The Great Women Brand

I first encountered the Great Women Brand at the Women in Media Session hosted by the Enabling Communities with Hope and Opportunities Sustainable Initiatives (ECHOsi) Foundation and the Women’s Business Council of the Philippines (WBCP) back in February. In the program, there was a talk by Jeannie Javelosa, president of ECHOsi and a presentation of the Great Women Brand. This is new and it got my attention.

The Great Women Brand products

It turns out that the Great Women Brand was created through the partnership of ECHOsi Foundation, ECHOstore Sustainable Lifestyle's non-profit arm, and the Philippine Commission on Women under a grant from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)with the goal of elevating the quality of both food and non-food products by women micro entrepreneurs from different regions of the Philippines.  

The brand is the result of the year-long Great Women Project, which had designers and product developers working with women microenterprises in Quezon, Leyte, Bohol, Iloilo, and Naga -- fashion designer Lulu Tan Gan, awarded designers and Movement 8 co-founders Tes Pasola and Ann Pamintuan, bag designer and exporter Renee Patron of Banago Bags (whose bags are in elite stores in the US like Nordstroms and Bloomingdales), Lenora Cabili of Filip+Inna (private trunk show to New York), product merchandiser Rambie Lim of Habi and rurungan Foundation, architect and designer Dan Lichauco, artist-designer-curator and ECHOsi Foundation president Jeannie Javelosa, product merchandise designer and graphic artist Reena Francisco and coffee product specialist Chit Juan, both of ECHOstore.  

Fashion designer Lulu Tan Gan with Miagao weavers

Designer Len Cabili in Davao

Charged with women empowerment, this program is focused on women helping women up the value chain, developing product variants and packaging, providing tools for smooth business operations, and opening new markets for their products.  

The trio behind the Great Women Brand (l-r):
Jeannie Javelosa, Chit Juan and Reena Franciso

The Great Women brand was launched recently at the Yuchengco Museum and was well received by the guests. On exhibit were food products, home textile accessories, couture and fashion accessories and home décor pieces.

Some products on display at the Great Women Brand launch

Currently, the Great Women brand products are available at ECHOstore Serendra, ECHOstore Podium, ECHOstore Centris, as well as in Tesoro's Handicrafts and Milkyway Café in Pasay Road, Makati City.

Because Business is No Longer Just a Man’s World

Not too long ago, a woman’s place is in the house – running the household and taking care of the needs of the children and her husband.  Then as times changed, she slowly began to learn and enjoy her rights and work for the accomplishment of her dreams.  Presently, although women are still struggling to “break the glass ceiling,” whether in corporate or in business, a big number have been recognized for their exemplary efforts in growing their own businesses.

The SGV Foundation and the Women’s Business Council of the Philippines (WBCP) jointly published a book that celebrates and honors the achievements of the Philippines’ top women entrepreneurs.  Launch recently, the book titled Aspirations & Inspirations: Filipino Women Entrepreneurs by Jessica Zafra features the 42 women winners and finalists of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year (EOY) Philippines.

Reading the book will make you realize that the featured Filipina entrepreneurs are just like any other mother, daughter or sister who cared for their loved ones and did their duties and obligations to the family.  At the same time, the book will inspire you to attain your professional and personal achievements just as the women entrepreneurs did.  Their stories ranged from starting the business at home, continuing the legacy started by their parents, being pioneers of the industry, being married their business partners, switching careers, and to starting a social enterprise. 

Some of the featured women in the book are Lolita O. Hizon of Pampanga’s Best, Julita P. Urbina of Café Laguna, Mary Joy Canon-Abaquin of Multiple Intelligence International School, Socorro C. Ramos of National Book Store, Amelia D. Manas of Bruno’s Barbers, Gemma N. Bulos of A Single Drop for Safe Water, and Marianne G. Quebral for Venture for Fund Raising, among others.  Their businesses survived trials and grew to have great impact to the economy and to the society, touching many lives in the process.

WBCP President Chit Juan, author Jessica Zafra and WBCP Chair Boots Garcia

The book launch is one of the activities in celebration of the 10^th year anniversary of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines program, where The Woman Entrepreneur Of The Year award has been a vital part of.  With the belief that women entrepreneurs have a special gift, EOY Program Director Atty. Antonette Tionko has this to say,” Aside from having innate business sense, these women also show the power of compassion.  They have the ability to understand people and work within the dynamics of family, business and society.  The abilities of these women entrepreneurs are beyond question; but it may be their capacity for caring that makes them even better at what they do.”

On the other hand, the Women’s Business Council or WomenBizPH, headed by its Chair Ma. Aurora D. Geotina-Garcia and President Pacita U. Juan, will bring the books to the international conferences its members regularly attend or are invited to for speaking engagements.  Many WomenBizPH members are also Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines winners and finalists and they are also featured in the book.


This article was also published in HerWord.com 
http://www.herword.com/unwind/main.php?id=aspirations_and_inspirations

Grow Your Business Online

Although a majority of companies (and individuals) are still into traditional media when it comes to promoting their products and services, it can no longer be denied that online is the wave of the (near) future. Specially here in the Philippines, where we currently rank among the top 10 countries (according to checkfacebook.com) based on the number of FB users worldwide, more and more businesses are establishing their online presence either for branding purposes or for sales. But the efforts must not end there.

Beyond having a presence in Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites, is the need to engage your customers to make them loyal fans and to provide not just information but customer experience through co-creation. How do you build your business using social network marketing? How do you also turn your passion into a business through the powerful world of blogging and make people seek you out from amongst the clutter?

BusinessWorld, in cooperation with Mansmith & Fielders, Inc., presents Marketing Rescue on Friday, September 2, 2011, 1 to 5 pm (registration starts at 12 noon), at the Topaz Room of the Penthouse of Midas Hotel, Roxas Boulevard, Manila. Featuring the topic "Using Digital Marketing and Inbound Marketing to Grow Your Business," the event will have as speakers the CEO of MRM Digital Worldwide and Mansmith Chief e-Marketing Strategist Donald Lim and Director, Mansmith and Fielders Inc. and known blogger (www.triciawillgoplaces.tumblr.com) Tricia Gosingtian.

This is a FREE marketing consultancy seminar wherein the attendees get to raise/ask marketing concerns regarding the companies they represent. How does this work? To reserve your FREE seat, just email your name, company, position and contact details to marcom@bworld.com.phwith the subject RESERVE ME A SEAT AT THE MARKETING RESCUE FORUM, on or before August 31. Also include in the registration your most pressing marketing related problem. The first 10 specific questions will be answered by Donald Lim (social networking-related questions) & Tricia Gosingtian (blogging-related questions). Seats are limited to only 50.

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About BusinessWorld Publishing Corporation

BusinessWorld (http://www.bworldonline.com) is the first and leading business newspaper in the country, with over four decades of experience in economic journalism. From merely reporting the latest news on business and the economy, BusinessWorld has evolved to become the premier business news and information provider to the country’s industry movers and decision makers -- through print, online and learning events.

About Mansmith & Fielders, Inc.

Mansmith & Fielders (http://www.mansmith.net) is the country’s leading consultancy firm that “helps your marketing and sales teams soar!” Established in 1989, it is composed of successful practitioners and entrepreneurs with strong theoretical backgrounds. Mansmith & Fielders is a specialists in Marketing and Sales, Strategy and Innovation Training offering segmentized programs to its clientele.

Mansmith & Fielders has a column called "Mansmith Mentors" which appears in BusinessWorld's Wealth Manager section every Monday.

Marketing Rescue is an advocacy project of Mansmith (www.mansmith.net) dedicated to help companies grow or turnaround.

About the speakers

DONALD LIM is the CEO of MRM Digital Worldwide, the digital marketing arm of global marketing communications agency McCann Erickson. Prior to this, Donald was the President of Yehey Philippines and Vice President for Classifieds of the Inquirer. He was the founding President of the Internet Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines (IMMAP) and was the youngest president of the Philippine Marketing Association. Donald is the Chief e-Marketing Strategist of Mansmith and Fielders, Inc.

TRICIA GOSINGTIAN (triciawillgoplaces.tumblr.com) is a fashion blogger and photographer. She was the only Asian to have been sponsored to the New York Fashion Week last February 2011 by Tumblr.com and was the first Filipina to have reached the top 10 worldwide of the fashion blog Lookbook.nu. She was recognized as one of Go Negosyo’s Young Entrepreneurs in 2010 and was awarded the Loyola Schools Art Award in Photography by her alma mater Ateneo de Manila University also in 2010.

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