Name: Ian Dave P.

Lumindas

Grade&Section: ABM 12 Sycip

Story of Filipino Success: Mariano Que, founder of Mercury Drug

When Filipinos need medication, a couple of names usually come up: Generika, The Generics
Pharmacy, Watsons, and the most well-known of them all, Mercury Drug.

Mercury Drug has been synonymous with quality pharmaceuticals and it owes its success to one
man who recently left us: its founder, the late Mariano Que.

His company may not have been the first drugstore in the country, but his pioneering spirit
behind the pharmaceutical retail industry paved the way for all the rest that followed.

It all began with P100 and a bottle of Sulfiathiazole

P100. That was all Mariano Que had in his pocket after World War II. An employee of a
drugstore prior to the war, Que knew that Filipinos would need the “miracle” drug sulfathiazole,
believed to cure many (if not all) sorts of diseases and illnesses.

He saw an opportunity to help his countrymen by buying the bottle from a peddler in Bambang
St. He then sold these tablets (which he knew was genuine sulfathiazole thanks to the ‘W’ on the
tablets) per piece to make it more affordable. After making a profit, he was able purchase other
medicines and a pushcart so he can sell his medicines to the public.

FIRST OF MANY. A photo of the first Mercury Drug store in Bambang St., Manila. IMAGE
Mercury Drug
He continued selling medicines off of his pushcart until he was able to save enough to put up the
first Mercury Drug store on March 1 along Bambang St.

More than 70 years later, Mercury Drug is still at the forefront of Philippine pharmaceutical
services, with over 1,000 stores nationwide. It’s also the first to use a central computerized and
temperature-controlled warehouse, 24-hour service, and pharmacy counseling.

More than just a businessman

Que proved to be more than just an enterprising businessman. He founded the Mercury Drug
Foundation (MDFI) as a way of giving back to Filipinos for their support throughout the
company’s 70-year existence.

Today, MDFI helps Filipinos across the country mainly through these programs:

 Operation Bigay Lunas – free medical services and medicines to underserved

communities
 Operation Pa-Tubig – access to water for marginalized waterless communities
nationwide, done in partnership with the Philippine Business for Social Progress
 Bantay Kalusugan – free health profiling, screening, counseling, and education activities
for non-communicable diseases
 Pharmacy Scholarship – full scholarships given to third and fourth year Pharmacy
students enrolled in member schools of the Philippine Association of Colleges of
Pharmacy (PACOP).

They also give out awards of excellence for Math and Science (Gawad Talino); search for,
nurture, and train future leaders (Sagip Talento); and provide immediate relief assistance in the
form of medicines or hygiene packs.

He has also been conferred an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree by the University of Sto.
Tomas College of Medicine for his pioneering spirit behind the pharmaceutical retail industry
and his advocacy for affordable medicine and assistance to the needy.

Apart from the honorary degree, he has also received a lot of awards, including:

 President’s Award: Plaque of Merit, Most Prestigious Drugs Manufacturer and

Distinguished Civic Leader in 1973
 Award of Distinction by the Philippine Chamber of Health and Pharmaceutical and Non-
Pharmaceutical Industry in 1986
 Father of Philippine Health and Wellness Retailing by the Philippine Retailers
Association in 2012

So, where can your P100 take you?