From a Habit to SIP.LY: The Story of Ady Cotoco

There is a moment in Ady Cotoco’s vlogs when he smiles while serving someone a drink. It might seem like an ordinary exchange. Yet, after watching him offer taste tests to people who kept walking, it feels like a moment worth celebrating.

I came across Ady through TikTok and began following his journey with SIP.LY, the iced shaken tea and craft soda business he built from an idea in his own daily life. His recent vlogs have shown days when the drinks sell out. He has also shared days when sales fell short of what he hoped. Watching both has made me appreciate the person behind the cups.

Ady at the counter, sharing drinks that began as a personal experiment.

Where the Idea Began

When Orange Cup Blog asked Ady what got him started with SIP.LY, he gave an answer that was personal and refreshingly honest:

" Once I decided to quit alcohol and drinking too much, I switched to drinking iced teas and sodas instead and there I thought of just experimenting making my own than buying 2-3x a day. "

Ady wanted to change a habit. After deciding to stop drinking alcohol, he found himself buying iced teas and sodas two or three times a day. Eventually, he wondered what would happen if he made his own. He began experimenting, and an idea that started with the drinks he enjoyed grew into something he could share with others.

I love how simple the beginning is. Ady did not describe a grand business plan. He noticed something in his routine and became curious enough to try making it himself. Many ideas begin this way, with a small question that someone chooses to act on.

SIP.LY’s beginning also reminds me that pursuing a passion does not require having everything figured out first. Ady started by making drinks he wanted to make. The work of bringing those drinks to other people came afterward, one pop-up and one customer at a time.

The Person Behind the Drinks

Ady studied marketing at De La Salle University and later completed a Chinese language program at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Before sharing the daily work of SIP.LY, he was known to many people for his TikTok content. In a 2020 interview with CHiNOY TV, he described creating videos after his day job, sometimes filming late into the night. He said his experiences inspired much of what he made.

In the same interview, Ady encouraged others to make content that brought them happiness. His advice was to “do it for your own happiness first. Fame is just secondary to that.” He was speaking about creating videos, but those words came back to me as I watched him make and sell drinks. I see the same willingness to try something he enjoys and let other people experience it.

The Days That Did Not Go as Planned

Running SIP.LY has given Ady moments to celebrate, along with days that tested his confidence. In a video about selling at Greenhills, he called the pop-up the scariest business decision he had made. He had a goal for how many cups he wanted to sell, and he did not reach it.

On a different day, Ady tried offering taste tests to people passing by. Many did not stop, and he sold few drinks. I found that video difficult to forget. Offering someone a taste of something you made takes courage, especially when you have to keep asking after people walk past. Ady shared the experience with the people following his journey.

Lately, I have seen vlogs in which SIP.LY sells out. It is exciting to watch people buy the drinks that began as Ady’s experiment. Those moments feel even more meaningful when I remember the missed goal and the quiet day of taste tests. Neither day could tell him how every future customer would respond.

His videos have changed how I see the positivity he brings to his work. I enjoy seeing him smile, and I also admire the effort behind it. He prepared the drinks, showed up, spoke to people, learned how a day went, and came back to do it again. His enthusiasm has room for disappointment without letting a disappointing day become the whole story.

The Courage to Keep Going

What drew me to Ady’s story was watching the happiness he brings to his work and seeing people enjoy something he cared enough to create. A customer buying a cup gets a drink. Ady gets to share an idea that started with a small change in his own life.

There is already a kind of success in choosing something that makes you happy and giving it a real chance. A sold-out day is wonderful, but Ady’s decision to begin mattered before it happened. The harder part is continuing when you are tired, when you miss a goal, or when the people you hoped would stop keep walking.

I hope more people discover Ady and SIP.LY. I hope they see the sellouts and the smile, then stay long enough to learn about the days that came with fewer sales. His story encourages me to take a small idea seriously and to keep working on it after a difficult day. I am rooting for Ady, for the business he is building, and for all the people who may find a little joy in a cup he once thought to make for himself.