#IShapeMyWorld : Levi’s® celebrates fearless Filipino women

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MANILA, March, 2017- On International Women’s Day, Levi’s®  #IShapeMyWorld campaign is celebrating the female form, in all its forms, and highlighting stories of extraordinary, fearless women who have shaped the world on their own terms. In a series of online videos, Levi’s® revealed that three extraordinary Filipino women are adding their voices to the #IShapeMyWorld campaign: superbike racer Love-Love Tioseco, nature artist Wiji Lacsamana, and brave mom Jasmine Mendiola.

Because #IShapeMyWorld features the Levi’s® 300 Shaping Series, women with different body types are celebrated together with women from different age groups, backgrounds, and professional fields.

Phenomenal women

The new advocates of the #IShapeMyWorld had their unique battles to win on the path to debunking traditional gender roles and succeeding in their own chosen careers. 

Love-Love became the only female superbike racer from the Philippines in 2000. After 18 years, she remains the only woman racing a 1000cc displacement motorcycle in the Philippines. For Love-Love, the best competitions have been those where she landed a spot on the top five against 15-20 other men. Though she sometimes encounters disparaging comments, she does not let them put her down and stop her from winning more races.

“I have accepted that you cannot please everybody. I love my passion. Criticisms, bashers, haters, none of you guys can put me down.” --- Love-Love said of her critics. 

Artist Wiji’s love for creating things that are readily available from nature gave birth to her homegrown brand Radioactive Mushrooms in the Forest. Wiji believes that it is important to create things that make a positive impact on the environment and future generations. That’s why Wiji only uses natural ingredients for her cosmetics and scents. Even her watercolor tattoos are made of vegan ink.

“Your own little way can help change the world because if you affect one person this way, you inspire them to live this way. Then hopefully they’ll inspire another person and just pay it forward,” Wiji said. 

Mompreneur Jasmine had to go through an emergency hysterectomy when, after giving birth to her third child, she started losing a lot of blood. The doctors had no choice but to remove her uterus, rendering her unable to bear a child again. Despite encountering complications such as acute kidney failure, Jasmine recovered and went on to become a work-from-home mom, a successful bridal makeup expert, and a style and image consultant.

For women who are going through tough times, Jasmine has this advice to share: 

“When you feel that life just gets too much for you for whatever reason, don’t doubt yourself, believe in your own strength and shape your mind according to how you want to live your life.”

Levi’s® is inviting you to be part of the #IShapeMyWorld conversation! 

Share with us what people said to define your limits and what you did to prove them wrong. Tag us on Facebook @Levis.philippines and use the hashtag #IShapeMyWorld to share your story of defeating obstacles and changing perceptions when others said you couldn’t. 

City of Dreams Manila sets the bar for CSR initiatives with more than 4,000 active volunteers

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City of Dreams Manila recognizes the participation of more than 4,000 of its employees or approximately 80% of its workforce who in 2017 engaged in the luxury resort’s fourth year of long-term and sustainable Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs.

City of Dreams Manila’s year-round outreach program last year included provisions for basic needs, social and learning activities for orphans and the elderly; refurbishing classrooms through the Department of Educations ‘Brigada Eskwela’ campaign; annual blood donations for Red Cross; relief goods for those affected by disasters; and mangrove and tree-planting and coastal clean-up drives. The various undertakings were aptly named “Spoonful of Dreams” for the care of orphans and street children, ”Connecting Dreams” for the special time spent with the elderly, “Headful of Dreams” for educational sessions for children and elders “Hopeful Dreams“ for hospital visits to indigent patients and “Growing Dreams“ for environmental protection.

“Volunteerism is ingrained in our employees’ commitment to give back to the community in meaningful and creative ways. Various CSR activities are held at least twice a month and during these undertakings, employees throughout the ranks in different departments work together to help the less fortunate and conserve the environment,” states Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Kevin Benning.

Volunteers visited the integrated resort’s adopted orphanage in Paranaque, Bahay Aruga, monthly, providing the children with meals and creative learning activities. During the festive season, the orphans were brought to DreamPlay, the DreamWorks-inspired interactive play space at City of Dreams Manila as the volunteers assisted them in experiencing the various attractions of the popular facility, having their photo ops with Dreamworks’ animated characters and joined them at a hearty lunch at Chez Gingy.

Employees also contributed their time visiting the elders, orphans, sick and abandoned children at the Missionaries of Charity in Tondo, Manila, did general cleaning and laundry services to help provide the residents a more comfortable living space, prepared and cooked meals for the residents. In addition, to support the Department of Education’s Brigada Eskwela campaign with the Paranaque city government, volunteers cleaned and refurbished 12 classrooms in San Dionisio Elementary School, Paranaque.

Upon the invitation of benevolent blogger Jane Go, volunteers from DreamPlay and other departments together with DreamPlay character Puss in Boots brought gifts and cheer to children confined at the Philippine Children’s Medical Center, a government owned tertiary hospital in Quezon City that provides pediatric medical care and clinical research.

Through the Purple Center Foundation, one of the resort’s beneficiary institutions, volunteers also gave immediate assistance and relief in the aftermath of a typhoon and fire in two separate incidents in Tondo, Manila. Canned food, bottled water, and medical supplies were provided to 1,500 families affected by the typhoon. Linens, bed sheets, cutlery, plates, glasses, and other basic items were given to 700 families whose homes were gutted by the fire.

City of Dreams Manila’s team members also reached out to various non-government institutions, among them: Anawim, a sanctuary to poor and abandoned elderly in Rodriguez, Rizal, with whom they engaged in social activities, provided care and basic needs; My Father's House in Manila for children in need of special protection, parental care and spiritual nurturing; Tahanang Walang Hagdanan in Cainta, a social enterprise which provides continuous holistic development to persons with disabilities including a livelihood program and rehabilitation; and the Hospicio de San Jose and Virlanie Foundation’s orphanages.

For the employees’ participation in the integrated resort’s semi-annual voluntary blood donation drive for its blood bank, the Philippine Red Cross, presented City of Dreams with plaques of appreciation for their commitment to help save lives.

Apart from the scheduled CSR programs, the Security team of City of Dreams Manila also spearheaded various CSR activities supported by other colleagues from various departments, such as: the coastal cleanup along Manila Bay and tree-planting in Cavite, a special thanksgiving tribute to the war veterans in Paranaque’s 16th district, providing them wheelchairs, walking canes, medicines and vitamins, bed pans, adult diapers, and food packs; and its own “Drop of Hope” campaign, periodically providing bags of food, water, and basic necessities to street children and families living along the coastline of Metro Manila.

The long-term volunteering efforts of City of Dreams Manila’s employees demonstrate the staff’s commitment to be good corporate citizens and their growing awareness and contributions towards the social and economic needs of local communities – an advocacy that they are determined to uphold.

Puregold is 1st national supermarket chain to accept mobile payments via GCash scan to pay

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Mobile payments pioneer GCash has partnered with Puregold, one of the country's biggest supermarket chains, to implement quick response or QR payments acceptance starting at Puregold Qi Central in Quezon City. 

This marks Puregold’s shift towards embracing modern and convenient payment methods and makes Puregold the first national supermarket chain to accept GCash QR.

From L-R:  Pamela P. Co, Puregold Director; Ferdinand Vincent P. Co, Puregold President; Susan Co, Puregold Vice-Chairman; Lucio Co, Puregold Chairman; Ernest Cu, Globe President and CEO; Anthony Thomas, Mynt President and CEO

The GCash QR scan to pay feature is now accepted in 233 Puregold stores in Metro Manila and nationwide. With over 300 stores nationwide, the supermarket chain has been an inspiration for close to two decades in serving all classes of Filipinos with its vast array of products, ranging from consumables, apparel, and even household equipment.

Celebrities Fourth Pagotan and Yayo Aguila shop at Puregold using GCash scan to pay

“Puregold has been in partnership with the GCash team for the past five years and we always believe in the capabilities of their people. We also know that GCash Scan to Pay is the next big thing to hit the Philippine retail market. By being a first-mover, we stand to gain competitive advantage in the market,” said Ferdinand Vincent P. Co, President of Puregold Price Club, Inc.

Co added that since they have customers who already use the GCash cash-in services in Puregold stores, GCash Scan to Pay will be very beneficial to them.  “We wanted to offer the full GCash service to our customers as a way of educating them about secure, cashless shopping. We have already tested GCash Scan to Pay in our affiliate company, My Baby Planet, and we are able to see how easy and convenient it is to use.”

“GCash is working hard to change the landscape of how Filipinos usually pay for their purchases to eliminate the pain points of payments such as the hassle of bringing money, waiting for change, or getting into misunderstandings over payments. We want everyone to experience the convenience of using GCash for their everyday needs -- from buying load, paying bills, sending money, and now with supermarkets like Puregold, you can just scan to pay using your phone,” said Anthony Thomas, President and CEO of Mynt which operates GCash.

To use the scan to pay feature of the GCash App, customers only need to download or update the GCash App in their iPhone or Android smartphone, register for an account and load their GCash wallet in any of the 12,000 GCash partner outlets nationwide, including Globe Stores and all Puregold branches. Once done, they only need to point the phone’s camera at the GCash QR code at the Puregold cashier counter, and input the amount to be paid. Goodbye coins, hello easier grocery shopping!

Celebrating its 20th year, Puregold shoppers who will use GCash Scan to Pay will be eligible to join the weekly 100% cashback promo and the grand raffle promo, wherein GCash will raffle off an iPhone X, a motorcycle, an entertainment system, an appliance package, sari-sari store package and more cell phones. On top of that, GCash users of Puregold will also be eligible for the 10 percent rebate promo when they scan to pay with GCash at Puregold until March 31, 2018.

GCash, which is operated by Mynt, a fintech company owned by Globe Telecom, Ant Financial and Ayala Corp., has been aggressively campaigning to its partners for cashless payment systems using the GCash App scan to pay feature.

Learn more about GCash by visiting www.gcash.com. 

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Fashion for Every Woman : SM Woman Coco Cabana Summer 2018 Collection

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What Woman Want! Check out all the Super chic swimwear pieces you can shop for starting today!

Sm Woman is all about honoring every woman this whole month of March with the launch of What Women Want – a Women’s Month celebration for women, by women.

For the entire month of March, Sm Woman is giving all you amazing woman the best of the best offers starting with up to 50% off on great selections, buy 1 get 1 on selected items, and get freebies when purchasing from participating brands – all this when you shop at the women’s section of the Sm store.

So what are you waiting for? It’s time we get  #WhatWomenWant.

It’s Summer Rule, great news SM Woman is serving up summer fashion,  that you can get another extra 10% off on all items for Sm Advantage cardholders every Wednesday this month, March 7, 14, 21 and 28.

5% rebate for a minimum purchase worth P5,000 – P9,999.99 for Bdo Shopmore cardholders and 10% rebate for a minimum purchase worth P10,000 for Bdo Shopmore cardholders. Both every Saturday of the month, March 10, 17, 24 and 31.

Get 2x points on all purchase for Sm Advantage cardholders ONLY on March 15 and March 30.

Get it while it’s hot! Summer is high for style, and fashion powerhouse Sm Woman opens the season with its annual showcase of Coco Cabana’s 2018 Summer Collection featuring stylish swimwear and resort wear. Serving hot trends fresh off the runway – hyper botanical, fun, funny ruffles, classic black and white suits, sleek and sexy metallics, and suede numbers – SM Woman delivers exactly what every woman wants.

MoneyGram and GCash Partnership: Bringing financial services to every Filipino

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MoneyGram announced its partnership with GCash, the mobile wallet and micropayment arm of Mynt, in a move that promises to further improve financial inclusion in the Philippines.

Through the new united system, thousands of GCash users can now receive money from over 200 countries and territories on their mobile wallet and use the funds instantly for purchasing goods and services online.

Convenience and ease at your fingertips

Between over 30 million active smartphone users and the growing Internet penetration in the Philippines, the collaboration between GCash and MoneyGram is a powerful strategy that aligns with MoneyGram's goal to offer consumers more digital money transfer options.

Yogesh Sangle, Head of Asia Pacific, Middle East and South Asia, explains that MoneyGram’s goal of equitable financial inclusion envisions a world where financial services are not only accessible, but also free or available at minimum cost. “Aside from convenience, MoneyGram ensures that there is no additional charge to use the service, although a standard charge applies for the transfer of money out of a user’s GCash wallet,” he supplies.

Providing customers with utmost convenience has always been one of MoneyGram's thrust for its customers. And with the new partnership, it further reinforces its promise by providing customers access to their remittances, anytime, anywhere. All they need is a simple touch of a button on their GCash app.

After completing the KYC process via GCash app, a customer can receive money directly on the mobile wallet. This is additional, convenient channel for the customers in the Philippines to receive money their way.

Sangle also emphasizes that MoneyGram’s global reach, consisting of over 350,000 agent locations in over 200 countries and territories, provides the groundwork for this easily accessible and reliable service.

“Apart from sending money in person, customers can transfer funds to their families and friends online (from the U.S., the UK, Germany, France and Spain). In most of destinations with The MoneyGram services are especially beneficial for OFWs and their families, providing a convenient way to send remittances from all over the world.

According to POEA 2017 data, there are 12 million OFWs spread around the world, many of whom send a significant portion of their salary to their families back home. The partnership with GCash eliminates the need for family members receiving this money to go to a MoneyGram location. They can directly receive any amount on their mobile wallet. What’s more, the money they receive is readily available for purchasing goods and services online.

Of course, the service could be used literally by anyone – it’s easy, user-friendly and convenient.

Directly impacted, however, are of course GCash users – around 1 million active users- providing a convenient solution for the users who live in remote areas and those who don’t have an easy access to the financial system. MoneyGram’s services allow them to receive money directly to their mobile wallet and use it immediately to pay for goods and services - can buy load, pay bills, scan-to-pay using QR codes at the mall and much more.

No hidden charges or extra steps

Yogesh Sangle, Head of Asia Pacific, Middle East and South Asia, explains that MoneyGram’s goal of equitable financial inclusion envisions a world where financial services are not only accessible, but also free or available at minimum cost. 

“Aside from convenience, MoneyGram ensures that there is no additional charge to use the service, although a standard charge applies for the transfer of money out of a user’s GCash wallet,” Yogesh Sangle, Head of Asia Pacific, Middle East and South Asia,

Providing customers with utmost convenience has always been one of MoneyGram's thrust for its customers. And with the new partnership, it further reinforces its promise by providing customers access to their remittances, anytime, anywhere. All they need is a simple touch of a button on their GCash app.

After completing the KYC process via GCash app, a customer can receive money directly on the mobile wallet. This is additional, convenient channel for the customers in the Philippines to receive money their way.

Sangle also emphasizes that MoneyGram’s global reach, consisting of over 350,000 agent locations in over 200 countries and territories, provides the groundwork for this easily accessible and reliable service.

“Apart from sending money in person, customers can transfer funds to their families and friends online (from the U.S., the UK, Germany, France and Spain). In most of destinations with significant Filipino communities, they can also use an ATM or self-service kiosk to perform a transaction (such as 7-Eleven stores in Australia). MoneyGram also provides the added value of compliance, having invested in a world-class compliance platform and the services of talented experts to strengthen the integrity of their services and enhance the security of customer transactions.”

Also, Anthony Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of MYNT quipped, "We’re excited about our strategic partnership with MoneyGram. Now GCash customers can enjoy the convenience of receiving money from their families abroad directly into their GCash mobile wallet. With these funds they can buy load, pay bills, scan-to-pay using QR codes at the mall and much more. Plus, customers can enjoy exclusive incentives the more funds they receive in their GCash wallet.”

March Promo

To celebrate the new partnership, MoneyGram and GCash have launched a promotion that will run for 3 months starting March 1 . New users will receive P200 for their first transaction with the new MoneyGram service powered by the GCash app.

For more information about the service, please visit moneygram.ph and http://www.gcashpromos.com/gcashmoneygrampromo/

About MoneyGram International

MoneyGram is a global provider of innovative money transfer and payment services and is recognized worldwide as a financial connection to friends and family. Whether online, or through a mobile device, at a kiosk or in a local store, we connect consumers any way that is convenient for them. We also provide bill payment services, issue money orders and process official checks in select markets. More information about MoneyGram International, Inc. is available at moneygram.com.

About GCash

GCash is an internationally-acclaimed micropayment service that transforms the mobile phone into a virtual wallet for secure, fast, and convenient money transfer. GCash can be used to buy prepaid load, pay bills, send money, make donations, shop online, and even purchase goods without the need to bring any cash. For more information, please visit https://www.globe.com.ph/gcash

About Mynt

Mynt is a partnership between Globe Telecom, the Ayala Corporation, and Ant Financial, that provides innovative and first-in-world fintech solutions to consumers, merchants, and organizations. Its vision is to enable financial access for consumers and merchants by disrupting traditional channels through digital financial technology services. It operates two fintech companies: GCash, a micropayment service that transforms the mobile phone into a virtual wallet for secure, fast, and convenient money transfer, and Fuse, a tech-based lending company that enables Filipinos to get microloans to business loans without the traditional requirements set by banks and other lending institutions. For more information, visit mynt.xyz.