Taking the leap
For Juli-Anna McGovern, life simply falls into place
By Fiona Patricia S. Escandor
JULI-ANNA McGovern was only 21 years old when she took a leap of faith and made the big move from Vancouver to Cebu. She flew halfway across the world, away from her family and the comforts of home, to start a new life — as far as her savings would take her — in her mom’s hometown. The idea was hatched during her first trip spent to the Philippines two years prior, where then she fell in love with the country and vowed to come back.
Scary and borderline reckless, yet exhilarating and exciting, she said of her big leap. Without a definite plan in mind, in the first few months Juli-Anna tried her hand in starting a cupcake business, while on the side helping out her friends Franz Ignacio and Koh Onozawa — names now synonymous with the LoudBasstard brand — as they were still starting out.
“They’re great at what they do, but one thing they needed was help in organizing and communicating all of it,” she said. “It started out as me helping out with timelines and wording a few emails, then a few weeks later they offered to get me full-time.”
But instead of offering her salary, which as a start-up at that time they couldn’t shell out, Juli-Anna was offered equity, leaving her and her box of cupcakes, dumbfounded. “Rolling income was a concern but I figured, what do I have to lose? Worst case I go back to Canada after a while, but my gut was telling me to go for it because it knew the best outcome — the one where this company that I truly believed in would make a difference and succeed.”
Partner in sound
Juli-Anna became part of LoudBasstard Inc. a month shy of the launch of the brand’s bamboo amplifier in October of 2012. She is now one of its partners and the same time director of administration and communications.
“In a nutshell, I oversee the paper work and make sure departments are working in unison so that ultimately, events and orders are on time,” she said.
It is neither the profession nor industry Juli-Anna thought of when she first set foot in Cebu. Nevertheless, she has since grown to enjoy it over the years. “Franz, Koh and I have never started a company before, so everything that’s LoudBasstard is a direct copy of who we are individually, which makes it hard not to love what I do.”
Two years in, the brand has remarkably evolved, owing to the dedication and hard work of the team behind it. It is now globally recognized for its ingénue craftsmanship, eco-friendliness and sustainability, and for its support to local artisans. After the amplifier, the brand introduced mobile phones case skins that are made of lightweight hardwood.
“LoudBasstard encompasses so many of the things I used to do back in Vancouver,” Juli-Anna shared. “And it has become even more fulfilling. The experience taught me that sometimes we have to go against the norm and push for what we believe in — a principle I now carry in all other aspects of my life.”
Outreach
Juli-Anna also spearheads LoudBasstard’s NoteForNote, an outreach program that offers music lessons as an after-school activity for children in Zapatera Public School and the SOS Children’s Village in Talamban. A dance and theater enthusiast growing up, she said it was what developed her as a person.
“I don’t think I would have learned as much discipline or enjoyed school as much as I did without them. Extracurricular activities offer a different kind of education from the standard academe, and is something that all children should have the access, and more so, the right to,” she said, adding that they actively working on expanding NoteForNote’s reach across Cebu, and soon the Philippines.
“Eventually I do hope to revisit the idea of a bakery or café to incorporate my love of baking and my neverending hunt for good coffee shops, but my long-term goal is to open a public school specializing in visual and performing arts,” she said.
Inspiration
The Filipino-Canadian admitted she does get bouts of homesickness from time to time, but has since gotten inspiration from those around here who have continuously invigorated her decision to stay here.
From her uncle, Marc Canton of Movement for a Livable Cebu, who is also from Canada, she was reminded of how she can contribute in helping Cebu rise to its potential.
Then from the entire “big move” itself, she said she has learned independence. “It was extremely difficult fending for myself in a city where I don’t even speak the language,” Juli-Anna said. “But with the support of friends and some relatives, plus a lot of hard work, Cebu (has become) my home and I don’t see myself anywhere else.”
Photography: Alfred Gregory E. Bartolome | Hair & Make-up Artists: Carlo Damolo and Jerwin Bastatas
Assistants: Bernadette Abangan and Marymil Cabrera, Mass Comm Interns
Clothing: Topshop | Locale: MYtv Studio
