Businesswoman talks about the trade in children’s wear
By Trinidad Ramos as told to Excel V. Dyquiangco

Passion is the keyword for success in any endeavor. I have so much passion for children’s clothing because I love kids and seeing them smile. I felt heaven in our midst. It was my mom who inspired me to enter the clothing business. She said: people will walk hungry but not naked so I will always have business. Besides, I love seeing kids smile wearing their favorite Ka-BOOSH outfit.

And since the Philippines is known for children’s wear, my friend and I decided to put up Ka-BOOSH Kids. The idea behind the business was conceptualized by my British friend Geoffrey Wood (Bradley Carter UK Ltd) during one of our meetings in 1994 when we attended the Kind & Jugen Fair in Cologne, Germany. We agreed that he will register and distribute the brand in whole of Europe while Ka-BOOSH Philippines, Inc. will register and distribute the brand outside Europe.

We started as a manufacturer and exporter of high quality children’s wear and we export our products to many countries abroad – the US, Africa, Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, and our main market in Europe, the UK and Germany.

Children’s wear is the strength of our country at the time we started the business. We have so many skilled workers doing intricate hand smocking and embroideries so we capitalized on our greatest skills.

European challenges
We first put up our store in Ayala Center in Cebu. We made it our test market because many said that the Cebuanos are wise spenders. When you succeed in this market, you can succeed anywhere in the Philippines.

Our first month in the business was very challenging. Our products before were European-inspired while the domestic counterparts were more of the American style. It is good that we easily captured the discriminating taste of our customers who value unique and high quality workmanship as well as good fabrication.

One of the challenges we faced was the lack of capital or no capital to start with as manufacturing is labor and capital intensive. During those times, the government had very good livelihood programs and they helped us with this problem. They had People’s Livelihood Enterprise Inc. (PLEI) which later became Technology & Livelihood Resource Center (TLRC). They gave startup capital to aspiring entrepreneurs and they gave machineries and other support technologies.

We also had cancellation of orders last 1997 due to late arrival of fabrics from Korea. When the Asian financial crisis hit our country, we lost so much money. It was our great downfall in the export business. We had lots of stocks and we could no longer finance our export business so we tried the domestic market.

Even now, we face many challenges. Cheap Chinese products are flooding our market. Also we do not have a textile industry so we just rely on those coming from Korea and China. But we have a very good team that is well-motivated to produce unique and high quality products that differentiate us from what is common in the market.

The mission
You must have a well-defined reason why you will enter a certain business. In our case it is our mission to provide a decent means of livelihood to many of our Filipino countrymen so even when we were losing money, just the thought that so many people are gaining from the business, we just have to go on. You must also love what you are doing. Our mission is to make a contribution to society in my small way, to make a better future for all the people working in our company, and to make difference to people’s lives.

There are also four characteristics that a good business person should possess. One is good attitude. In business or any other endeavor one must have a positive attitude at all times and treat everyone the way you want others to treat you. Love what you are doing, as the saying goes. Do what you love and the money will follow. Focus on your goal. Our company’s mission is to create more employment and give decent livelihood to our people. Despite all odds we have to go on. If not for our mission, when we lost a tremendous amount of money last 1997 we could have given up. Finally, one should have faith in God and people. It is our unwavering faith in God that unite us with our people and overcome all adversity. We believe that God will never abandon nor forsake us. God is good all the time!

Plan and save
We started in 1988 with P20,000 plus 15 machines borrowed from PLEI. Now we have two manufacturing plants run by our 200 loyal and efficient people. We have seven stand-alone boutiques: Ayala Center-Cebu, Market! Market!, Festival Mall Alabang, SM Dasmariñas Cavite; SM Sta. Rosa Laguna, SM Lipa, and SM Fairview. We have 32 concession outlets in various selected department stores nationwide.

Right now, we have many requests from our loyal customers to make teen wear and moms’ clothing. We are considering these areas of expansion to satisfy our loyal clients.

As the business is still growing, saving money is an important factor. We have learned to delay gratification, and to buy only what is necessary. It is also best to just live simply and be a good steward to God’s abundant blessings.

For anyone who would want to venture into business, you should do and make good in whatever you are doing right now. Learn the business you want to get into and always have a positive attitude in dealing with everybody. Stay focused on what you want to be. You should have big dreams and put all these dreams into action.

A life coach about her job and about life as a professional in the UK
By Dr. Joy Barredo as told to Maan D’Asis Pamaran

When was the last time you were happy? That is one of the most important questions I ask my clients. It may seem innocuous enough, but some of my clients realize that they haven’t really been happy in years. That is when I step in to help them.

Life coaching, which is what I do, is often confused with counseling. But unlike counseling, wherein a therapist sees a patient for six to 12 months, and tries to resolve something in the past such as a bad childhood, life coaching focuses on a person’s present and future. This way, I help clients find answers in themselves, with the aim of achieving, instead of simply resolving something. Therapists will try to help patients unearth the reasons behind behavioral problems or addictions. In life coaching, we tend to look at obstacles as goals, so clients may come to me because they want to get a particular job or to lose weight.

Also, unlike counseling, where you have to have a degree in psychology or psychiatry, I was a Bachelor of Arts graduate from the De La Salle University, majoring in Literature and Communication Arts. I also have a doctorate in Language and Literature.

The doctor is in
I was already doing something like life coaching in Manila, but it was more of an image consultancy job while I was teaching at La Salle. My clients there were ones who wanted to improve how they presented themselves to others. For example, I had clients, who were very successful, but sounded like they had not finished high school. I had politicians coming to me because they wanted to sound more sincere. An expat, who worked as a managing director of a company, wanted to be able to reach out to his employees better. I had a lot of clients who were celebrities.

It was only when I got to the UK with my then fiancée, and now husband Thomas, that I realized that there was actually a term for what I was doing – life coaching – and that it is quite popular not only in Europe, but it is a huge business in the United States. People actually train for this by attending courses at city colleges and universities. Because of its popularity, this profession is quite lucrative. On a monthly basis, my professional fee is 120 pounds for three 45-minute sessions in a month. For couples who want to work on their relationship, the fee is 170 pounds a month for three one-hour sessions, and for team coaching, it is 280 pounds a month.

This profession has also made me quite visible in Europe, too. I was interviewed on a very popular show in Poland called Dzień Dobry TVN on the 7th of October 2007. You see, in 2005 I went to Berlin; in 2006, Strasbourg, France; and in 2007, Warsaw, Poland. This was because I attended Volonteurope, a four-day conference with workshops that is attended by around 100 people from 17 different countries in Europe and the US. Each year I had run a workshop for them. The first year in Berlin, I was even one of four who hosted a dinner (paid for by the conference organizers) as an expert. They called it “Dinner with an Expert.” My expertise was on diversity. Then last year, I was invited to come on a show in Warsaw, which was on national TV. And I was also interviewed for TV while in Warsaw, which I think was for a news program. In the UK, I’m often on the radio; aside from the fact that I present my own radio show called Usapang Pinoy every Saturday. I’m also often on the BBC.

If someone wanted life coaching with me in the Philippines, they can find out how it works and how much it will cost by getting in touch through my Web site (www.thegoddessinyou.co.uk) or e-mail (joy@coachcom.org). I think in the Philippines, life coaching as a practice is virtually non-existent, though I could be wrong. There are a number who pass themselves off as life coaches, but in fact they’re psychotherapists, counselors, mentors, or trainers.

It is a particular discipline where one needs to train and get qualified as a life coach. If they want to train as a life coach, they can look up courses in the UK and the US. Some may find online courses, but it’s really not the same. It takes more than a piece of paper before one can trade as a life coach. They need to practice on their course mates with their tutor’s help as well as on other willing subjects. At the same time they need to be properly assessed and evaluated. A life coach needs to be skilled enough to know when a particular client needs life coaching or counseling, and be honest enough to refer them on to someone else if the client’s issue is beyond their scope.

In the UK, I am busy conducting workshops and meeting with clients, but I also have a day job, and it is as a diversity coordinator at a non-government organization that helps black and minority groups. I find it very fulfilling being able to help people. One of the things I do at the center is to give life coaching sessions free of charge. We help survivors of domestic violence, or those who have been abused by their employers. Right now, I am working with the BBC on a documentary for this.

Missing Manila
My transition to a new life in the UK was not without challenges. One difficulty I have is adjusting to the lifestyle. For instance, in Manila, I had a housekeeper who comes by to help with the chores at home. I don’t have that here. Also, it’s hard to build and maintain friendships here because of this. When 5pm comes, everyone’s rushing home to their families because they have to prepare dinner, then wash the dishes and tidy up. By the time that’s all over, people are too knackered to do anything else.

On weekends, people are busy doing the laundry, catching up with housework, doing the grocery, etc. Also, phone calls are quite expensive. There is no flat rate, unlike in the Philippines. So when you ring someone or someone rings you, they’re always in a rush. The conversation is over in a minute or two. I’m the kind of person who likes to keep in touch and spend time catching up with friends. In Manila, I enjoy being able to ring friends at whatever time day or night. Here, one can’t do that unless they’re really close.

Advice for migrant workers
Another challenge I would say is that racial discrimination is still very much alive in the UK, and I see as lot of our kababayans falling victim to it. Some of the challenges I faced when I first came was the discrimination and prejudice people have against Filipinas. They seem to think that every Pinay is after a British husband or that they’re mail-order brides. The minute I open my mouth though, they realize that I am well educated and quite cosmopolitan.

I am not an OFW nor am I an economic migrant or a migrant worker. I’m an immigrant. When deciding in 2003 what visa to apply for (so Thomas, who works as a computer security consultant, and I could build a life together in the UK) we considered getting for me a fiancée visa. But since I’m a very independent woman and wanted to come here on my own steam, I went for the “Highly Skilled Migrant Programme,” which meant that I could go to the UK without any job offer and would have a year in which to find a job, any job I fancied. The HSMP means one has to garner enough points based on their qualifications, experience, skills, and contribution to their field of expertise. The applicant also needs to prove that they can support themselves financially in the UK while looking for work.

Migrant workers coming from the Philippines are tied to their work permit and employer. They’re not allowed to stay in the country if they lose their jobs. If they do resign or get sacked, they only have 28 days in which to look for another employer in the same industry or field and a job that gives them the same salary and the same type. So if they come here as nurses, they can’t do any other kind of job, but nursing. If they come here as a chef, that’s the only job they can have. However, if they go back to the Philippines, then they can apply for another type of job.

This is why there are a lot of Filipinos who are being exploited in the UK. They go abroad with a salary offer of, say 20,000 pounds a year, but when they get there, they receive much less. They leave the Philippines not knowing what their rights are and they get abused by their employers. If they come to the UK through legitimate means, then there would be no problem. But there are many who come under false pretenses. I would advise our OFWs to read their contract carefully.

By Lynda C. Corpuz

When Jonathan Jay “Jay” Aldeguer, 36, president and founder of Islands Souvenirs, finished his AB Interdisciplinary Studies degree from the Ateneo De Manila University, his parents rewarded him with a European vacation. On this trip, Jay found himself stuffed with books and figurines, which were too inconvenient for him to carry around. So he shifted to t-shirts as souvenirs, which also served as a good change of clothes, he funnily recalls.

That experience, and as a typical Filipino who loves collecting souvenirs and buying pasalubong or take home items, made Jay translate his hobby into a business venture in the then underdeveloped Philippine souvenir industry.

By putting up Islands Souvenirs in March 1992 and packaging souvenirs that deviate from the usual, ethnic-inspired motifs to usable mementos that reflect the country’s sunny and tropical character, Jay not only made money, earned recognitions and awards (the latest is the 2005 Ernst and Young Small Business Entrepreneur honor), above all, he proves that passion and interest are essentials for an entrepreneur to get into a business. “Turning a hobby or an interest into a business venture would be a perfect foundation for any enterprise,” Jay says.

If you are now thinking turning whatever hobby or interest you have into a moneymaking endeavor like what Jay did, check out the following tips collated from various sources:

Contemplate first. No need actually to go to a secluded place to meditate and ask for any divine intervention (though it helps), but simply ask yourself if you are really decided on turning your hobby or interest into a business.

When Jay established Islands Souvenirs, it was clear with him that as a souvenir collector himself, he wanted value for money. And getting value from his money means offering both local and foreign tourists items that best capture the true spirit of the locality they are visiting. With this vision, Islands Souvenirs churned out 300% sales in just a year of operations.

Be ready for the competition. If you truly feel that your passion has the potential as a business, check out for any competition so you can fully identity and serve your target audiences.

When Jay rolled out his first kiosk in a Cebu mall, he immediately found himself up against two competitors who were hawking a similar concept as of Islands Souvenirs. But luck was on his side that the department store granted him additional space to expand, and by this time, the competition had vanished.

Act like a business. Failing to make a complete transition from amateur to professional is considered one of the biggest pitfalls of taking the hobbyist route to business ownership.
To avoid this, start by taking care of the following such as opening a separate checking account for the business; getting a credit card; maintaining complete and accurate records; documenting your equipment purchases, among related matters.

Being unique matters. From kiosk to mall outlet; expanding from Cebu to key Philippine business districts, to selling overseas, Jay proves that creativity, innovation, and quality spell out the difference, evident with the fact that Islands Souvenirs sends out its team abroad to scout for designs, in an effort to always offer something new for the customers.

Keep up with the technology. Selling to friends and relatives or putting a shop or joining a bazaar are immediate possibilities for anyone starting out a business, but Jay notes that the Internet should also be harnessed as the new marketplace. “Using the Internet would immediately expand your market from a handful of friends to a worldwide market by the millions.  The auction site eBay, for instance, is a great marketplace to start a hobby. Start up cost is negligible and overhead is minimal. I’ve used it and made some decent profit,” Jay shares.

Have “the customer is always right” as your new mantra. With a hobby, you do things when you feel like it – and if you don’t feel like working, there are no repercussions. Now, customers now depend on you so you better deliver, and deliver well.

Above all, have fun. Hobbies evolve from passions, but a business requires work and responsibility. So before turning your hobby or interest into business, be certain you have planned it out so the fun does not get lost.