroll, supervision)
• Capital from share sale
• Work ethic and proven success
• Confidence from factory careers

What They Left

• Stable employment and salaries
• Housing at factory
• Social network in Manila
• Basketball team and factory community
• Employee benefits and security

Legacy

Career Foundation

Eastern Textile provided:

• Jesse’s management experience → entrepreneurship in Taiwan
• Betty’s supervisory skills → managing bakery in Taiwan
• Financial capital → starting businesses in Taiwan
• Confidence → belief they could succeed independently

Family Impact

Living at factory:

• Rose born 1960 (at Santa Mesa while working at factory)
• Meg born 1963 (at Santa Mesa while working at factory)
• Louis born 1965 (at factory housing)
• First three children’s early years shaped by factory community

Educational Investment

Salaries from factory enabled:

• Investment in children’s early education
• Capital for move to Taiwan
• Foundation for later educational investments (Taipei American School)

Risk Management Skills

Working at factory taught:

• Crisis management (knife incident)
• Board politics (navigating factions)
• Financial management (Betty’s payroll, Jesse’s purchasing)
• Employee relations (Jesse’s basketball team, worker interactions)

All transferred to entrepreneurship in Taiwan.

Comparison to Taiwan Businesses

Employee → Owner

At Eastern Textile:

• Jesse: Purchasing Manager (employee)
• Betty: Payroll Supervisor (employee)
• Salary-based income
• Reporting to board
• Job security but limited upside

In Taiwan:

• Jesse: Business owner (nightclub, real estate, import/export)
• Betty: Business manager (bakery)
• Profit-based income
• Jesse made decisions
• Higher risk but unlimited upside

Scale

Eastern Textile:

• 2,000 workers
• Large operation
• Jesse managed purchasing
• Betty managed 4-person payroll team

Taiwan Businesses:

• Smaller operations
• Jesse owned everything
• Direct involvement in all decisions
• More entrepreneurial flexibility

Research Questions

• When did Jesse start at Eastern Textile?
• When did Betty start at Eastern Textile?
• What specific textiles were manufactured?
• Who were other board members?
• What caused board split specifically?
• Did Jesse have ownership stake or just salary?
• What was the factory’s full name/official name?
• Where exactly in Manila was it located?
• Does factory still exist today?
• What happened to other faction after split?
• How did Jesse and Betty coordinate work and childcare?
• Were there other family members employed at factory?
• What were typical salaries for Purchasing Manager and Payroll Supervisor?
• Photos of factory exist?
• How much were shares worth when sold?

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Eastern Textile Factory represents a crucial chapter in Jesse and Betty Chan’s lives - providing stable careers, management experience, and financial foundation that enabled their later entrepreneurial success in Taiwan and eventual move to the United States.