Filipinos are turning cultural traditions and suwerte (luck) into shopping guides, driving a sales surge in sari-sari stores across the Philippines as families prepare for prosperity in the year ahead.
Tech startup Packworks, utilizing its Sari IQ analytics platform, analyzed over a million monthly transactions from 300,000 stores over three years. The study tracked sales of holiday-linked items two weeks before and after the Chinese New Year from 2023 to 2025. It found that products tied to abundance and luck, such as hopia, Chinese wine, and Asian noodles, posted notable gains, showing how cultural beliefs shape buying behavior.
Hopia, a round pastry symbolizing unity and good fortune, showed steady growth. Median gross merchandise value rose 20 percent in 2025, up from a 14 percent increase in 2023. The Visayas led the surge, with Central Visayas recording a 240 percent sales spike and a 200 percent jump in transactions in 2025. Analysts linked the rise to the region’s strong Chinese cultural roots, especially in hubs like Iloilo, home to about 14,000 Chinese-Filipinos.
Chinese wine, often used for celebratory toasts, also gained momentum. Median GMV climbed 36 percent in 2025 from just 3 percent in 2023. Central Luzon posted a consistent 100 percent annual sales increase, while Eastern Visayas showed steady growth, rising from 72 percent in 2023 to 107 percent in 2024 and 115 percent in 2025. Researchers said the trend reflects a blend of Chinese influence and the Filipino tagay tradition of communal drinking.
Asian noodles, a symbol of long life, rose 10 percent in 2025 after a 3 percent drop the year before. Soccsksargen logged the highest sales growth at 25 percent, driven partly by a 36 percent increase in stores carrying the product. Western Visayas posted the largest transaction jump at 25 percent. Central Luzon and Eastern Visayas sustained multi-year growth, indicating steady restocking of affordable, symbolic goods.
Packworks chief data officer Andoy Montiel said the data shows how tradition shapes consumer decisions.
“Our historical data underscores how deeply traditional beliefs and cultural influences are embedded in the Filipino psyche, proving that commerce is inseparable from culture. The sales trends show that for the average Filipino, Chinese New Year isn't just a holiday, but a window for ‘investing’ in prosperity. These cultural nuances are mirrored in the sari-sari store ecosystem, proving that in our local market, heritage often leads the hand that shops,” Montiel said.
The so-called prosperity basket extends to kitchen staples used for festive meals. Soy sauce sales rose 9 percent in 2025, seasoning granules and MSG increased 7 percent, and cooking oil climbed about 13 percent in both sales and transactions. Sweets also performed strongly: chocolate sales jumped 36 percent, while sugar stayed robust after a 47 percent surge in 2024.
Packworks co-founder and chief platform officer Hubert Yap said brands must shift from passive distribution to hyper-localized, data-driven strategies. Aligning products with cultural cues, he said, helps companies tap demand often overlooked in modern retail channels.
The firm expects GMV to grow another 10 percent and transactions to rise 4 percent in the next holiday cycle as shoppers buy more items per purchase. More details are available on Packworks’ website and its Facebook page. PR