Miss Universe Philippines 2025 Ahtisa Manalo shared how entrepreneurship has paved the way for her to help her family.
In an interview with Korina Sanchez on Korina Interviews, the beauty queen relayed that being an entrepreneur allowed her to send her siblings to school. "Kasi ako nagsu-support sa family ko, sa mga kapatid ko ako nagpapa-aral, kaya alam ko na 'yung buhay na gusto ko para sa akin at sa pamilya ko, hindi ko maa-achieve ng magiging empleyado lang ako," she relayed.
Ahtisa ventured into food business six years ago. "Food kasi mahilig ako sa pagkain," she said. "[In] six years, nakapagtapos na 'yung kapatid ko ng college. 'Yung isa magco-college na, dalawa 'yung kapatid ko eh. And then nakabili na ako ng kotse. May mga naipundar na," she relayed.
When asked about her secret to success as an entrepreneur, Ahtisa shared that a business owner needs to understand the financial aspects. "Kasi lifeline ng any negosyo, 'yung numbers," she pointed out.
Ahtisa also emphasized the importance of having business partners who share the same goals and are trustworthy. "Importante na pare-pareho kayo ng gustong mangyari, ng patutunguhan, ng gustong puntahan. Importante rin na alam niyo ang ugali ng isa't isa at importante siyempre na mapagkakatiwalaan. Para sa akin iyon 'yung number one na kailangan mong hanapin sa magiging kasosyo mo sa negosyo 'yung mapagkakatiwalaan mo," she stated.
Ahtisa won the Miss Universe Philippines 2025 crown on May 2.
In a recent interview with Boy Abunda, Ahtisa opened up about the shift in mindset she brought to this year's pageant, reflecting on how it differed from her approach the previous year and how it may have contributed to her success.
"This year I made sure I wasn't in my head. [In] 2024 I was overthinking everything. I had a plan a year before it even happened. Every single move, every single decision, I overthink, I plan it," she recalled.
Ahtisa Manalo shares how a mindset shift shaped her Miss Universe PH 2025 journey
This time around, Ahtisa embraced a more spontaneous and grounded mindset. "For this year it was sudden that I joined. I wasn't even supposed to be here but the opportunity came, a lot of doors open for me so I was like why not take it? I was more feeling, I was more experiencing than thinking and planning," she highlighted.
She emphasized that stepping on stage felt more natural this time. "You've practiced for it so many times, you already know what to do. It's muscle memory, so at that time you just got to experience it and like hear people shouting for you, and like living in it," she relayed.