Henry Sy, chairman emeritus of SM Investments, one of the Philippines' largest conglomerates, died Saturday morning, according to a statement from SM.
Sy had topped the Philippine Rich List for eleven years in a row. His net worth was estimated at $19 billion at the time of his passing, making him the 53rd wealthiest person in the world.
The 94-year-old former immigrant from China had built a vast business empire that spans retail, real estate and banking. Sy’s family-owned SM Investments is the holding company for SM Retail, the country’s largest chain of department stores and supermarkets, SM Prime, the country’s largest shopping mall operator, as well as BDO Unibank.
Born in 1924 in Fujian province, he went to the Philippines at the age of 12 and got his start in the retail business by selling goods in his father’s neighborhood store. After saving enough money, Sy started his first business with a footwear shop called ShoeMart in 1958.
Over the following six decades, ShoeMart grew and evolved, so the brand name was changed to simply "SM." Sy opened his first department store in 1972. The 20,000-square-meter space was considered large at the time, and it was run by his then 22-year-old daughter Teresita Sy-Coson.
Sy has also been credited with helping to spur the “malling culture” in the Philippines, where the country’s tropical climate often makes shopping outdoors an uncomfortable experience. SM Prime now operates 70 malls in the Philippines and another seven in China, reports forbes.com.
