Nikki Tang, CEO of DMark Group of Companies, built one of the country’s leading provider of dermocosmetics and aesthetic devices through passion, determination, and good old-fashioned hard work.
Nikki Tang always knew that she is going to be an entrepreneur. That she would end up in the beauty industry, becoming one of the biggest beauty entrepreneurs, or beautypreneurs, in the country came as a nice surprise.
Tang is the CEO of DMark Group of Companies, composed of DMark and DermAsia Corporations. DMark distributes some of the most trusted anti-aging skin care and minimally invasive skin rejuvenation treatments worldwide. It has changed the game for dermatologists, who previously had to package their own formulas, by replacing their prescriptions with top-of-the-line dermocosmetics from world-renown leaders in the industry. DermAsia supplies top dermatologists and aesthetic physicians with the latest technology and devices.
Clients of both companies include major hospitals like Asian Hospital, Makati Medical Center, St. Luke’s Medical Center; dermatology and aesthetic centers like The Aivee Institute, Belo Medical Group, Marie France; and retail stores like Watson’s and Personal Care Exchange.
Tang’s feel for the entrepreneurial was honed at a young age, when she would help out in the family hardware store during school breaks and weekends. Despite the extra work after school, she managed to be in the Dean’s List at the De La Salle University, where she graduated with a degree of Manufacturing Engineering & Management.
After graduation, Tang realized that there was an untapped market in dermocosmetics and aesthetic devices in the Philippines. She started DMark with just herself and one assistant.
She pretty much grew up learning about the beauty industry from her mother. “Her entrepreneurial spirit has inspired me to work hard, identify opportunities and create value for bigger purposes,” she says.
As CEO, it is Tang’s responsibility to build up the company in terms of profit goals, as well as to sustain their market shares, create an inclusive company culture, oversee the company’s performance, and ensure that the company is continually providing innovative solutions for the industry. Her philosophy is simple: “Work with the smartest people you can find, do something you are not ready to do, find an environment where you can find your voice, and work for someone who believes that it is worthwhile to invest in you.”
Building two successful companies from scratch in an industry that hadn’t yet caught on in the country wasn’t easy. Thus, some of Tang’s proudest achievements in this area include building a dynamic forward-thinking team, focusing on positive cultural development within the organization, and maintaining product growth and sustainability. Surprisingly, most of these have little to do with making money and a lot to do with taking care of people, which is probably why employees have repaid the company with loyalty, hard work, and soaring profits. Tang believes these became possible through “prayers, focus, determination, patience, and a deeper understanding of our position in the market.”
Tang’s constant passion for innovation and change as well as the drive to constantly mine new opportunities and processes have paved the way for DMark and DermAsia’s success that have spanned almost two decades. Her commitment to excellence and constant passion for innovation continue to set her apart from her competitors.
Her willingness to stretch her boundaries in her role as a leader have resulted in numerous recognitions for the contributions of both companies from organizations such as the Philippine Dermatological Society, the Philippine Academy of Dermatologic Surgery Foundation, and the Philippine Association of Primary Skin Health Physicians, Inc. To add to this, DMark Group of Companies was awarded International Distributor Sales Excellence for Small GNP Markets in 2008, and was recognized as one of the Top 7000 Corporations in the Philippines from 2009- 2010. Just this year, DMark received the Best Trading Back Office Award by IFC, Spain, one of their international partners.
It always thrills Tang to meet skin experts and industry leaders, travelling in search of new and state-of -the-art technology to provide innovative beauty solutions to the target market. “It is always rewarding when I am able to make a difference by making the latest technology available to our client doctors. The work is challenging, yet exhilarating. I love the fact that the growth in this industry is not just about being beautiful. Since it involves technology, it is important to be responsible for making lives better, and not just for turning profits.”
Tang isn’t all about work. An avid traveler, she also likes settling down with a good book or an engrossing film, but what she likes to do most of all is spend time with her family. Her two boys are the lights of her life. “Balancing my family and my profession is a daily challenge, but I believe it’s really about knowing how to set your priorities, covering all grounds, and setting expectations in a realistic sense. I always remind myself that family will always be my number one priority.”
She also supports social causes. An awardee for Philippines’ Best Dressed Ambassador for Life by the Philippine Cancer Society, a figure among the Movers, Shakers and Influencers of the Philippine Yearbook in 2014, received People Asia’s 2016 Women of Style & Substance Award, actively supports the Red Charity Gala for the Red Cross, actively participates among the Angels for Street Kids to service marginalized children and elderly folks. She brings to her social causes the same determination and drive to help others that she carries in her business.
A forward thinker and strategist, Tang is now set on doing aggressive online distribution channels bridging the gap between b2b and b2c, opening an aesthetic training academy to support customers by offering them constant industry updates and create their own private label that will cater to certain market segments and gain a foothold in the logistics industry to be able to transport goods efficiently, and eventually have the company listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange.
Tang has come a long way since she started her group of companies from scratch. The advice she gives aspiring entrepreneurs and other brave souls who have taken on the business world and won, is, “to believe in yourself, keep your passion, and never lose hope,” she says. This upholds the values that have spelled success for her.
Nikki Tang is an inspiration to women and to entrepreneurs as DMark and DermAsia have opened doors for hundreds of dermatological and aesthetic physicians to serve their patients well, and for all Filipinos to have access to quality dermacosmetics. Tang has so much to be proud of, yet remains conscious of her everyday blessings and opportunities. “Be grateful, find inspiration in every single day,” she says. “And most of all, do not be afraid of hard work.”
