“The factory is very big, but it isn’t yours, forget about it,” these were the sobering but ultimately motivating words Reymont Choachuy’s father imparted to him at an early age. The father-and-son back then were visiting his grandfather’s sprawling factory.
Reymont’s dad, being second to the youngest sibling in a traditional Chinese family whose patriarch owned businesses across industries from rubber products to real estate, was not expected to continue the family business, a role which fell onto the eldest son.
While there was less pressure, this scenario also carried the responsibility of establishing oneself from the ground up, a nonmaterial inheritance which Reymont’s father gave him. “Inheritance is a curse and not a blessing,” his father patted him on the shoulder as their trip concluded.
Today, with businesses across industries at steady state – much like his grandfather before him – Reymont Choachuy can proudly hold a torch to his elders’ successes, putting life into the words his father imparted to him during that eye-opening trip many decades ago.
“That humbling experience made me a dreamer,” Choachuy tells Alike, “and it made me dream big.”
Dive in with passion
There are those who follow well-worn paths, and those who carve new ones from familiar ground. The former often find comfort in predictability; the latter embrace risk, chasing the promise of greater rewards — both material and meaningful.
Reymont Choachuy belongs firmly to the second kind, the trailblazers who see opportunity where others see limits.
Though his ventures lay in familiar industries such as automobile maintenance and quick-serve dining, he refused to settle for the ordinary.
With quiet determination, he reimagined what these everyday experiences could be, turning routine services into purposeful enterprises.
What began with uncertainty became a testament to vision, grit, and the rewards of daring to do things differently.
Being a Car Doctor
Choachuy first earned his salt in the gas station business, starting from the ground up and working his way through the ranks for close to 30 years before founding Car Doctor in mid-2020. For most people, an oil change or repair stop was merely a chore — a quick errand in a place that was greasy, noisy, and purely functional. But Choachuy saw possibility where others saw inconvenience.
As the economy began to reopen after the pandemic, Car Doctor reimagined the auto service experience, introducing the concept of a one-stop shop that went beyond vehicle care.
Alongside transmission and air conditioning repairs were cafés, beauty parlors, and food stalls — transforming waiting time into leisure time. In an age when people seek to make the most of every trip, Choachuy turned the workshop into a destination, not a detour.
Turning Passion Into Purpose
What makes his story even more remarkable is how he built all this while managing Sam’s Everything on Sticks, the flagship brand of his food company Noble House. Since its debut in the early 2000s, Sam’s has elevated Filipino street food, proving that something humble could be made world-class.
The idea, Choachuy shares, came from two contrasting moments: his love for street food, and a serious case of food poisoning.
“On my hospital bed,” he recalls, “I dreamed of professionalizing selling street food.” That dream, once laughed at, became the foundation of a business empire that now carries the same audacity across industries. “I chose to be a fishball vendor,” he says with a grin, and in that choice lies a lesson in humility, courage, and conviction.
Dreams That Go the Distance
Today, the walls of Noble House’s head office bear a sign that reads, “If people aren’t laughing at your dreams, then your dreams aren’t big enough.” Choachuy lives by this mantra.
Through the years, his vision and persistence have earned the trust of international partners, from opening one of the first Shell Helix workshops in the Philippines under Car Doctor, to bringing Malaysia’s Michelin-selected Limapulo laksa house to local shores, which proudly uses Sam’s fish balls.
Whether in cars or cuisine, Choachuy’s journey is a testament to dreaming boldly, building patiently, and leading with heart. As he reflects, “My passion for all I do makes me learn everything thoroughly.” And it’s that passion that keeps him looking ahead — no regrets, only possibilities.
New mountains to climb
Reymont’s new rules don’t only apply to entrepreneurship, but also the oft-coveted “work-life balance.” “I don’t believe in it,” he shares.
“But I do believe in work-life integration. It’s how I managed to build businesses and raise a family,” referring to how the number of eggs across baskets – work, family, or leisure – may fluctuate depending on the season, all while one keeps a healthy amount in each basket, all baskets nurturing each other.
Still, despite his successes, Choachuy is not one to rest on laurels. Cognizant of market trends and the larger social events that influence them, as well as the onset of ageing, he and his family are moving on to real estate, which they believe has more longevity in the coming decades.
They established RJTC, a real estate firm whose name is derived from the Choachuy family members’ first names. They also agreed that Reymont should work here as president, “having founded so many businesses.”
For most of 2025, Choachuy, from innovating the car service scene to professionalizing street food vending has slowly been easing into this new role in a new industry. But there’s no fear for Reymont Choachuy as age indeed isn’t just a number, but a reminder of challenges surmounted and the many mountains yet to climb.
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