When building a project car, people often look to the most obvious accessories. Wheels and tires, mufflers and exhausts, badges, stickers, and all sorts of additional exterior garnishes—those are the usual suspects.
Something that not a lot of enthusiasts bother changing, however, are car mats. Sure, they’d go so far as changing the matting into something more functional. But for the looks? Not exactly. It’s unusual for someone to look at a car and says: “Hey, this needs more colorful car mats.”
But for Loowy Manila founder Alu Macaraig, he thought outside the box. He established his brand specifically to build custom car mats. ‘Custom’ here doesn’t mean the generic rubber mats tailor-fit for a particular model, mind you. By ‘custom’ we mean artworks. On car mats. Because why the heck not?
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“The idea for Loowy was born during the pandemic. At that time, I noticed that while there were plenty of options for car accessories, no one in the Philippines was really focusing on customizable car mats,” said Macaraig. “I thought it would be simple enough to start since my brother is a graphic designer and I had a background in corporate sales and marketing. But the reality was far from easy. We were dealing with limited funds, complicated logistics, and the challenge of building a product entirely from scratch.
“Despite that, we officially launched Loowy in 2021. At that time, we had no connections in the car community. No JDM car to showcase. No store. No marketing budget. Just a product we believed in.”
For most companies, that’s how it starts. For Loowy Manila, Macaraig and his team really built everything from the ground up. He shares that the brand got its first break when BanaweBoy bought a mat. “We didn’t know him personally, but when he posted it on Instagram, we gained hundreds of followers and started connecting with people and brands in the local car scene,” he said.
From there, Loowy Manila only continued to grow, and in August 2025, it held its first car meet in Japan. Macaraig shared the story of how Loowy went from selling car mats in the Philippines to hosting a gathering of JDM legends overseas.
“Our journey to Japan began when one of our followers-turned-friends told us that Loowy’s mats would be a hit there. By chance, we already had a trip planned, so he showed us around and introduced us to a few Filipino-Japanese communities,” said Macaraig. “That connection eventually opened the door for us to join Fenderist Japan 2023, one of the biggest car events in the country. If you’re into cars, you’d know enthusiasts from all over the world travel to Nagoya for it. For us, being part of Fenderist was a milestone, not just for Loowy but also for representing the Philippines in such a pure and globally respected car culture.
“That experience planted the seed for Park and Padded. At first, the idea was simple: an informal car meet to officially introduce Loowy to Japan,” he added. “But the response online was overwhelming. Suddenly, what started as a casual gathering needed a proper venue, and before we knew it, it became a full-scale event.”
Macaraig recalls how he told his wife to not expect too much on the day of the meet. “We weren’t sure if people would even show up. But right at 8:30 p.m., when roll-in began, the cars started arriving one by one. The sight was surreal. We were humbled to see not just Filipinos and Japanese enthusiasts but also Brazilians, Americans, Portuguese, and even some well-known influencers from Japan who came to join us.”
It was a simple, laid-back gathering as Macaraig describes it. Loowy raffled away car mats, floor mats, and shirts. There was time and space for enthusiasts to just come together and hang out, and the night ended with a roll-out to the parking lot.
“For a small brand from Manila, it was more than just an event,” furthered Macaraig. “It was proof of how far passion and community can take you. From the Philippine car scene that supported us from day one to our Filipino-Japanese friends who helped us through every challenge of logistics, culture, and language, we are endlessly grateful. This wasn’t just our event. It was theirs, too; they made it happen.”
Always beautiful to see homegrown brands like Loowy Manila make it far in the car scene, especially when they get to represent the local car community like this. We know a lot of you might be interested, so if you want to check out Loowy’s products, you can head on over to the brand’s official website.
