Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Chicharon dealer makes own brand

I was inactive from the newsroom for about a week, and this article was like my "comeback". Though I had a valid reason for not being able to go (I had flu), I wasn't able to communicate with my guardians at CDN. Something that I don't want to do so again (I've made the same mistake when I was an on-the-job trainee at OMF).

Pressed for time, I had to set and do the interview all in one day. And this wasn't my first prospective subject. I had to check on two other businesses first before finally settling for this one. Good thing the owner's wife allowed me to interview at such short notice.

Doing this article was humbling and pressure-filled. It made me see my immaturity and weakness as a person. I swore to myself to never make the same mistakes I made with this one, and thank God I was able to apply what I learned.


Chicharon dealer makes own brand

First Posted 12:13:00 04/23/2009
His pay in a government agency was barely enough to support 41-year-old Roy Esplanada's family.

So he sold chicharon on the side.

“My husband used to sell chicharon as a dealer from other chicharon makers in the city,” said Verna, 40, wife of Roy Esplanada, owner of Yor’s Adobong Chicharon.

Roy’s success as a chicharon dealer inspired him to set up his chicharon business.

The couple spent six months to make their own brand of chicharon.

“It was a hard time,” recalled Verna, who is a housewife.

“To perfect the recipe, we had to spend for the ingredients, before we can even consider selling it.”

They did more than a hundred taste tests to get the desired taste of their chicharon.

In 2008, They took out a P50,000 bank loan as capital. They called the venture Yor's Adobong Chicharon. Yor is Roy's name in reverse.

They converted the first floor of their two-story house in barangay Capitol Site into a production and distribution outlet.

They also hired someone to cook the chicharon while the couple took care of marketing of the product.

“We were losing at first, especially because our product was still unknown then. Plus, we had to spend for our ingredients and manpower,” said Verna.

“We had to make sacrifices to keep the production up and running.”

Roy also relied on his connections from his regular job as an employee of the Philippine Gaming Corp. to promote his chicharon.

Roy's friends, who tasted the chicharon, started telling their friends. By word of mouth, Yor’s Adobong Chicharon was able to get its own loyal set of customers.

Sales started increasing and the Esplanadas were able to pay back their loan in less than a year.

With the increase in demand, the couple hired five more employees to work full time.

Since Roy has a regular job, Verna oversees the day-to-day operation.

The couple also branched and opened two carenderias in the city – one in Capitol site and the other in barangay Lahug.

The eateries serve chicharon.

“If it weren’t for my husband’s determination, we wouldn’t be able to employ the people working under us, as well as send our children to a good school. For me, those two are very important accomplishments” said Verna.



(Retrieved from: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/enterprise/view/20090423-200968/Chicharon-dealer-makes-own-brand)

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