DAVAO CITY—The pioneering business-mentoring program for sari-sari stores in the Davao region has continued to sustain many of these community-based micro-sellers through the year, mainly through business management and linking them direct to the commodity suppliers, the owner of a chain of shopping malls here said.
LTS Malls Inc. CEO Lafayette Lim credits the Kanegosyo (business partnership) Congress for the sustainable operation of many of the more than 100,000 stores participating in the activity. This 19-year-old program was initiated by the New City Commercial Center (NCCC), the mall chain LTS Malls operates.
LTS Malls oversees the operation of the NCCC group of 20 superstores, 25 Choice marts and 50 Health and Beauty 1 (HB1) pharmacy stores in the Island Garden City of Samal, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Compostela Valley, Davao Oriental and Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
“This congress really helps a lot. It is only during these three days of congress that the sari-sari stores are introduced and linked directly to the suppliers of our malls,” Lim told the BusinessMirror on October 19, the second day of the Kanegosyo Congress.
“We would not know how far this relationship would go for the sari-sari stores, but I believe the direct selling and supplying would be going on after the congresses we have conducted over these years,” he added.
The Kanegosyo Congress opened at The Tent of the Azuela Cove in Lanang here on Thursday with 40 booths by the NCCC regular suppliers. The NCCC said the booths opened at supplier price levels to the 250,000 rewards card-bearing customers.
As with the previous congresses, the event featured lectures on financial management, store bookkeeping or other simple recording practices to track purchases and sales.
Janna Mutalib, head of the branding and events of the NCCC Group, earlier told the BusinessMirror the NCCC would continue its visit to the regular client sari-sari stores for actual mentoring and technical management assistance.
She said the Kanegosyo Congress would be upgraded later to a Negosyo Academy, a yearlong periodic business learning and mentoring session.