How Linya-Linya Gets the Everyday Pinoy at Wits’ End Through Endless Wit

Products and services recommended on our websites are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something through our links, Summit Media may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you.

(SPOT.ph) "I’m gonna quit my full-time job for a company that makes memes." That’s what Jim Bacarro told himself in 2015 when he decided to work with his grade-school classmate, Ali Sangalang, who had already started writing one-liners for what would soon be Linya-Linya.

Sangalang, the brand’s Creative Director, started getting ideas a few years earlier. He recalls, "It started out as a passion project between two artists nung 2012. Ako ‘yong writer, then si Panch Alvarez—he was a friend back in college—he was the visual artist."

Sangalang and Alvarez were colleagues who were both stressed at work. But they were also frustrated artists. And so, they created art—including one of their first lines: “Ang taong gipit, sa creativity kumakapit.”

They were working for the government at the time and would pass around notes during meetings. They weren’t necessarily minutes, though.

Sangalang, a self-identified class clown, recalls, "Marami akong bagong hirit about [the] everyday experience. So, sinulat ko siya sa papel. Tapos pinasa ko kay Panch. Tapos doon na siya nag-start mag-doodle. Until nakabuo kami ng around 10.”

Calling the brand Linya, they eventually printed some of their catchphrases onto shirts. They had a blog that turned into a Facebook page, then an Instagram page, and once or twice a year, they’d sell at bazaars. They weren’t really sure what the company was at that point, but for Sangalang, one thing was clear: "It was all about [the] everyday Filipino experience, na humor-based at may art."

Then, Bacarro joined the company. "They didn't know what they were. But I loved what they were doing," Bacarro says. Originally meant to just broker a deal, Bacarro eventually signed on as Managing Director.

Bacarro recounts telling his wife, Saab Magalona-Bacarro, the news. "I told her, 'Okay, we're gonna invest in a company that makes memes.'" It looks to have turned out well, because nowadays, followers often see Linya-Linya’s latest designs on her Instagram page.

"Doon nagsimulang seryosohin ‘yong kalokohan," Sangalang says. "Nag-register na kami, then we put up a store. Na-expand na ‘yong content creation and merchandise."

From fun to funds

As Linya-Linya, they opened their first-ever office in a tiny room above a toasted siopao stall in Kamuning that didn’t even have a fire exit. It eventually burned down—thankfully, after they had already moved out. "Dahil ‘yong nagluluto ng toasted siopao ay ‘yong guard do’n sa baba," Sangalang jokingly shares with a laugh.

Their second office was a condo showroom that was more of a hallway with its lengthwise cut. It was fully fake-furnished, equipped with a TV that didn’t work. Their admin and finance department’s table was a kitchen sink and their stocks were piled on an unused kutson in the bedroom.

They've gone through a couple more office spaces since then, but they eventually got to open their first mall kiosk—with a lighted signage that never actually got to light up. "Kasi wala palang kuryente sa U.P. Town Center," says Sangalang.

The signage is now the centerpiece of their dream office in Quezon City. Complete with co-working areas, a studio space, and a spacious stockroom, their window-lined office even has a storefront where customers can check out all their merch.

Linya-Linya's memes of collaboration

"Gets ka namin," reads the bold, black letters on top of the office’s meeting room. And for a company whose lifeline is, well, lines, this is the tagline that fuels everything else that they create—memes, shirts, and stationery included.

"The best memes are the ones that are easy and relatable. And, that's what we've always been. We've always been about relatability," says Bacarro.

Sangalang adds, "Truth-telling din ‘yong ginagawa namin. Everyday experience ng mga Pinoy na totoo, pero we express it in a creative way. So, para maging relatable, kailangan niya maging totoo."

This relatability through truth-telling is born out of the founders’—and now, the team’s—personal, yet shared, experiences. "Hindi na siya linear na a writer will write the lines then the artists will design. Ngayon, na-democratize na namin na lahat ng mga nandito sa office, everyone can pitch in," Sangalang explains.

Also read: How This Filipino Bag Brand Became the Must-Have for Work and Play

He details their creative process: "May mag-pipitch, then mag-a-agree 'yong team, and then, the artists will create options. Then, i-a-approve ng team din."

As a content company, whenever they release something that their audience enjoys, they have a basis for the lines and designs that they can explore and turn into shirts and other products. Still, they don’t haphazardly just create merch for the sake of creating merch.

Bacarro expounds, "What we're selling is not a shirt. What we're selling is a line, an idea that connects with our customer. We’re not selling mugs. We’re selling something that will make them happy at work. We're not selling jackets. We're selling something that allows them to express themselves."

Democratizing the creative process is what helps the company live up to their motto. Because, after all, it takes an everyday Pinoy to understand—or get—a fellow everyday Pinoy.

Online to offline—and vice versa

This Pinoy-to-Pinoy understanding goes beyond “haha” reacts on Facebook and likes on Instagram—and is felt the most when you go through their collection at a physical store.

Going to a Linya-Linya store—as experienced firsthand by this writer—is best shared with friends, who would laugh and tell you, "Ikaw ‘to!" while holding up a Taylor Swift-inspired "marupoklore" shirt. They’d then say, "Ay, bagay rin ‘to," while pointing to a shirt that says, "Alabang goodnight diyan?" written in the iconic jeepney font.

Bacarro says, "Honestly, ‘yong Linya-Linya, it's all about feeling. It's in the moment. That's what we missed when the stores closed. You had that extemporaneous moment of someone going to a store and saying, 'Oh my God, nakakatawa. This is me.'"

Without kiosks during the pandemic, Bacarro reveals that they doubled down on the content. "We hired, beefed up our team in terms of content creation. Kasi again, we're a content creation company first."

And they thrived—in more ways than one. Their digital storefronts were stronger than ever, with official flagship stores on Lazada, Shopee, as well as their official website. They also found a way to expand their brand beyond wit and humor.

The community as the frontline

Linya-Linya’s physical stores might have closed down during the pandemic, but it opened up new avenues of connecting with their audience—whom they soon realized was an innate community. "In a time of crisis, that's when your principles—your real principles—stand out. That's when you see ano ‘yong prinsipyo niyo as a company. We didn't even discuss that. It just came out naturally,” Bacarro says.

In addition to the country’s health emergency, there was also a drastic sociopolitical shift at the time. "What I love about what we built is that we naturally went towards all the values that we've been pushing for, which is adaptability, compassion, [and] love for the Filipino spirit," Bacarro expounds.

As a brand, Linya-Linya started partnering with NGOs and Filipino artists who aligned with their values: the AHA Learning Center for education, Angat Buhay for social services and basic needs, and Love Yourself PH for LGBTQIA+ rights and equality, to name a few. They were even able to build a community learning hub in partnership with the OVP under Leni Robredo.

"Alam naman natin na fun-loving ang mga Pinoys, but also, Filipinos care. 'Pag kailangan tumayo, tumindig, gagawin natin. So, 'yon 'yong space ng Linya-Linya—'yong power of words, power of humor, power of creativity and collaboration, meron siyang napupuntahan," Sangalang says. "Kaya siya statement shirts. Hindi lang siya basta masuot mo, space din siya to voice out what you feel."

With their partnerships, Sangalang says that Linya-Linya became a more accurate reflection of today’s Filipino. "Nakakatawa kapag nakakatawa, pero seryoso pag kailangan maging seryoso."

The bottom line

Making Pinoys’ individual experiences feel shared and universal has been at the heart of Linya-Linya since its inception in a government office way back when. And just like any Pinoy, the brand is always on top of the latest trends and jokes. But they know where to draw the line.

Sangalang explains, "Hindi lahat ng pagkakataon, kailangan magsalita. Kailangan mong tanggapin na may mga kakaklase ka na ‘yon ‘yong thing nila. Pero kaklase namin 'yan. Kaibigan namin ‘yon. So we share their content, pero hindi kailangan lagi kaming gumaya sa kanya. Otherwise, mukha kaming epal."

He continues, "Let's try to stick to what we do best. And ‘yon ‘yong mas humorous and meaningful minsan."

Bacarro agrees, saying that it’s really all about listening. "Like we say, gets ka namin. We're that friend who laughs and cries with you. And if you're a good friend, yeah, you'll talk about, like, "Grabe 'yong Eras tour, ‘no?" Pero that's not the only thing you bring to the table. So kami, that's how we do it.”

Linya-Linya down the line

Well, they're bringing a whole feast to the table now that they can once again expand to physical spaces. After its last iteration in 2019, they’ll be mounting Linya-Linya Land 2023 on August 26, which, for them, is a celebration of the aforementioned collaborations. Featuring Filipino talents in music, arts, and comedy, it’s an event where they get to talk to and connect with the community they’ve cultivated over the years.

In a dream world, Bacarro says, they would be "the full 360 of entertainment." They're currently in the picture, merch, podcast, and event space. The next big step for them would be video, animation, and books.

It doesn't seem impossible. After all, Linya-Linya is a brand made by and for Pinoys who are at their wits' end. And there's an endless trove of witty content to make out of that. "Ang kinakapitan ng Linya-Linya ay words and art. And words and art are perpetual, and dynamic, and buhay siya. Hindi siya mamamatay," Sangalang says.

"Mag-iba man 'yong mga trends, 'yong mga tuma-tumbling na 'yan, 'yong mga logos na 'yan, mga ganyang trends—damit lang ‘yan. Pero at the very core, it's really words, art, and the Filipino experience, Filipino humor. And hindi tayo mauubusan niyan.”

Linya-Linya is available on Lazada, Shopee, and their official website.

Links are updated regularly and as much as possible but note that products can run out of stock, discounts can expire and listed prices can change without prior notice.

For more discounts and deals, check out Spot's exclusive vouchers.