Gawad Madiskarte returns, over P1 million worth of prizes at stake!

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Madiskarte Moms PH (MMPH) brings back Gawad Madiskarte, a tribute to outstanding women entrepreneurs, with over P1 million worth of prizes. Nine moms from all over the Philippines have the chance to win cash prizes, gadgets, PLDT Home Fiber line for 12 months, mentorship program, and more!

A Facebook community launched in the thick of the pandemic, Madiskarte Moms PH encourages entrepreneurship among moms wanting to earn from home through online businesses while still enjoying quality time with their families. The community has more than 154,000 members who regularly share ideas, and offer each other advice, encouragement, and inspiration.

The mompreneur group also empowers their fellow women and the people around them. They have the ability to draw strength from their life experiences, challenges, and hardships. And most especially, this community helps women turn their startups into scalable businesses that can financially support their families and fuel their dreams.

Honoring the Madiskarteng Pinays

Gawad Madiskarte was first launched to honor the mompreneurs who overcame challenges and flourished at the height of the pandemic. In a report by the ADB, it was found that “more women than men have left their paid jobs to provide essential services to their families,” and that 64% of women had no personal income, compared to 39% of men. Another study found that more Filipino women than men began to run home microenterprises on ecommerce platforms during the pandemic.

Gawad Madiskarte was born from the insight that the one thing Filipino moms needed to cope with the pandemic was a sense of optimism, confidence, and sheer determination. By celebrating women's achievements and showcasing women's support for each other in a community through this annual award program, MMPH aimed to build that confidence. This year, Gawad Madiskarte is back to do just that.

Major categories for this year include Diskarteng Angat (Fastest-Growing Business), Diskarteng Digital (Best Multi-Channel Business) and Diskarteng May Puso (Best Social Enterprise). Two major winners per category will be chosen from the Startup Division and Scale Up Division. The former are home or online businesses that recently started and show great potential while the latter are businesses that have been running for at least 13 months and are registered with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) or the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

Special awards will also be given to three deserving finalists. These awards are Diskarteng Malikhain (Most Creative Business Branding), Diskarteng Pasulong (Most Innovative Product) and Diskarteng Home Biz (Mompreneurs’ Choice Award).

Last March, PLDT Home’s Madiskarte Moms PH (MMPH) won, not only the Gold Anvil Award, but also the prestigious Grand Anvil – the highest honors at the 58th Anvil Awards, considered the Oscars of local PR, awarded by the Public Relations of the Philippines (PRSP). MMPH was also given the Silver Award from the Asia Pacific Stevie Awards last year. Gawad Madiskarte 2022 was also honored at this year’s Anvil Awards with the Gold Anvil under the PR tools category.

To join this year’s awards, applicants should be part of the Madiskarte Moms PH Facebook community and fill out the Google Form posted on the announcement tab of the group. Interested applicants can enter this year’s Gawad Madiskarte Awards until May 15, 2023.

To know more about this year’s Gawad Madiskarte and details on how to enter, join https://pldthome.info/GawadMadiskarteAwards2023.

These successful mompreneurs share the most important lessons they’ve learned

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The future of Philippine entrepreneurship is female and digital. PLDT Home harnesses the power of the country’s fastest broadband internet provider by supporting Madiskarte Moms PH (MMPH), an online community of mompreneurs who want to build and grow their own online business while taking care of their family’s needs at home.

PLDT Home advocates women entrepreneurship through digital business tools 

and awards recognition

At present, there are 153,000 community members who regularly share ideas and knowledge, and offer each other advice, encouragement, and inspiration. The group has helped many of its members grow their side hustles into booming online home businesses that have allowed them to support and build dreams for their families.

The group became not only a go-to space for digital business tools, basic and necessary knowledge and skills training, and networking opportunities, but it also became an emotional and mental support system. MMPH believes in the importance of giving recognition to the passion and resilience that the members have shown all throughout their entrepreneurial journey, especially during the pandemic.

Hence, MMPH launched the Gawad Madiskarte Awards in 2022 to highlight and celebrate the most outstanding mompreneurs in the community. The winners were rewarded with more of the support that they need to expand their business further and their stories serve as an inspiration to every mompreneur who are working hard to reach their own dreams of success.

Mompreneurs who inspire

For mompreneur and Diskarteng Solid Award winner Abigail Madrigal, support from many people is always crucial when trying to get a business off the ground. She sold high-quality bedsheets on online selling platforms while balancing a full-time job and raising a toddler during the pandemic.

“I started this business with the capital of P10,000—equivalent to 50 yards of fabric in five designs that were sewn by my Nanay. Now, we have the house next to ours as a production area, with rolls and thousand yards of fabrics in almost 100+ designs,” she shared.

“MMPH gave me the important backing that I needed when I was starting. This platform landed me several clients and the word-from-mouth created from these transactions started the growth and reputation of my store, Mommy Matters. The posts that I read in the group also inspired me to work better on my venture,” Abigail said.

Kaylynn Adolfo of The Asian Mommy is a Diskarteng Eco-Friendly winner for her line of locally-made reusable cloth diapers. Her business follows her staunch zero-waste advocacy, exemplified with the reusable diapers and environmentally friendly packaging.

Kaylynn learned that the network of like-minded people you meet can also be your biggest supporters and customers. “Through the Madiskarte Moms community, I have met moms that are now my suppliers,” she said. “I have also taken advice from other moms that has helped my brand flourish. The group has also helped me find customers multiple times.”

Protecting the environment is likewise the advocacy of Rosanna Dela Cruz Kabiling of Something Nice Environmental Corp., a winner for the Diskarteng May Puso award, whose biggest lesson was that committing to a good cause can bring you success.

Her business deals with the proper transport, treatment, disposal of hazardous waste; and reduce, reuse, recycle of scrap material for local and multinational companies. She values the supportive network that she has built with MMPH.

“I am happy to see a lot of mommies today who are open-minded enough to start their own business and who are fulfilling their dreams. The group helps me to realize how blessed I am,” Rosanna said.

Madiskarte Mom Theresa Carbonell Buenaflor of Ellana Mineral Cosmetics was chosen for the Diskarteng Digital award, for using social media platforms to reach her customer base with her skincare, body care, and makeup products. Her inspiring insight is that one should always use technology and digital trends for better chances of success.

“MMPH helped us believe that there are still good people out there who support our brand, especially during the challenges of the pandemic,” Theresa said. “I'm grateful for the support and reception of this group because it helped me believe that there are still good people out there who can support each other in these tough times.”

Lou Neri Putian was the 2022 Diskarteng Home Biz winner. She has emerged successful with her Sy Glow cosmetics and skincare products that are available through direct sales. She was able to thrive and properly manage her home business despite being a full-time mom raising her three kids, proving that with some diskarte and the right motivation, it is never impossible for moms to balance a business and being a mother.

“I was inspired by the other Madiskarte Moms of the group in growing my business, which I juggled together with taking care of my kids at home,” she says.

PLDT Home aims to support the online community further, and help empower more women to achieve business success.

PLDT Home is set to hold the second Gawad Madiskarte Awards in May 2023 to recognize the Madiskarteng Pinays who have shown excellence in growing their online home businesses and positive attitude in helping and inspiring other fellow mompreneurs. To know more about this year’s Gawad Madiskarte Awards, join the Madiskarte Moms PH online community here: https://pldthome.info/GawadMadiskarteWomensMonth2023.

PLDT Home Biz awards mompreneurs with the most inspiring success stories in the inaugural Gawad Madiskarte

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No word better can describe moms pouring out their resourcefulness, creativity, and heart to provide their families the best life possible than madiskarte. The pandemic only saw more of our madiskarte moms, many of whom have ventured into online businesses to augment their household income.

Recognizing these moms and their invaluable entrepreneurial spirit, PLDT Home Biz held the inaugural Gawad Madiskarte online on March 8, 2022 — just in time for International Women’s Day. Hosted by PLDT Home Biz ambassadors Dominic Roque and Roxanne Montealegre, with performances from Jed Madela, Fana, and Gigi de Lana and the Gigi Vibes band, the event awarded six mompreneurs whose stories of hard work, tenacity, and success stood out among 327 entries from all over the Philippines.

From (L-R) Rommel Kristian Madrigal (Husband of Abigael Madrigal, Diskarteng Solid winner), Wvon Der Hendrich A. Adolfo (Husband of Kaylynn Adolfo, Diskarteng Malikhain winner), Rosanna Kabiling, Diskarteng May Pusowinner, Theresa Carbonel-Buenaflor, Diskarteng Digital winner and Rachelle Patalud, Diskarteng Malikhain winner

Each Gawad Madiskarte winner received a P100,000 cash prize, a brand-new laptop, and a one-year PLDT Home Biz Asenso Fiber Plan among other major prizes to help further her online business.

What turned out to be an unexpectedly emotional tribute to Filipino moms who have moved past adversities and written their own success stories of online entrepreneurship, Gawad Madiskarte 2022 is a landmark project of Madiskarte Moms PH (MMPH) — a community of mompreneurs for mompreneurs created in the thick of the pandemic.

"Providing Filipinos, especially mompreneurs, with the confidence to reach for their dreams and make a difference not only for their families, but also in the community, has always been our mission in Madiskarte Moms PH and PLDT Home Biz," said Patrick S. Tang, Vice President and Head of PLDT Home Customer Management. "We're honored to share the inspiring stories of our Madiskarte Moms and we strive to be their steadfast ally through every challenge and in every success."

With hundreds of entries received for this first awarding, Gawad Madiskarte followed a meticulous selection process and commissioned a group of reputable judges to help choose the winners. The judges boasted industry leaders and master entrepreneurs: Butch Jimenez of PLDT Inc., Undersecretary Blesila A. Lantayona of the Department of Trade and Industry, Annette Gozon-Valdes of GMA Films, Prep Palacios of Google Philippines, Issang Ceballos of Facebook Philippines, restaurateur and chef Happy Ongpauco-Tiu, and Potato Corner and Tokyo Tempura founders Jorge and Jenny Wieneke.

Meet the Gawad Madiskarte winners

Diskarteng Digital (Best Multi-channel Business) awardee Theresa Carbonel-Buenaflor was already a seasoned entrepreneur even before joining MMPH during the pandemic. She had been running Ellana Mineral Cosmetics — a beauty and personal care brand known for its clean, vegan, and cruelty formulas — and came to realize the need to pivot digitally given the threat of the pandemic. With the support of fellow mompreneurs and MMPH, Mommy Theresa was able to expand and sell her products across different platforms including physical stores and e-commerce stores. She has now amassed more than 300,000 followers on her online pages, earning her the aforementioned Gawad Madiskarte recognition.

“This award is so dear to my heart because I joined this group when I was feeling lost doing business during the pandemic. It has not been easy, and I’ve been looking for a community to lift my spirit up. Sharing my story in MMPH was very therapeutic. It renewed my hope and it made me realize that I can inspire other mompreneurs,” Mommy Theresa said, upon accepting the award.

Mommy Lou NeriaPutian of skincare brand SY Glow, winner of Diskarteng Angat (Fastest-Growing Business), shares a similar story. An entrepreneur advocating effective but affordable beauty products, Mommy Lou started her business from scratch and then scaled up her business to include distributors and resellers from the MMPH community. She now registers an average sales revenue of P1.6 million a month.

For her efforts toward helping the environment while providing employment in communities across Laguna, Mommy Rosanna Dela Cruz Kabiling of waste management company Something Nice Environmental Corp. won the Diskarteng May Puso award (Best Social Enterprise). With the Gawad Madiskarte prize and recognition, Mommy Rosanna is poised to transform her company into a “world-class” brand that promotes sustainability.

Winning the Diskarteng Eco-friendly (Most Green Business) award, Mommy Kaylynn Adolfo owns The Asian Mommy Facebook page where she sells a variety of reusable cloth diapers. Armed with a background in public health and using her page as a platform to share other parenting tips and tricks, she has made it her advocacy to redirect fellow parents to more eco-friendly household alternatives.

“MMPH as a community is such a big help because opportunities like these are where we can inspire and motivate other moms to reach for their dreams. To all mommies out there, this is the sign that you can do it,” Mommy Kaylynn said at the event.

Meanwhile, Diskarteng Solid (Strongest Start-Up Business Model) awardee Mommy Abigael Madrigal started out her online bed linen shop Mommy Matters by selling bedsheets her mother had sewn. With the help of MMPH, she was able to get her first customers and eventually expand her brand. Mommy Matters now boasts more than 100 bed linen designs and keeps a loyal customer base, earning Mommy Abigael the Gawad Madiskarte honors.

As the owner of CLARA, an online clothing store whose Filipiniana designs feature detachable butterfly sleeves, Mommy Rachelle Patalud has shown how creativity and flexibility makes a good fashion statement. For her modern and casual take on a formalwear classic, she has earned the Diskarteng Malikhain (Most Innovative Product) trophy — awarded to creative minds breathing life to fresh and unique products and services.

On top of the winners, PLDT Home Biz also honored Mommy Lou Neria Putian of skincare brand SY Glow with Diskarteng Home Biz (Mompreneur’s Choice Award). The brand awarded the special prize to the madiskarte mom, hailed for having the “most potential for success” in a voting poll among MMPH members on its Facebook community page.

Each Gawad Madiskarte awardee also took home a KalyeNegosyo Scholarship courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. KaAsenso - Jorge and Jenny Wieneke – and a trophy handcrafted by award-winning sculptor Glenn Cagandahan. Nominees, meanwhile, each won a P25,000 cash prize as consolation.

“Madiskarte Moms PH, beyond educating moms and equipping them with business tools and resources, has evolved into a support group of women, inspiring and encouraging each other as they tread through their digital adventures together. We’re nothing but proud of what MMPH has accomplished in just 17 months, and so we look forward to what more we can accomplish together in the future!” Tang shared.

“Believe me, Madiskarte Moms PH is just getting started. And Gawad Madiskarte 2022 is just the start of a bigger campaign by us here at PLDT Home Biz — all in celebration of the Filipino’s exceptional entrepreneurial spirit,” he added.

Launched in September 2020, MMPH has become a safe online space for mompreneurs seeking out resources, tools, and support to start or grow their online businesses. Now with over 104,000 members and a growing YouTube channel, the community has become a wellspring of inspiring stories of moms who embodied hard work and diskarte in making their dreams happen even beyond the pandemic.

Learn more about our Madiskarte Moms and their success stories by joining the growing community https://www.facebook.com/groups/MadiskarteMomsPH.

Madiskarte Moms PH celebrates Filipina entrepreneurial spirit at the first-ever Gawad Madiskarte

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PLDT Home Biz honors Filipina mompreneurs on International Women’s Day

 

Unsung heroes. In the past two years of the pandemic, that’s what our moms have proven to be.

 

Despite bearing the brunt of COVID-19’s impact in the labor sector (many of whom lost their jobs or suffered pay cuts), these women made sure their family needs are taken care of by finding alternative ways of providing for their households.

 

For many, this meant going out of their comfort zones and starting their own online businesses. Based on data from Investing in Women, one in four micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the Philippines is owned by a woman. And this number has only risen during the pandemic with more than 88,000 new e-commerce businesses registered just in 2020.

 

Recognizing their immense contribution to their families as well as the potential of online home businesses in pushing for economic recovery, PLDT Home and a group of Filipino mompreneurs launched Madiskarte Moms PH (MMPH) last September 2020.

 

MMPH is an online community where moms can get a head start on their own online home businesses or get tips and know-how to grow and expand their side hustles. Now with more than 98,000 members from all over the Philippines, MMPH has become a safe space where moms could exchange best practices, share experiences, and motivate each other to pursue their passions while also becoming financially independent. The community provides members with a 24/7 virtual venue of relevant information and networking opportunities to help mompreneurs kickstart their own online home businesses.

 

Gawad Madiskarte 2022: Pagkilala sa Tagumpay ng Madiskarteng Pinay

 

To recognize the hard work of Filipino mompreneurs and celebrate their success, MMPH is holding its first ever annual awards – Gawad Madiskarte 2022: Pagkilala sa Tagumpay ng Madiskarteng Pinay – this coming March 2022.

 

Powered by PLDT Home Biz, the annual awards ceremony is a tribute to the Filipina entrepreneurial spirit. Inviting moms of smarts and style to a big virtual gathering, Gawad Madiskarte salutes the achievements of mompreneurs who have created and grown their online businesses amid an economically challenging pandemic — armed only with their drive and personal diskarte. The special awarding ceremony fittingly happens on March 8, 2022, which is International Women’s Day, hoping to inspire other moms and women to start their own businesses from home as well.

 

Gawad Madiskarte introduces two main award categories: The Start-Up Division, which honors mompreneurs who have bravely started their online side hustles (at least six months operation) despite the challenges of the ongoing pandemic, and The Scale Up Division, which recognizes those who successfully started and maintained their businesses for at least 13 months.

 

Awards in the Start-Up category include Diskarteng Solid (Strongest Start-Up Business Model) for those who have developed a business model that reflects their vision and gives exceptional customer value; Diskarteng Malikhain (Most Innovative Product) for those whose creative minds have brought forth fresh and unique products and services; and Diskarteng Eco-Friendly (Most Green Business) for those who have made conscious efforts to be socially responsible and environmentally friendly in their business.

 

Meanwhile, the Scale-Up division includes awards for Diskarteng Angat (Fastest-Growing Business) for those who have achieved exceptional growth with their robust vision and strategy; Diskarteng Digital (Best Multi-Channel Business), for businesses that have capitalized on the benefits of a multi-channel approach; and Diskarteng May Puso (Best Social Enterprise), for those whose goal meant giving back and empowering communities through their businesses. (The Scale Up Division entrants are required to have either a physical or e-commerce shop, and supporting documents including a DTI Permit and Barangay Certificate.)

 

A special award, the Diskarteng HomeBiz (Mompreneur’s Choice Award), will be given to the exceptional mompreneur whose business success story has greatly inspired others to do the same.

 

Gawad Madiskarte will award each winning mompreneur a P100,000 cash prize, a one-year PLDT Home Biz Plan, and a laptop to help them go further in their side hustle.

 

To add prestige to the event, Gawad Madiskarte has commissioned award-winning sculptor and contemporary artist Glenn Cagandahan for customized trophies as part of the major prizes. Cagandahan is known for his expressionist works featuring farmers, their family on carabaos, and other rural images that bring to mind the Filipino’s unwavering sense of hard work.

 

For more information on Gawad Madiskarte 2022, join the Madiskarte Moms PH group at https://bit.ly/JoinMMPH2.