This is a story about a Candy Man, five entrepreneurs, and Jackie Chan.
Septuagenarian Angelito Gino-Gino, known by his customers as Lolo Pops, was a usual fixture at universities in Angeles, Pampanga.
For over a decade, Lolo Pops sold his multicolored candies to students and passersby at Angeles University Foundation and Holy Angel University from 10:00 a.m. to, sometimes, 11:30 p.m. He earlier said he was doing it to support his sick wife, his “Mahal”.
The story of Angeles’ hardworking Candy Man made news years ago.
He once again entered the circulation when a Facebook post about him and his new products, polvoron and pastillas, went viral in 2020, just when sales made selling off the streets slowed because of the pandemic. Support from loyal patrons and interested customers from all over the country poured that putting up his products online was the best move.
Lolo Pops’ sweet treats were first made available at mangan.ph, an online food delivery service in Pampanga.
To reach more customers, his son Angelo helped him onboard on Shopee last year. After hurdling the initial adjustment period, the father-and-son duo are now consistently shipping orders and earning enough money to help them build a house in Bulacan.
“Hindi namin inakala na makakapagpatayo kami ng bahay sa ganitong panahon. Dati ay pangarap lang namin ito. Nagpapasalamat kami ngayong natutupad na ito dahil sa pag-asenso namin sa Shopee,” Lolo Pops shared. Construction’s on going and the family is expecting to move in before the end of the year.
His store on Shopee (lolopopsph) currently has more than 21,000 followers and decorated with a stellar five-star rating. Lolo Pops has sold over 2,200 tubs of his 20-piece pastillas on the platform, his store’s top seller. Other items for sale are polvoron, chili garlic bagoong, and sweet bagoong.
“Dahil sa Shopee, may sumusuporta sa akin, maraming tumutulong sa akin. Ngayong pandemic, marami tayong ika nga ay mga problema. Pero walang imposible kay Lord. Habang nabubuhay ang tao, tuloy ang pag-asa,” Lolo Pops said.
Inspired by his story, Shopee partnered with Appliance Hub, Firefly, Gaviscon, Globe, Strepsils, Sustagen, and Unilab to surprise Lolo Pops and his family with a few gifts.
They received a new laptop, phone, and router to use for the online shop; multivitamins and protective masks for the whole family; and a speed fan to keep their new home well-ventilated. Shopee also donated biscuits, coffee, and other groceries.
Homegrown labels
For many online sellers on Shopee, the platform helps cover income loss or provide an alternative source of cash.
In 2018, Jhoanna Paula Tabije lost her job due to cutbacks. To continue providing for their family, she and husband Lemuel began selling on Shopee. From a small space and inventory funded by a meager capital, Tabijes’ Abubot PH now provides work for seamstresses making the brand’s affordable apparel.
“‘Yung employees namin galing from all walks of life. Very thankful kami kasi in some way nakakatulong kami sa kanila, pati na rin sa suppliers namin, ‘yung mga local manufacturers in Taytay,” said Tabije.
Taking advantage of Rizal’s textile business, civil engineer Valentina Patriarca started selling face masks to augment her income when the pandemic struck. As her business Via Christi grew, she started to provide jobs for out-of-work seamstresses in her neighborhood.
Another entrepreneur who looked to augment her income by selling clothes on Shopee was Joy Marcelo-Guinto. With P1,500 capital, she joined Shopee to sell ready-to-wear clothing and soon found success for her humble shop. Joy Marcelo RTW Clothing sells a variety of apparel in small to plus size.
MJ Sia and Kyla Cañete, on the other hand, channeled their passions into successful enterprises.
Shoe enthusiast Sia, with her brand Tazanna, offers quality footwear at affordable prices.
Cañete’s love for jewelry pushed her to establish Tala by Kyla on summer break. But it wasn’t a summer fling as her store on Shopee amassed a following of more than a million in just one year. She offers affordable accessories.
Action-packed sale
In anticipation of its upcoming sale event on the platform—wherein thousands of on-boarded small entrepreneurs like Lolo Pops, Tabije, Patriarca, Marcelo-Guinto, Sia, and Cañete, along with over 25,000 brands on Shopee Mall are expected to receive more orders—Shopee introduced its 9.9 Super Shopping Day brand ambassador Jackie Chan.
“It’s exciting to partner with Shopee to celebrate the action-packed year-end festival and bring more joy to my fans and Shopee users,” Chan said in a statement.
According to Shopee Philippines director Martin Yu, Chan will be featured on Shopee games and Shopee Live, while K-pop group TWICE will be part of the 9.9 Super Shopping Day TV Special.
