BY FRANCINE Y. MEDINA
From his approach to building to his principles when it comes to sustainability, the president and CEO of Active Group Inc. certainly lives up to his company’s name.
Maverick.
That’s the word that pops up when you meet Active Group Inc. president and CEO Toti Turalba. You’ll feel he’s a magical thinker when you step into his spacious office, view beautiful modern art and see all the model cars and planes he personally constructed himself. A big boy’s wonderland of happy objects. (His cool hairstyle with a man bun is the sort of creative giveaway.)
You’ll also sense he’s a man of action, literally, when your wandering eyes spot a photo where the 56-year-old Turalba won in the senior category of this year’s Miata Cup, a notable car racing competition. In the photo, he posed with his 30-year-old son Juha, who was the grand champ of this year’s race. And did you know that he’s the president of the Ferrari Club of the Philippines?
And then you’ll learn that he has other incredible hobbies such as clay shooting, fishing and scuba diving that he enjoys doing with his son.
“Life’s too short not to enjoy it,” he says in a very calming tone.
The active man you meet is all Zen in his office today while he passionately talks about the 50 plus-year-old real estate empire his parents started and which he is now on the verge of taking to another new height.
“I was practically born into the business,” he continues. “As a child, the sand piles on the job site would be my sandbox, my playground. Later, I would also hang out with my dad whenever he visited job sites. In my teens, I already knew how to make drafts.”
His parents, architect Antonio Asperilla Turalba Sr. and Maria Cristina Valera Turalba are considered pioneers in the industry. Though they still play a role in the company, the couple have given up a more active part in running the Active Group of Companies. The Active Group’s main purpose is to provide wealth through home equity and community building, and to create quality products that add value and impact to communities and the country.
Long before “green and wide-open spaces” became a post-pandemic buzz phrase, the couple were already exploring developing properties that graciously provided outdoor breathing spaces for its residents. Just visit the Town and Country villages that the Active Group built and you’ll see that from the get-go, the real estate group had already been into creating livable communities — not just mere boxes or uniform houses — that offer respite for tired urban souls.
Then, there is the world-class flagship property — the Mount Malarayat Golf and Country Club in Lipa City, Batangas — a sprawling 210-hectare luxury integrated resort community. Its 27-hole championship course has been the site of many international golf competitions, and its terrain and design has been highly rated by travel and golfing organizations.
Malarayat Club has gone a long way from being a poultry farm in the 1990s that was losing business after US military bases closed down and impacted the community’s economic opportunities. The Turalbas studied the land thoroughly and concluded that a golf course and country club are best suited for the space. The Active Goup took care to preserve its environment, retaining even the more than 50-year-old mango tree that still stands proudly at the country club.
Malarayat was likewise able to give back job opportunities to the unemployed farmers and other community members by upskilling them for the high-end club’s operations. Suffice it to say that besides the magnificent natural environment, the space is equally known for the warm hospitality and service of its staff.
While property development is a multi-million enterprise in the country, the Active Group is proof that you can do good business while having a heart.
As the boss and visionary of the Active Group, Turalba goes back to his parents’ precept of putting yourself in your clients’ shoes — the future residents — and ask how one would like to live in a particular location and in the particular condo building, home, or village they’ll be investing in.
“I don’t have to build a certain number of homes this year and the next. I don’t even know how many I’ll do. It depends on the properties presented to us and that’s the only time I’d decide what’s the best use for each property,” he says.
Sharing his father’s vision, Juha has also joined the company as head of Active Group’s Sales and Marketing team. Despite doing so well in his previous field, the aeronautical engineer, who used to work for The Boeing Company, felt that being part of the family business gave him the opportunity to make a positive impact on other people’s lives, while achieving growth in business, too.
“I’m happy that he’s onboard,” says Turalba.
As a leader, Turralba’s approach has always been collaborative, “I listen to my team and enjoy the meeting of minds. Of course, the final decisions will have to be made by me, but I always consider the collective ideas put together are better than just having mine alone.”
Next year would be another full-on year for the Active Group as it sets its sights on more projects outside of the metro. The Active Group likewise has an ongoing project in Batangas, particularly in Laiya, Lipa, Rosario and Balete, and is also building communities in Negros, which includes the 50-hectare development called Centrale in Bacolod, plus several subdivisions outside of the city.
“We want to provide homes, in the manner that is responsible and sustainable, in as much as we hope that they add value and uplift the community,” he concludes.
Photography by Stela Young / Art Direction by Dexter De Vera
