A weekend bazaar that keeps on giving

LOVING LOCAL means supporting our own handcrafters and coffee farmers. On Oct. 8 and 9, these items and more will be available to try out at Avida Land’s “Homegrown Life + Style” market at the Glorietta Activity Center. To be showcased are the quality coffees from the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA), products from lifestyle brand ECHOStore, and handmade bags and home accessories from the social enterprise, Rags2Riches.

The brands have partnered with Avida Land and its advocacy of supporting the local while providing platforms for local artisans.

COFFEE PRIDE
“Akala ng lahat, barako lang tayo (Everyone thinks that the Philippines only has barako coffee), but we have arabica beans from Benguet and robusta from Sulu and Negros, among others” said Pacita Juan, IWCA president and ECHOStore owner.

The Philippines is home to many kinds of high quality coffee beans that are at par with the rest in the world, she said. For instance, Cavite produces arabica robusta; Sagada and Benguet are well known for their robusta; Negros has arabica; and Sulu and Cotabato also have arabica and robusta.

The blends from Mindanao are usually strong, she said, while the rest are milder. Robusta coffee is often robust in taste but low in acidity and is used mainly for espresso, while arabica has more sugary overtone.

Coffee production in the Philippines is in a good position, Ms. Juan added.

“The good development now is there’s a lot of independent coffee shops. There’s a new trend that people want to go to independent cafés [rather] than chains, so parang reverse. The trend is called ‘Third Wave,’ where people want to choose their coffee and how it is served. It is personalized, like in Commune and Bo’s Coffee shops. I think it is a good development… We are able to supply to smaller cafés, the game is no longer in the big chains. There’s a growth of independent coffee shops all over the country,” she told BusinessWorld on Oct. 5 during the event’s launch.

While coffee is more expensive than it was before, she said people are willing to pay for quality. The IWCA coffee beans are priced at P150 to P375 a pack.

“Our coffee blends are purely Filipino in taste and soul. We should be proud of what our own soils can produce and what our own culture can bring,” she said.

“Buying local also enables us to help the livelihood of our Filipino farmers, especially that of women who represent majority of the cofee farmers worldwide.”

HOME AND ACCESSORIES
From homegrown blends, the country is also home to world-class handmade accessories and home essentials. One of the brands at the forefront of this is the social enterprise Rags2Riches (R2R).

The brand, which started eight years ago, is known even abroad, thanks to Anthropologie store, its US distributor. One of its supporters, high-powered lawyer (and Mrs. George Clooney) Amal Clooney, was spotted wearing an green R2R choker. In the Philippines, Rags2Riches has six stores that sell bags, wallets and home essentials which are made using recycled cloth. Every R2R product is limited, only 12 to 24 pieces per item are produced.

Its sales and marketing manager, Matt Pardinas, told BusinessWorld that it has worked with artist Olivia d’Aboville in creating one of its newest products, a floor pillow which costs P8,000.

R2R started helping housewives from Payatas, Tondo, and Caloocan, and now its social circle has grown to tapping the artistry of carpenters and drivers.

“There should be more value given to substance and sustainability in the things we use and buy for ourselves and our home,” said Mr. Pardinas. — Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman