Feminism in Business: The Filipinx Approach to Post-Pandemic Entrepreneurship
Feminist. Foodie. Filipinx. Keesa Ocampo, CEO at WeSparq, is an entrepreneur with a passion for doing business differently. Original photo by Vincent Gotti
In partnership with WeSparq
CEO. Founder. Television Producer. Writer. Director. Humanitarian. Keesa Ocampo is a Filipinx American entrepreneur of many dimensions. All of which seek to do things differently.
Ocampo is the CEO & founder of WeSparq, a positive impact creative agency that empowers brands to find their voice and show up values-forward. Seeking to align authentically with its clients, WeSparq works only with mission-driven organizations that are committed to diversity, empathy and social change in the post-COVID era. The majority of WeSparq’s client organizations were founded by BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and/or APAC female-identifying individuals.
Prior to founding WeSparq in 2020, Ocampo held a distinguished 16-year career as an executive producer, writer and director at leading international broadcast media company, ABS-CBN, the Philippines’ largest television news network. During her time at ABS-CBN, she won two Emmys for her work on its Lifestyle Network – some of the first for the international channel. Her award for Haute the Record, a program showcasing the world's most in-demand Filipinx designers and artisans, taught her about the complexities of balancing feelings of success and humility as a Filipinx woman:
“I actually had a problem with that Emmy for a long time because my Catholic grandmother always used to tell me: ‘don’t let that be the source of your pride because Jesus doesn’t like proud people’… So, I never took it out of the box until 2 years later when my girlfriends started encouraging me ...to take it out on Fridays – just for happy hour. Eventually, I became more comfortable and it didn’t seem like it stood for anything other than: ‘I worked hard.’ It’s so funny because as women, we’re not encouraged to celebrate ourselves. And, then factor in being a Filipinx woman: it’s also a sin against God.”
Born in Piedmont, Calif. and raised in the Philippines from the age of 7, Ocampo spent her childhood visiting family once a year in the United States. In 2006, Ocampo moved back to the Bay Area to take care of her grandparents and never left. While she had started her career in PR working at ABS-CBN corporate headquarters in the Philippines, she snagged a position in production when she moved stateside. The new and unfamiliar professional terrain gave her the drive to prove herself.
“I had such an overwhelming imposter syndrome: like, ‘Who am I? Do I deserve this? I didn’t go to school for this’… I think that imposter syndrome moved me... [to] work harder, study more, be humble, ask people for help. Because of that, I showed up to every shoot super prepared, willing and sometimes even doing the work of two to three people.”
Founded in 2020, WeSparq is a positive impact creative agency supporting organizations committed to diversity, sustainability and social change in the post-COVID era.
Along with creating shows spotlighting Filipinx artists and designers, Ocampo started producing shows about Filipino food. She made her directorial debut with Spice to Life, spotlighting Filipinx chefs and restaurateurs who were bringing Filipino cuisine into the mainstream. Her passion for food and bringing Filipino cuisine into the hearts and homes of everyday Americans ignited from there.
A self-professed “picky eater” and pescatarian, Ocampo’s dietary restrictions moved her to seek and create healthier options, advocating for the ways Filipino cuisine could evolve outside the Philippines to fit the tastes of the global diaspora while still honoring its roots. Ask her about her balsamic vinegar adobo or her seafood sisig that was presented for Disney’s release of Raya and the Last Dragon. Today, Ocampo applies her passion for Filipino food culture to her work as the Vice President of the Filipino Food Movement. She hosts a weekly, live-streamed series, ‘Kulinarya Live!’ spotlighting Filipino chefs from around the world to preserve, promote and progress the magic of Filipino cuisine.
“The more you eat and the more you discover our food history, the more you realize that we come from a strong and beautiful people. A magical people. For many in the Philippines, it’s not about having access to expensive ingredients. It’s about what’s accessible and making do with the cards you’re dealt, but then always adding your magic. That’s why everyone’s mom’s adobo is better than everyone else's – because when you put your hands into something and season according to taste, whether you’re using a 5 dollar shallot or a 30 cent onion, you can make magic.”
Making magic from the cards she was dealt is also something Ocampo is well-versed in. In 2020, in the wake of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal war against drug dealers and users that left thousands of people dead, ABS-CBN’s coverage was targeted by Duterte’s administration and forced off the air. Many ABS-CBN employees were let go as a result, including Ocampo and her entire team. Beyond the consequences these political events had on her professional life, Ocampo noted the consequences for the Filipino people:
“The work ABS-CBN did for the Filipino people – and the poorest of our poor – was honorable. To pull a main source of news and information during a time like the pandemic, I think was really inhumane.”
Ocampo’s job loss inspired a heartfelt reflection about what she cared about and wanted for the second half of her career. From this, WeSparq was born.
“What came to light was this thought: ‘If I could rewrite the rules – which are often misogynist, classist, and in many ways not very heart-forward but business-forward; money-forward – How different would life and business be?’ I started with a vision. It wasn’t even ‘what are my goods and services going to be?’ The part that I spent the most time thinking about was ‘how much better could I make business?’ That’s how WeSparq started.”
WeSparq is an award-winning team of multicultural content creators for television and digital media.
Less than a year after its founding, WeSparq has grown to a team of 15 and become the voice behind some of the most powerful and determined feminist organizations in California, including Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, Seismic Sisters and Mosaic America.
Along with her passion for what she calls “better business,” or implementing a positive social impact into the DNA of a business from the start with the radical mindset that “good can actually be profitable,” Ocampo attributes her success to her fierce, fighting spirit as an independent Filipinx woman in America.
“Who's my inspiration? Honestly, it’s myself. I’ve lived in America on my own now for 16 years and what America has taught me is to be independent, to never rely on anyone but myself, to be my everything.”
Alluding to the loneliness and pain of being half the world away from her family, Ocampo describes her American experience as one of duality, “where you can have sadness but it can drive you towards great things.” To Ocampo, whether the outcome is success or failure is ultimately a choice:
“It could have been so easy for me to choose despair and choose to be a non-contributor. But, my choice has always been to survive and thrive and be the fucking best. If there’s any part of my life where I’m not the fucking best it means [everything working against me] won, right? But, they won’t get the best of me.”
Ariel Neidermeier
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Ariel Neidermeier (she/her) is a professional astrologer, digital marketer and writer who explores the intersection of technology and the stars in her work. She was educated in astrology at Kepler College, journalism at Emerson College and international business at the University of California, San Diego. She lives in San Francisco.
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