Focusing on Filipino design excellence

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Marcos-era design center resurrected under Marcos Jr.

THE SIGNATURE trade shows of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) include Manila FAME, which is centered on home, fashion, and lifestyle goods, and IFEX Philippines, which focuses on food and ingredients. Both a flaw and feature of these shows are their limited weekend runs, creating excitement, scarcity, and three-day selling dates. But when the show is over, the magic is all gone. Now an old-new facility in Pasay City, finished just in time for the 2026 ASEAN Summit, might just change all that.

Originally opened in 1983 as the PhilTrade Center, the new Likhang Filipino Exhibition Halls displays some of the best that Philippine artisans can offer in a variety of sectors — home and lifestyle, fashion and accessories, traditional arts and crafts, food and beverages, and wellness.

The exhibition halls opened on Jan. 15 with much fanfare, attended by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., his wife, first lady Marie Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos, and his mother, former first lady Imelda R. Marcos, amid a crowd of diplomats and other dignitaries. The senior Mrs. Marcos, now in a wheelchair, spearheaded the first PhilTrade Center in 1979, also meant to exhibit the same categories of artisanal goods during her husband Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr.’s dictatorship, which ended in 1986 with the EDSA Revolution.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Assistant Secretary Al Modesto Valenciano recalled in a press conference prior to the opening that after the Marcos Sr. era, the PhilTrade Center had been used by antique shops, and most recently — prior to the younger Mr. Marcos’ Executive Order No. 75 — had been occupied by restaurants catering to Philippine offshore gambling operators (POGOs).

Executive Order No. 75, “Strengthening the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions,” says, “For this purpose, within six months from the effectivity of this Order, the CITEM, in coordination with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and such other relevant agencies, shall come up with a roadmap that will detail the strategic plans and programs to further strengthen the mandates of CITEM, including among others, the establishment of an exhibition facility and/or permanent showrooms and outlets designed to host trade shows, exhibitions, conferences, and other similar events, subject to existing laws, rules and regulations.” The new facility is part of the fulfillment of this order.

“Three days might not be enough for both the buyers and the exhibitors,” said CITEM Executive Director Leah Pulido Ocampo about the trade shows they currently conduct and their limited scope.

According to her, all of the exhibitors at the refurbished area (numbering about 200, spread out over several galleries with different categories), are from CITEM shows like FAME and IFEX. “It’s an extension of the three-day events. So now, we have a 365-a-year, seven days a week, 10 hours a day exhibition center,” she said.

“The reason why the First Lady Liza Marcos was very urgent in giving us a short period of time [to set up the center]… because this is basically one of the major destinations of the ASEAN delegates for the ASEAN summit,” she said. Mr. Valenciano said that the project began in July 2025 and was finished in December (in contrast, the senior Mrs. Marcos finished the site in the 1970s in 12 days, according to a press release).

Brands represented in the facility include: Calfurn, Contemporaneo, Filipino Creazione, Finali Furniture, JB Woodcraft, and Prizmic & Brill for furniture; Albertina Import and Export, Inc., Allanae Printshop & Paper Products Corp. (APPP.Co), Creativly Studio for gifts and holiday decor; and Carl Jan Cruz, Arnel Papa, Bitagcol, and Jor-el Espina for fashion.

The CITEM trade shows sometimes feature limited supplies due to the nature of their usually artisanal make, but since a year-round supply of goods is needed for the exhibition halls, Ms. Pulido Ocampo noted that “Supply is actually relative as far as CITEM is concerned. What we’re trying to do is to teach our exhibitors to look for their specific niche. You do not entertain buyers if you know that you cannot supply.”

The goods are also available to buyers on a retail basis.

Meanwhile, the Design Center of the Philippines, along with its library and product development facilities, will be moving to the exhibition halls. “[The] Design Center will be moving our offices here; our full operations would come [in] March,” said Rhea Matute, executive director of the Design Center. “The idea is really it’s a one-stop complex for the creative industries.”

Mr. Marcos said in a speech: “This space was conceived and inaugurated in 1979 — Mommy, talaga you are always ahead of your time — under your stewardship, the First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos. It was founded on a simple belief: that Filipino design and craftsmanship deserved a place on the world stage. So today, we proudly carry that vision of yours, Mom, we carry it forward to the year 2026.

“There is nothing but immense pride that comes from recognizing our own, from seeing materials shaped by Filipino hands, ideas rooted in Filipino culture, and designs that feel both familiar and exceptional,” he said.

The Likhang Filipino Exhibition Halls is located at the International Trade Center Complex (formerly PhilTrade), Roxas Blvd., Pasay City. It will be open for free to the public starting on Jan. 20. Likhang Filipino’s hours are from Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. For details, visit its official website https://likhangfilipino.com.ph. For questions, e-mail info@citem.com.ph. — Joseph L. Garcia