Duty-Free Philippines to buy stocks from Tindahang Pinoy

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) announced on Monday that Duty-Free Philippines will start buying from Tindahang Pinoy to supply all of its outlets nationwide.

DTI 7 Director Asteria Caberte said the move is meant to help exporters penetrate the domestic and tourism markets and is part of the promotion of Tindahang Pinoy.

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DTI 7 and Cebu Gift, Toys, and Houseware Foundation Inc. (Cebu-GTH) opened on Monday the Tindahang Pinoy at Bridges Town Square in Mandaue City.

Tindahang Pinoy is a depot and consolidator of export quality products in the Philippines. The facility will also showcase the One Town, One Product projects from the different municipalities in the country.

Major areas

Caberte said that 70 percent of products in the Tindahang Pinoy Cebu outlet will be sourced from Central Visayas. The rest will be bought from other regions in the country.

DTI initially opened three Tindahang Pinoy outlets in Cebu, Clark and Davao. The agency plans to open more product depots in other major areas in the country, such as in Bohol.

The Tindahang Pinoy outlet in Cebu is managed by Cebu-GTH.

Caberte said the tourism industry is the “leading sector which has the opportunity for inclusive growth at the moment.”

“For the first time ever, we are making available for our tourists and local buyers, a permanent facility where they can shop for products from our globally-renowned exporters,” she said.

DTI and Cebu-GTH also forged a partnership with the Department of Tourism and the associations of tour guides and tour operators in Cebu for the promotion of Tindahang Pinoy to tourists.

DTI also tapped the GIZ, a technical agency of the German government, for the production of a video catalogue to promote the products of Tindahang Pinoy. Caberte also announced that the Product Development and Design Center of the Philippines will also be working on product catalogues and brochures that will be distributed to major hotels, resorts and airports in the country.

The DTI is also in initial talks with private logistics service providers that can work with Cebu GTH on deliveries.

Ordering

“We are trying to come up with an efficient system where a tourist can order from his hotel room and delivery can be made within 24 hours,” Caberte said.

Cebu-GTH president Ramir Bonghanoy, meanwhile, said the establishment of Tindahang Pinoy will help exporters cope with the economic problems of major countries such as United States and Europe.

Although the export industry has diversified its markets following the 2008 global economic slowdown, Bonghanoy said they are still constantly looking for more opportunities, considering the tight competition in Asia.

Cebu-GTH said it is still positive about prospects for business.

“The crisis is not over, but we have Asia, which is also a big market. We also have a growing domestic market which we should take advantage of. In order to compete head-on, we just have to continue producing innovative and unique products for the global market,” Bonghanoy said.

He reported there is still a growing number of buyers from Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and Russia who patronize Philippine-made products.

About 20 exporters signed up for Tindahang Pinoy. Bonghanoy expects more exporters to join, including those from the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation Inc., Cebu Fashion Accessories Manufacturers and Exporters, Philexport and other manufacturers.