Success Beyond Showbiz: Paula Peralejo and her restless feet
We are just so happy for celebrities who don’t need the limelight to shine.
Some try to prove detractors wrong by succeeding in their trade after their popularity waned or, after a shameful exit from showbiz, others just decide to leave it all to try something new, improve themselves and become the best they can be.
People think being in showbiz is a pinnacle in anyone’s life. Flourishing under the klieg lights, and earning the kind of income people could only dream of, showbiz personalities are the most admired yet the most envied. Who could believe that some stars see that there is more to life than just getting a top- rating show or a blockbuster movie?
Paula's tale
Take the case of Paula Peralejo, who along with sister Rica, had been two of the most promising young stars in the Kapamilya studio. Paula started in the business just like all of her ABS-CBN contemporaries — in the famed kiddie show AngTV. And, just like the young stars who emerged from that show, Paula moved on to greater heights in the network, starring in dramas and movies. We remember her most in the teleserye Mula Sa Puso, and the youth-oriented drama Tabing Ilog.
But although Paula had a bright future in showbiz even with the cancellation of Tabing Ilog in 2003, she did the unthinkable for her peers. She left it behind and went back to school.
Back to school
With her “break” from showbiz in 2005, Paula entered the University of the Philippines in Diliman and fully concentrated on her difficult academic pursuit—a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy with a minor in Tourism degree. Back then, many people thought Paula was simply building her image for a comeback. However, those close to her realized her choice was for keeps.
While in UP, she didn’t shun showbiz completely. with occasional appearances in movies and TV. Admirably, Paula was still so passionate and focused on her newly-found academic life, she didn’t even think of shifting back to the glamorous life she once had.
True enough, her hard work paid off. Paula graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2008, beginning a whole new outlook on success and what it takes to achieve it.
The man who brought her places
What inspired her more to go into this new adventure was meeting the man who would bring her to the right places. During her junior year, Paula met Charlie Fernandez, marketing manager of a soy milk manufacturer in a scuba-diving trip in Anilao, Batangas. While they were exclusively dating the same year, their choices of “where to go” were better than the usual, to say the least. Paula and Charlie hopped from one awe-inspiring, delectable, and breathtaking travel destination to another, as sister Rica narrated in her blog:
“Since then, the two have seen 10 countries together (not including Hong Kong and Taiwan), and 69 out of 81 Philippine provinces which Paula has been trying to complete- a “personal project” she started way back in her college days.”
Grandest journey
When they decided to take on what Rica calls their “grandest journey” as husband and wife in February last year, Paula and Charlie were naturally emboldened to take the cue.
Paula started an online travel agency called Our Restless Feet with Charlie last November. Since then, customers have flocked to get the best deals from them. Their decision to enter the travel industry was both fitting and timely. As passionate travelers, Paula and Charlie entered a flourishing market with immensely bright prospects in the short and the long term.
Our Restless Feet offers flight bookings, hotel or cruise accommodations, tour packages, even to the point of arranging itineraries. After four months, the couple’s business hit break-even, a milestone for their small venture with no employees—just the two of them handling customer enquiries and actual processing and completing the travel packages for their customers.
Big accomplishment
This is a big accomplishment for Paula. With the right business decisions, knowhow and tools, Paula’s business has an even bigger potential for growth and expansion in the coming months and years.
Paula might still have bigger mountains to climb. But given all the right decisions she has made for herself, we are sure she will always trust her smarts and further succeed in her brave, incredible journey.
(Blogger's note: I am correcting an earlier version of this blog post that stated Paula had appeared in the ABS-CBN teen-oriented show G-Mik, a Komiks series called Si Pardina at ang mga Dwende and the film Mars Ravelo's Lastikman. While she appreciated the article, Paula was also so kind enough to inform this blogger through Facebook that she did not appear in those programs. My sincerest apologies to her and to the readers.)
