Shayne rebounds after setback

Shayne Villanueva was awarded 2018 Saipan Young Professional of the Year during last Saturday’s Silver Lining Gala of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce. (Jon Perez)

Shayne Villanueva was working as a vice president of an insurance firm in Southern California, rising from the ranks where he learned the ways of the industry. However, despite a top-level management position, it did not preclude the company from firing him and he soon found himself jobless. That’s when he decided to start his own small business then packed his bags and returned to Saipan.

“I moved back here in 2016 after spending about 15 years in San Diego where I’ve been in the insurance industry for a long time. At that time, I was vice president of an insurance company in Southern California and I got let go. I got fired and it happens to most of us,” said Villanueva after receiving his 2018 Saipan Young Professional of the Year award in last Saturday’s Saipan Chamber of Commerce Silver Lining Gala at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Saipan.

He saw past that firing from the job in an industry that he has spent more than a decade ago and used it as motivation. “It was a great lesson for me and I needed it. It was the kick in my butt that I needed to start my business.”

“I started to represent our culture and our people; I went out in Southern California selling T-shirts one by one. I decided to come back home and make a difference. I decided to join the Saipan Young Professionals and the Saipan Chamber of Commerce.”

A few years after coming back to Saipan, Villanueva, with the support of his family and business partner Peter Aldan, opened Roil Soil Clothing Co. There’s no stopping them since then and they were even commended by Gov. Ralph DLG Torres during his State of the Commonwealth Address in August last year.

“We’ve done great things for the community as a small business. We don’t make a lot of money but we have donated over $20,000 to the community in 2018,” said Villanueva, who is AON Insurance’s operations manager and last year’s winner of the 2017 SYP Rookie of the Year award.

He then challenged other big name local businesses in developing the local workforce. “I challenged you, big business owners, to look after your young professionals this year. Mentor and grow them.”

“We have open applications for you, just ship them [young professionals] over to us [SYP] and let us help you take care of them. I got the [ROY] last year; it was fun and challenging but we worked with a very good group of people.”

Villanueva said that he is offering his SYP award to his grandmother after giving his ROY honors to his mom. “I gave my mom the [ROY] award last year and this one I will give it to my grandmother who raised me; she taught me everything that I know and she made me the man that I am today.”

“But I challenged [my mother] since this year she’s made a promise. And I’m letting everybody know to hold her accountable. She would be one of the certified psychotherapists here on Saipan by the end of this year.”

Nicole Babauta of the CNMI Small Business Development Center, Derek Cutting of Latte Built 24-Hout Gym, and Janel Pangelinan of Pacific Insurance Underwriters were the other nominees for the 2018 SYP award.