The First-ever SO SHOP! A Social Sellers Bazaar Empowered by LBC

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Leading logistics company LBC Express Inc. held Shopping and Learning in One: First-ever So Shop! Bazaar brings hundreds of online sellers together last October 5 at Function Room 4, SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia, Pasay City. 

In its effort to empower online business owners, as the So Shop! Bazaar,  LBC highlights commitment to empowering MSME's.

More and more Filipinos are starting to venture into micro, small and medium enterprises nowadays. With technology, anyone can be an entrepreneur and it has served as one of the personal goals for a lot of us - from fresh grads to millennials to retirees. However, starting your own online business may be a daunting task but with the right support, succeeding in it is not a farfetched dream.

The bazaar brought together over 100 online business owners, thousands of shoppers, industry speakers, and influencers in one venue, making it both a shopping and learning experience in one. It also gave social sellers the opportunity to meet and connect with their customers in person, showcase their products, and transact using LBC's Cash on Pick-up (COP) and Cash on Delivery (COD) services.

"With more and more Filipinos setting up their businesses online, we at LBC, believe that it's high time to bring online businesses together, in one venue, and get to interact with their buyers live. "

"So Shop! is our commitment to empowering micro, small, and medium enterprises in the country," said Oliver C. Valentin, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for Philippine Branch Operations of LBC Express Inc.

LBC's COP and COD services are designed to make online purchasing easier and more convenient for shoppers. With COP, LBC's over 1,400 branches can serve as pick-up points for buyers to get the products they bought online while COD allows them to get it right at their doorstep.

So! Shop for all your lifestyle must-haves

Featuring diverse products from over a hundred booths, So Shop! became a haven for a weekend to shopping enthusiasts and people with various interests.

For techies and gadget lovers, online gadget stores such as Kimstore, Juan Gadget, Droud Hero, and JBL Store PH provided exclusive deals and discounts. Beauty and makeup fans went gaga over the vanous shops from Korean and Japanese beauty brands to sustainable beauty products.

Those who love customized lifestyle pieces were also able to see their favorite online shops making it a perfect venue to shop for personalized gifts including travel sets, accessories, and oven kitchen wares. Moms who were on the lookout for early Christmas gifts brought home items that are perfect for the whole family.

So Shop! also treated the shoppers to a host of surprises including Mystery Box gifts from participating social sellers and gadgets raffled off by LBC.

Growing one's online business

Aside from the shopping experience, business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs also learned from a lineup of industry speakers, business owners, and influencers who gave talks on topics relevant to growing their business

Facebook Philippines Head of Agency Liam Capati showcased the power of Facebook ads and how it can help businesses reach their customers especially at a time when cutting through the clutter in the online space is crucial. Canva Community Team Lead Gladys Lacorte emphasized the importance of  having visually appealing social media pages through designs that represent a business personality.

Creative Boss Founder Rachell Araja-De Luna knows very well why a website is a must-have to an online business, with it being a repository of one's products online. Through her talk "DIY Your Dream Website," Araja-De Luna discussed the simple ways a budding entrepreneur can create a website without breaking the bank. The power of online communities cannot be dismissed too-this is what PLDT Vice-President for Digital Strategy and Consumer Disruptive Business Carlo Ople highlighted in his talk. Ople shared why businesses should be present on the digital space and how to effectively tap online communities to reach a specific target market.

Not only was So Shop! a learning-filled experience, it was inspiring too with panel discussions and success stories that moved the audience.

Celebrity mom, wife, and entrepreneur Neri Miranda talked about her businesses and her role as a homemaker. Miranda, owning multiple businesses including Neri's Gourmet Tuyo, online bedding and accessories store. Very Neri, and an events place in Tagaytay called Neri's Not So Secret Garden, gave mompreneurs tips on how to juggle it all. 

Content creator Wil Dasovich, who owns online merch store MerchBy alongside other influencer friends, shared how he remained authentic throughout the years of being a known digital personality. Dasovich also sold products at his MerchBy booth at So Shop!

A panel discussion on the social impact of online businesses featured Jamico Jamlang, founder of sustainable businesses The Bamboo Company and Chesca De Mesa, co-founder and managing director of Refuse PH. Joining them was Havas Media Ortega Head of Data and Analytics Phil Tiongson who gave the audience a glimpse of Havas' global study centering around consumers mindful consumption.

Women entrepreneurs also took center stage with Kimstore Founder Kim Lato and Neon Island Founders Alyssa Gibbs and Aira Medina. They shared what it's like starting and growing a business, as women, and how they overcame the challenges that came with it.

Hosted by 101.1 Yes FM DJ Rico Panyero and Love Radio DJ Raqi Terra, So Shop! was not just a star-studded bazaar but one that has taught online business owners new techniques to move their businesses forward.

Javier Mantecon, Chief Marketing Officer of LBC Express-Global Marketing, reiterated the company's commitment to move lives, including those of the social sellers. "As the e-commerce community continues to grow, LBC remains your partner. We hope that this is just the beginning of our long partnership. We want to help you take that move, wherever that may be."

Special Announcements : Richard Gutierrez and Sarah Lahbati announced for their much-awaited wedding

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Celebrity couple Richard Gutierrez and Sarah Lahbati made announcements for their much-awaited grand wedding that to be on March 2020.

Sarah shared to the media during the press conference that they are planning to have an old romance theme on their wedding.

Fans are invited to Richard's and Sarah's journey to forever as the showbiz couple will soon appear in various ABS-CBN shows and other Kapamilya multimedia platforms to reveal details about their much-anticipated wedding.

Last Sunday (October 11, the grand announcement already happened on “ASAP Natin ‘To” where Kapamilya singers Moira Dela Torre, Jason Dy, Ogie Alcasid, and Martin Nievera serenaded the couple with heartfelt love songs.

“We are very grateful to ABS-CBN, our bosses, our ASAP family, and to the singers who performed. It's like our practice for our wedding," said Sarah who got emotional during their appearance on “ASAP Natin ‘To.”


Also check this video coverage during the Special Announcements Presscon:

This is only the first of many appearances the two will do as they will visit various ABS-CBN shows for exclusive stories and sneak peeks on their upcoming wedding.

Meanwhile, Richard and Sarah appreciate the amount of love they have received as they enter the new chapter of their lives.

“We are super grateful. We made it official to our parents, kids, and friends. Now, it’s time to make it official to our supporters and announce it properly,” said Sarah.

Richard, on the other hand, added, “We are thankful to ABS-CBN and for the people working behind all this. This is very special to us and we can’t wait to share more details about our big day soon.”

The two revealed that they are already finalizing their guest list and principal sponsors. Sarah will also fly out of the country for her wedding gown fitting next month.

Aside from the wedding preparations, Richard is currently busy doing a film under Star Cinema with Bea Alonzo, with whom he will also be pairing for a teleserye, and Angelica Panganiban. He we also star for the first time on “MMK” this Saturday (October 12) alongside Elisse Joson.

The Angels Initiative: Building a Network of Stroke-Ready Hospitals

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Initiative stresses need for more hospitals in the Philippines to be equipped for stroke

In light of the upcoming World Stroke Day on October 29, the Angels Initiative, a healthcare program that aims to improve hospital care for people who just suffered a stroke, recently hosted a roundtable for the media called, “Angels Initiative: Improving Stroke Care in Asia,” at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

The Angels Initiative is composed of dedicated consultants who provide doctors, nurses and ambulance crews with the training and support they need to create and improve the treatment pathways and processes around stroke care. The Angels consultants run assessments together with the hospitals; compare existing processes with guidelines; provide training and ongoing support for the hospital staff as well as process- and quality-monitoring.

The media roundtable was held in conjunction with the Asia Pacific Stroke Conference (APSC) in Manila on October 2-5, 2019. The APSC focused on highlighting the burden of stroke, globally and locally in the Philippines. The event also featured global and regional key opinion leaders, which includes spokespersons from APSC, Angels Initiative and the World Stroke Organization (WSO). There was also recognition of new hospitals in Southeast Asia & South Korea (SEASK) who received their first WSO Angels Awards at the event.

Stroke: A Common killer

When does stroke exactly happen? A stroke, or "brain attack," occurs when blood circulation to the brain fails. Brain cells can die from decreased blood flow and the resulting lack of oxygen. There are two broad categories of stroke: those caused by a blockage of blood flow and those caused by bleeding into the brain. A blockage of a blood vessel in the brain or neck, called an ischemic stroke, is the most frequent cause of stroke and is responsible for about 80 percent of strokes. 

People age 55 or older have a higher risk of stroke than younger people do. Men have a higher risk of stroke than women do. Women are usually older when they have strokes, and they're more likely to die of strokes than are men. “One third of 17 million people die from stroke after exhibiting its symptoms. Another third are left disabled permanently. It is alarming to note that two-thirds of stroke attacks in the world happen in Asia,” according to Prof. Dr. Jose Navarro, Chair of the Neurosonology Group of the Philippine Neurological Association and former President of the Stroke Society of the Philippines. “In the Philippines, stroke is the second leading cause of death” 

It is also crucial to note that stroke is such a time-sensitive disease that for every minute it is left untreated, up to two million-brain cells die. 

“There are more chances that an outcome will be most favorable when a stroke patient receives care 60 minutes upon arrival at the hospital,” explained Prof. Dr. Michael Brainin, President of the World Stroke Organization. “These patients are more likely to become independent and have a higher possibility of going back home after surviving the disease.”

Making hospitals stroke-ready

This is what the Angels Initiative addresses. For the initiative, treating patients as soon as possible, following the best standards of care in dedicated stroke centers, is important so that they can have better chances of survival and living disability-free lives. The initiative provides hospitals with the resources and the support they need as well as the needed training for their doctors and staff so that they can be truly stroke-ready.

Every country that the Angels Initiative is present in has an “Angels Consultants Team” that supports hospitals in implementing stroke care improvement programs. A hospital or center will be considered stroke-ready when it has reached a standardization of processes, which will ensure that stroke treatment is given within 60 minutes of the patient arriving at the hospital.

About the Angels Initiative in the Philippines

The Angels Initiative was launched by Boehringer Ingelheim and endorsed by the European Stroke Organization (ESO) and the World Stroke Organization (WSO). It began in Europe with a team of stroke experts back in November 2014 and now in SEASK (Southeast Asia and South Korea).

An important aspect of the Angels Initiative is the collaboration with local medical organizations, such as the Stroke Society of the Philippines and the Philippine Neurological Association. 

Here in the Philippines, the initiative has made considerable progress since it began in 2017 with one Angels stroke consultant and 18 target hospitals in consultation. There are now 11 stroke-ready hospitals in the country with five fully-dedicated Angels consultants and 42 hospitals nationwide in active consultation.

Among the 42 hospitals in consultation, the National Capital Region has the most number with 25 hospitals, followed by Davao, with four hospitals. Cordillera Autonomous Region, Central Luzon, and Central Visayas are also some of the regions with hospitals that are part of the Angels network.

Thomas Fischer

According to Thomas Fischer, Boehringer Ingelheim Global Project Lead of the Angels Initiative, in 2018, 265 more Filipino patients were treated for stroke, which accounts to 11 percent more Filipino patients having a second chance at life.

“There are currently 98 Philippine hospitals registered in the Angels Initiative website,” added Fischer. “This is a huge jump from the 32 registrants in 2018.”

During the APSC, Baguio General Hospital and Makati Medical Center received the Q2 2019 WSO Gold Award. The WSO Angels Awards are designed to acknowledge and honor teams and individuals committed to quality improvement in stroke practice and to establish a culture of continued monitoring.

For hospitals that are interested in finding out more about the Angels Initiative and how they can be properly equipped to become stroke-ready, they can schedule a consultation with the Angels Team by registering through the official website:
www.angels-initiative.com

More About the Angels Initiative

Suffering a stroke is one of the most devastating medical emergencies that can happen to a person. Fifteen million people worldwide suffer a stroke every year; one-third of these people die as a consequence; another third is left permanently disabled. Guidelines recommend that patients who have had a stroke are treated in a specialized stroke unit by a dedicated team. In turn, treatment should be initiated as quickly as possible after onset of symptoms, but this does not always happen.

A dedicated team of Angels consultants provide doctors, nurses and ambulance crews with the training and support they need to create and improve the treatment pathways and processes around stroke care. The Angels consultants run assessments together with the hospitals; compare existing processes with guidelines; provide training and ongoing support for the hospital staff as well as process- and quality-monitoring. Examples of these measures include checklists, which help to standardize processes and to limit unnecessary delays. In addition, the Angels Initiative offers educational tools and programs – digital as well as analogue, support for pre- and in-hospital process optimization and a community platform for peer-to-peer exchange and access to the world’s leading stroke specialists.

For further information on the Angels Initiative, visit: https://www.angels-initiative.com

Coco Martin at the Shell Rimula Tsuperstar Grand Finals

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Pilipinas Shell held its much-awaited Shell Rimula Tsuperstar Grand Finals last October 5 at the Sta Lucia East Grand Mall, Cainta, Rizal.

Carlito Vergara, a jeepney driver from Bulacan, emerged as the grand winner and went home with three-year supply of Shell Rimula and a cash prize of P500,000. He also bagged the “People’s Choice Award”.

Rodrigo Belarmino and Roland Salazar both from Mindanao won 2nd Place and 1st Place, respectively. Belarmino wins as the  “KaJoda’s Choice Award”  and  received P10,000 cash prize for his jeepney association.

The event was a culminating activity of Shell Rimula in support of the country's jeepney drivers and showcased the diverse talents of these acknowledged 'tsuperstars.

The Shell Rimula Tsuperstar" project is the energy leader's campaign that recognizes the efforts of jeepney drivers from al over the Philppines who work day and right to provide a brighter future for their families.

After making it through the auditions and regional finals, finalists from five regions in the Philippines made it to the grand finals to compete for the Ultimate Tsuperstar Champion" 

Present during the event was actor, TV personality, and Shell Rimula ambassador Coco Martin, who gave the attendies and grand finalists a special performance accompanied by rappers Smugglaz and Bassilya. 

Coco shared that he comes from a family of jeepney drivers and he's not one to hide this fact. His grandfather made a living driving a jeepney and was able to provide for his family and meet the needed expenses in raising his children. Coco's father continued this particular family legacy and provided for the family by driving a jeepney as well.

The grand finals was also a right of celebrity performances, games, and raffle prizes .

According to Recca Menchavez, Brand Manager for Shel Rimula, Shel Rimula has always been on the side of Flpino drivors everywhera Whether they drive jeepneys or UV Express vans, Shel Rimula is their most-trusted engine partner. Their continuous hard work to provide for their families is the reason why Shell considers them the real 'tsuperstars

"We call them 'tsuperstars' because we beleve that they are not only some of the most hardworking people in our society, they are also the most underappreciated. We count on them to take us to work or to school, but we really don't get to thank them enough" said Recca.

Recca expressed her grafitude for every driver who has worked tirelessly on the road with Shel Rimulla as their chosen engine oil. "This event isn't simply a competition of who's the best in talent, this is our way of honoring and showing support to our Fipino drivers for everything that they have done for us," she stressed. They also deserve to take some time off and enjoy," she added.

Pilipinas Shell has continuously pushed for efforts to improve the lives of Filipino drivers The Tsuperstar campaign is only one project that has allowed Pilipinas Shell to honor drivers who have been long-time supporters of the

"Our drivers help make the future of our country that much brighter. And they can look forward to more offerings from Shell," Recca shared. No matter what you drive and what you do for a living, Shell will always make sure that there's something that best fits your engine's needs," she added.

In its 105 years of helping build the nation and providing energy that makes the future, Shell has become a market leader in engine lubricants not only here in the Philippines but in over 100 countries. Shell Lubricants offers a wide variety of ail products for light- and heavy-duty vehicles, cars, and motorcycles.

Always ahead, always in style with the new SAMSUNG Galaxy Watch Active2, now in stores nationwide!

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Samsung has been making waves in the second half of the year with its recent launches aimed toward the New Work Tribe. This group of individuals live out their passions by transforming them into fulfilling careers using purposeful tools that can bring them to the next level — one of which is the newest Samsung Galaxy Watch Active2, which hits stores nationwide starting today!

The Galaxy Watch Active2 is designed with a fresh new look. The new version comes in sleek 44mm and 40mm variants in lightweight aluminum and premium solid stainless steel. The watch face can also be tailored based on a color extraction algorithm to further match the user’s style.

Navigating also becomes easier with the upgraded digital touch bezel and the updated One UI that offers easy and simple user experience The Galaxy Watch Active2 takes personalized wellness to the next level as it intelligently and automatically detects fitness activities—including workouts such as running, walking, cycling, swimming, rowing machine, elliptical machine, and dynamic workout. Additionally, the updated Running Coach gives actionable fitness insights in real-time.

The Galaxy Watch Active2 has been integrated with leading sleep and meditation app Calm to offer improved sleep analysis and stress relief suggestions. This, while delivering unlimited access to guided meditation programs.

Users can now listen to their favorite music right from their wrist through Samsung’s integration with Spotify. They simply need to log on to their Samsung account with a single sign-on from their smartphone or Galaxy Watch Active2 for a seamless and continuous listening experience.

The Galaxy Watch Active2 empowers productivity as it allows making and receiving calls as well as accessing various social media platforms with just a tap of a finger. The smartwatch is also equipped with a Watch Camera Controller which lets users take photos, record videos, and preview footage right from the smartwatch when paired with a Galaxy smartphone. It is also a great accessory for frequent travellers and backpackers as it supports real-time voice and text translation in over 16 languages.

The Galaxy Watch Active2 is available, starting today, at any Samsung-authorized store nationwide with a suggested retail price of Php 19,990, Php 16,990, and Php 13,990 for the 44mm Stainless Steel, 44mm and 40mm Aluminum models, respectively. The Aluminum variant comes in striking Cloud Silver and Aqua Black colors, while the Stainless steel variant comes in Silver.

To know more about the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active2, visit samsung.com/ph.