Monday, February 26, 2007

Philippine fine jewelry makers to shine, glitter in HK Jewelry Trade Show

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), in its pursuit to expand the market for Philippine fine jewelry in Asia, flies to Hong Kong with the country’s top jewelers showcasing their fine works of art in the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show 2007, 6th–10th of March at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center.

Mia Faustmann (third from L) president of the Guild of Philippine Jewellers and Benjamin Aragon, CEO of Sanara (fourth from L) together with Tricia Libongco, CITEM project manager for the Hong Kong Fine Jewellery Show and Happy David, fashion accessories designer/owner of Get Happy discussed prospects of fine jewelry in the global market at the recent Good News Pilipinas forum at Figaro, Greenbelt.


Six local jewelers will showcase the Philippines’ Finest in sterling silver jewelry (A. Suarez Sterling Corporation, Michelis, Inc, Sanara, Inc, Sterling Gifts, Inc), gold jewelry and precious and semi-precious stones (JMA Jewelry Center, Inc), and South Sea pearls (Jewelmer International).

The Philippine participation is part of the export promotion activities of the DTI to expand the local fine jewelry market and generate business leads, said Trade Assistant Secretary Fe Agoncillo-Reyes, executive director of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), the export promotion arm of the DTI.

This project is also a strategic venture for DTI as Hong Kong—where fine jewelry market is expanding rapidly with their exports surging by 23% in 2005, reaching HK$25.5 billion—is one of the Philippines’ top export destinations along with the United States and Japan. The fair expects to draw about 30, 000 foreign buyers from 41countries like the US, Japan, China, and Australia.

The Philippine fine jewelry export industry is very young. Most of the companies are small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which have been operating for just over 20 years. Since fine jewelry is a high-end product, it mainly caters to mid-range and high-end markets.

The sector primarily manufactures, produces, and sells jewelry made of precious metals or base metals clad with pearls, precious or semi-precious stones. Pearls and silver are most widely used in the country. There are about 250 manufacturing and exporting fine jewelry nationwide employing 100,000 workers.

“Our local companies engaged in fine jewelry manufacturing have excellent design capabilities and they can offer a wider range of contemporary designs composed of hand and machine-held pieces. The Philippine participation is an opportunity for our local jewelers to strengthen their foothold in established international trade events,” added Agoncillo-Reyes.

For information on the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show, please check out the website:
www.citem.com/hkjewellery or contact CITEM’s Softgoods Division at (632) 831-1265 or (632) 831-2201 loc. 203 / 226 or email at softgoods@citem.com.ph

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

SMEs to Celebrate the Filipino Lifestyle

Over 200 SMEs from the Philippines’ 17 regions will participate in this year’s National Trade Fair, the most important domestic trade show that perfectly celebrates the Filipino Lifestyle.

The fair will occupy the three halls of SM Megamall on March 14-18, and expected to draw in thousands of local and foreign buyers.

“This year’s National Trade Fair will show the country’s color, warmth, and fascinating blend of influences through arts and crafts made by our Filipino artisans across the archipelago,” said Assistant Secretary and Executive Director Fe Agoncillo-Reyes of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM).

NTF is headed by the CITEM, in cooperation with other offices of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), such as the Bureau of Small and Medium Enterprises Development (BSMED), Product Development and Design Center of the Philippines (PDDCP), Bureau of Domestic Trade (BDT), Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC), and the DTI Regional Operations Group.

“This fair became one of the avenues for our small enterprises at the countryside to be noticed by exporters, distributors, both local and foreign. Some of them even grew into big enterprises and became exporters,” added Agoncillo-Reyes.

A special setting of the One Town, One Product (OTOP) program can also be seen during the fair. OTOP is a program of the Arroyo Administration enriching each town’s unique products and capabilities, making it the top source of livelihood and pride of the community. It is now continuously gaining investments and spreading widely in the countryside.

NTF bridges the exhibitors to other opportunities through pre-arranged business matching with local and foreign buyers, exporters, and distributors.

The Bureau of Domestic Trade (BDT), on the other hand, will spearhead the raw material setting for seashells, woody vines, and climbing bamboo, including its new process and applications. The Bureau also offers database of reliable suppliers of different raw materials.

The ASEAN Japan Center (AJC) will conduct a packaging seminar for the exhibitors during the fair with the aim to introduce other packaging ideas and technologies that will further make Philippine products more globally appealing and competitive.

In cooperation with the Cottage Industry Technology Center (CITC) and Philippine Chamber of Handicraft Industries (PCHI), livelihood seminars will be conducted during the fair.

Last year, the National Trade Fair generated sales amounting to P82.44 million, and attracted 20,000 visitors.
________________________
For more information, please call:

Special Projects Division, Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM)
Tel: (632) 8312336 / 831-2201 extensions 261 and 263
Fax: (632) 832-3965 / 834-0177
Email:
sprojects@citem.com.ph
URL:
www.citem.com.ph/ntf

Government trade show to strengthen the global image of the Philippine food industry

The fourth International Food Exhibition or IFEX Philippines 2007, the most exciting marketplace showcasing the best offerings of the Philippine food industry, will be staged at the World Trade Center on May 18-20.

“This year’s IFEX will focus on the concept of ‘Filipino Food in a Global Setting,’ which aims to strengthen the image of our country as an international source of food and food ideas,” says Trade Assistant Secretary Felicitas Agoncillo-Reyes.

Agoncillo-Reyes, also the Executive Director of CITEM (Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions), explained that this is the intended concept for IFEX due to several factors like the rising demand for ethnic food, the increasing global exposure for Philippine food ingredients and cuisine, the presence of million-strong Overseas Filipino immigrants around the world, the rise of healthful snacking phenomenon, the emergence of convenience stores, and the evolution of global lifestyle trends.

A number of special settings will be featured during this three-day food fair. The Certified Zone is a visual showcase of products that comply with the global food safety standards which are the forefront considerations in food trade. The Exporter Zone is solely for foreign buyers, balikbayan buyers, and buying officers that are into exporting. On the other hand, exhibitors prefer to sell to the local market through the Retailer Zone.

There will also be a representation or replica of several key markets during the show like the Middle East souk or marketplace, Japan fruit stand or small grocery, French café, and Italian pizzeria where Filipino products may be served.

Regarding this stylized setting, Agoncillo-Reyes gave examples: “It is not impossible to have Philippine coffee varieties in Starbucks or in a French café. If there is a local ‘sisig’ pizza, who knows when there is a certain Filipino concoction that can make it to foreign pizza menus. Even our dried mangoes and other fresh and processed fruits may be served in a low Japanese ‘tatami’ table perhaps.”

Aside from the food exhibit itself, IFEX will also conduct several cooking demonstration, technical seminars, and Trendy Awarding that gives recognition to SMEs whose food products display exceptional packaging, taste properties, and sales demand.

IFEX 2007 will be held back-to-back with BIO-Search, which will present 40 health and wellness companies from the Philippines. Other major displays are the Partner Region Showcase featuring the CALABARZON region’s food products, One Town One Product (OTOP) Showcase enriching each town’s unique products and capabilities, and the Seafood Gallery.

Last year, IFEX Philippines generated foreign and local sales amounting to a near total of US$ 80 million, almost tripling the 2005 total sales of about US$ 32 million.

It also assisted 283 of the country’s food exporters, manufacturers, and consolidators and accompanied 1,332 buyers—1,118 of which were from various local regions while 214 were from Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, and USA.

IFEX 2007 is organized by CITEM, the export promotions body of the Department of Trade and Industry.

For more information on this food fair, please call CITEM, Agri-Marine Division at 831-1282, 831-2201 locals. 204 and 238 or e-mail:
agrimarine@citem.com.ph.