AS a pro gamer himself, Rocky “Rak” Braña knows what it feels like to sit on a bad gaming chair.
The NBA 2K pro, who suits up as the sixth man for E-Gilas, the national NBA 2K team that won a regional FIBA championship just last June, remembered paying top dollar for one gaming chair. For the price he paid, he was disappointed by what he got — from the comfort of the seat to the quality of the leather.
“Naisip ko na, bakit hindi ako gumawa?” he said. “Bakit hindi ako gumawa nang mas mura sa iba?”
It was a dream that took a long time to turn into reality.
“Walang naniniwala sa akin. Ultimo yung nanay ko, di naniniwala,” the veteran ProAm League player said, laughing. Even his wife Venice, he recalled, wasn’t 100 percent sold on the idea, either.
But finally, his mother relented, and loaned him the startup capital to found Bathala, a line of locally branded gaming chairs. Venice herself, an industrial engineer, became the chief operating officer of the company.
They formally launched Bathala last October, and began selling at the end of January.
Bathala currently has four models. Three are named after Filipino gods of ancient myth. The lowest end is called Mapulon, named after a Tagalog deity — it retails for P4,499. The next model is called the Apolaki. It's dubbed as a "fabric gaming chair", and sells for P6,799. The premium Dumangan, meanwhile, goes for P7,499.
The most expensive chair on their lineup is simply called Trono. Each Trono, which retails for P9,999, is a limited series product, with each chair numbered with a small collector’s plate.
“Yung main reason niya kung ba't niya ginawa yung chair is para sa sarili niya, at para sa mga co-gamers niya, na. 'I want a chair na sinisimbolo ako,'" Venice explained. “From that experience and mindset, dun nagmula yun, ang isipin natin name for the chair is something na nagre-reflect pa rin ang pagiging Pinoy natin.”
But despite all the confidence and bravado the couple brought into launch, Bathala landed in the market with a dull, resounding thud.
“Maswerte na kami if we can sell 1 or 2 sa isang araw. Or even in a week,” Venice recalled.
And then the pandemic happened. With deliveries of non-essential goods prohibited by the government, their meager sales dwindled down to zero.
But when the restrictions of the enhanced community quarantine were lifted at the end of April, they tentatively reopened sales again. To their surprise, demand for Bathala suddenly shot through the roof.
In retrospect, both Venice and Rocky weren’t surprised that the ongoing pandemic had boosted their business. As white collar work moved out of offices and personal computers began to double as machines for both work and play, many Pinoys stuck at home realized their old chairs weren’t cutting it anymore.
“Everyone's looking for a budget lang na gaming chair and office chair. Yun yung target nilang bilhin. Yung abot kaya,” she said.
Their P4,499 Mapulon, as well as their other chairs, seemed to fit the bill. Its luxurious, understated design and very Filipino branding — with the model name engraved in alibata on the seat rest — also seemed to appeal to customers.
It helped, too, that Bathala now sponsors a whole host of esports athletes and influencers, like some members of the popular Team Payaman crew, rappers like Flict-G and Dello, and of course, Rocky’s own NBA 2K E-Gilas team.
Now, Rocky and Venice had to set up preorder forms for every production batch just to manage the demand.
The pair have even been thinking of venturing beyond gaming chairs and into Bathala-branded peripherals, like mousepads and PC casings.
The long term dream for Rocky, however, is to fully manufacture Bathala within the country.
Ever since he came up with his business plan, he’s been trying to make that happen. “Kahit ano'ng hanap ko, walang-wala po talagang factory na gumawa dito sa Pilipinas,” Braña said. “Yun ang goal ko talaga. Sana matuloy. Gusto ko pong dito na po talaga siya manufactured.”
You can check out Bathala's gaming chairs on their Facebook page. They're currently accepting preorders for a November release.
Spin fans unite at the Spin Viber Community! Join the growing community now and complete the experience by subscribing to the Spin Chatbot.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
