Biz Week opens venue for product promo, networking, skills enhancing

ILOILO CITY – The Iloilo Business Week spearheaded by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Iloilo chapter on Oct. 14 to 20 will be a venue for promoting products, enhancing skills, building networks, and learning trends in various industries.

“It is not only about trade fairs. We have the PCCI Academy, training, and business conference. So there are a lot of opportunities for them to learn and to promote their products,” Prince Hermaine Celo, PCCI Board of Director and in charge of the Iloilo Business Week event, said in an interview on Friday.

Celo said they partnered with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Iloilo for the ongoing trade fair dubbed “Artesanias de Iloilo” at SM City Iloilo.

The trade fair, which will end Oct. 15 gathered close to a 100 micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) showcasing priority industry cluster, including bamboo, cacao, coffee, wearable and home styles, processed food, and Information Technology-Business Processing Management.

The trade fair hopes to generate PHP3.5 million.

PCCI will launch a new segment, “Businesserye” on its Facebook page on Oct. 16. It is a virtual series that will feature business people in Iloilo to inspire aspiring entrepreneurs.

Out-of-school-youths will be the focus of the “Hope in a Cup: Coffee Latte Art Training” on Oct. 17 under the PCCI Academy, a new program launched this year intended to train new members of the PCCI on the various facets of business.

“We want to empower our out-of-school youth segment. We want to provide them the opportunity to learn, to create their own business, the opportunity to get employed because there are a lot of coffee shops that opened here in Iloilo, so there is a need for manpower,” he added.

Other activities include the Iloilo Festival Fair on Oct. 18, and talent development and investment brief on Oct. 20.

A business conference with the theme “Inspiring Investment through Innovation Inclusivity” will gather various business personalities who will share their insights and talk about the latest trends in the industry on Oct. 19.

They include Honorary Vice-Consul of Monaco to the Philippines RJ Ledesma, former senator and Ilonggo Franklin Drilon, University of Asia and the Pacific president Dr. Winston Padojinog, MEC Networks Corp. vice president Carlo Subido, motivational speaker Paulo Tibig, and Metro Manila-based lawyer Mark Gorriceta. (PNA)