THE premium coffee sector has become a huge business in the Philippines and for one particular enterprise called Blu Coffee, the business has allowed its owners to generate revenues reaching P100 million or $1.92 million a year
The five-year-old enterprise reported on Tuesday that premium-coffee consumption has grown almost four times between 2010 and 2017.
That growth is expected to register another 72 percent between now and 2021, Blu Coffee founder and CEO Rolando Villanueva said.
“The coffee market has really taken off in the Philippines,” said Villanueva, who also owns gas stations, a realty company and other business interests.
“I saw this as an exciting opportunity to bring the experience of premium Italian products to coffee lovers across the country. Today, we supply more than 1,000 hotels, cafés, restaurants and other businesses. We knew that as we grew and established showroom branches all over the Philippines, we would need a more scalable solution in the cloud,” he added.
This pertains to Villanueva’s early adoption of a business management solution called NetSuiteOneWorld that allowed him to capitalize and rapidly expand his import and distribution of premium coffee across the country.
The enterprise was founded in 2013 as a two-man operation, but now employs 50 employees as revenues nearly double every year and demand for roasted coffee soared.
Blu Coffee needed to eliminate the complexity created by relying on QuickBooks and Excel as its business-management system. After evaluating different solutions, Blu Coffee selected NetSuite OneWorld over SAP Business One.
With NetSuite, Blu Coffee Distributors manages an expanded footprint of four showrooms in Baguio City, Angeles City, Cebu City and Davao City, along with its headquarters and showroom in Quezon City.
Time needed for monthly financial close has been reduced by about 300 percent, while the company now has the insights needed to easily track expiration dates of perishable coffee beans.
To further streamline processes, Blu Coffee Distributors is implementing NetSuite SuiteCommerce to provide a business-to-business commerce portal that will allow customers to order products online.
Blu Coffee Distributors worked with NetSuite Solution Provider PGE Solutions to implement its NetSuite solution.
Building on its success, Blu Coffee Distributors has upgraded to the NetSuite OneWorld global business management solution for two reasons.
One, it allows Blu Coffee to easily transact in the euro and US dollar with its international suppliers. Moreover, NetSuite OneWorld is scheduled to be rolled out at Panville Unique Distributors, a parent company headed by Villanueva that’s comprised of Blu Coffee Distributors, gas stations, a newly formed bagel-distribution company and other interests.
With OneWorld, Panville will be able to treat its multiple businesses as subsidiaries for seamless financial consolidation, supporting improved efficiency, visibility and continued growth.
“Companies like Blu Coffee Distributors that identify an opportunity and move quickly to capture the market are increasingly turning to NetSuite to support that growth,” said Hazel del Rosario-Lee, managing director of Oracle NetSuite Philippines.
“We’re excited to see their success and look forward to continuing to support them as their business grows and evolves,” she added.