ECHOstore

It is the concept of ECHOstore with a cafe serving organic foods, juices and coffee, plus smaller, compact ECHOstore gondolas to be placed in hotels and airports. All products come from marginalized communities , hand-made from recyclable and sustainable materials and with a cause (women, preservation of cultural communities, etc). Plus, our ECHOteach will provide mentoring services in design, packaging and sustainable livelihood programs.

Socially-responsible consumers are looking for communities they can support through purchase of artisanal products and sustainable materials.
There is a growing need for fairly traded gifts and wares.

WE have established a flagship store in a high traffic area in an upscale mall called Serendra. This is the ECHOstore and Cafe.
Our second module to be set up is the ECHOstore gondola to serve as retail spots, so we can provide more consumers with socially-responsible choices. We need to increase accessibility by locating in more places through the gondolas.
Thirdly, we conduct ECHOteach mentoring services to the communities we source from.

WE inform our customers about our business through media releases, feature articles in print and online. Our store has been out on television features too. By January 2009 we will establish an online store and by first quarter 2009 we will roll out our ECHOstore gondola in a strategic location like the airport or in a hotel. We have a monthly newsletter online (called eVIEW) which we email blast to our database.

Initially to the A market. They have disposable income, are always looking for gifts and are aware of the global trend in social responsibility.
Many consumers who are socially-reponsible are looking for products using recyclable material, made by marginalized communities and also promote an organic and environment friendly lifestyle.
There is a growing trend to get eco-friendly gifts and consummable items so we now have a regular following.

The usual handicraft stores for tourists sell such wares but without the personality of the makers.
There are also imported brands like Healthy Options, Body Shop, selling eco-friendly products and organic foods and cosmetics but sourced from imported ingredients or manufacturers.
There is no competitor who combines food, cosmetics and handicrafts that are from sustainable sources.

We know the communities who make our products. We ensure fair trade and make sure we know our sources. WE also stay in the store to talk to the shoppers and guide them through their purchases.

We are market integrators. No agency of government has actually put up a fashionable way of selling cultural products, artisanal handicrafts in a mainstream fashion like we do.
We are innovators in bringing natural food products from the villages where they are grown and on to retail markets in upscale malls.
We innovate by holding fora, lectures and seminars on sustainable living, climate change, health and wellness and even business ideas.

WE continue to look for other communities to partner with and the possibilities are endless. We have become the "top of mind" eco-friendly store in just 3 months of existence.
There are offers for expansion to other malls and bringing the idea to other countries.
We will also innovate distribution by coming up with "ECHO on WHEELS" --portable mini vans that will showcase our products in a mobile truck and will be found at events , fairs, expos.

I have been in social development for 9 years now. I have worked with taking coffee as a commodity to a premium product. I am connected with NGOs whose livelihood programs need market access.
I engaged my partner Regina Francisco to take care of operational details of the store and cafe as she has put up over 70 retail stores in different parts of the world.
I engaged Marie Jeanne Javelosa to handle media and partner programs.

We all have experience in community work but at the same time have operational and marketing experience. We love the country and are interested in showing our crafts and heritage to the rest of the world. After our launch in the Philippines, we would like to showcase our artisanal crafts in other international markets, still in a socially-responsible way. We combined our network of friends and corporate connections to launch the store.

I am spending more than 8 hours a day, sundays included, in this concept. As entrepreneurs, we spend a lot of time in the store and continue to do our work at home through the internet.

This retail concept already shows our artisans that there is a premium market for their handmade products.We are helping many communities to have market access for their artisanal work like crafts and food products.
We also encourage the use of only sustainable materials or recyclable materials.
We can save the planet, earn a living for our artisans, while we promote a profitable business model which will sustain more stores in the future.