The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and SM are urging Filipinos to support and buy local products that are made by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) this Christmas, whether sweet treats, artisanal products, apparel, home decorations, or other keepsakes.
DTI and SM said by doing this, people are not only keeping their heritage alive while promoting local craftsmanship and delicacies but also helping businesses bounce back.
In partnership with the trade and industry department, SM said it is providing MSMEs a way to market their products through the SM Christmas Markets.
The SM Christmas Markets will simultaneously happen in 54 malls nationwide, featuring around 300 MSME participants from nearby communities, DTI partners, tenants of SM Supermalls, and supplier partners of Kultura.
“Buy Local, Support Local” is a national campaign that aims to boost the demand for Philippine-made products, particularly those from small businesses. SM Christmas Markets will run from November 9, 2020, to January 3, 2021.
DTI Sec. Ramon Lopez, SM Supermalls president Steven Tan, and SM Retail president Chito Manalo personally visited the MSME participants of the SM Christmas Markets at Megamall.
During a short program, Lopez emphasized the role of MSMEs as the backbone of the country’s economy as well as the sector mostly imperiled by the pandemic.
SM Christmas Markets is a nationwide campaign in support of MSMEs. This is implemented in all SM Supermalls nationwide in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry. In this photo, DTI Sec. Ramon Lopez is shown viewing one the stalls at a SM mall in Manila.“Filipinos should prioritize buying local products to help the economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Only with this can we truly reopen and restart our economy,” said Lopez.
Tan, on the other hand, said SM is committed to working hand-in-hand with the MSME partners along with the government and private sector to bring an environment that will enable MSMEs to quickly adapt and recover.
“When the pandemic struck in March this year, we waived rental fees in the malls and provided financial relief to our suppliers. We partnered with jeepney and tricycle drivers to deliver goods, and we continue to do everything we can for the businesses and people that rely on SM,” Tan added.
Manalo also said that MSMEs are the backbone of the economy of their business. It is the reason why they made it their mission to support MSMEs even before the pandemic, during the ECQ, and now as the economy is kickstarted.
“SM has a wide range of MSME partners from farming to artisan communities, from local manufacturers to shop owners, from food kiosks to restaurant owners, making SM a community, a marketplace, and partner to MSMEs,” said Chito.
SM traces its roots from a small shoe store put up in downtown Manila during the late 1950s so its affinity with MSMEs comes naturally. Some of its MSME partners started as homegrown businesses.
As it grew, a longstanding partnership has evolved beyond being a business transaction into an enabling community where MSMEs are nurtured in SM stores, malls, and other business ventures.
For more updates and announcements, visit www.smsupermalls.com or the social media pages of the SM mall near you.
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