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To many overseas Filipino workers, the chance to work
abroad, save up hard-earned dollars and retire in the Philippines is
the fulfillment of all their lifelong dreams. But for Miguel C.
Bolos, who had worked in Saudi Arabia as a finance executive for 25
years and recently returned to the country, this is only the
beginning of the dream to share a measure of his success to his
countrymen.
Bolos had always figured
prominently as a highly successful professional with a heart of gold
for Pinoys in the Middle East. He had taken part in the drive to
promote the implementation of absentee voting, as well as provide
assistance to fellow OFWs in need.
A native of Guagua, Pampanga,
Bolos returned to find that little had changed in his home town
although a lot of pioneer OFWs had come from his province.
“It felt to me like Guagua was
left behind by the times. Most of the modern conveniences can be
found in neighboring towns like San Fernando, while my hometown
remained the same. And the funny thing about this was the people of
Guagua have a lot more spending power compared to others since most
have family members working abroad and were sending remittances
regularly,” Bolos said.
His business-savvy mind
recognized that the problem stemmed from the lack of investment
coming into Guagua which, in turn, failed to promote further civic
development for the town. It was then that he developed his vision
for economic advocacy for Guagua by becoming a social
entrepreneur—a businessman whose goal is not purely for profit but
for the betterment of the people around him.
Using his savings and a loan he
secured from a local bank, he set up a modern commercial building
right in the heart of the town and began to look for businesses
interested in putting up a shop inside his new four-story business
center.
“There is nothing wrong with
Guagua, the money is there. Someone just had to jumpstart the
economic environment by investing in the town. And with new
businesses come jobs that will generate more income for the people
that they can spend. The resulting business climate will help
generate funds for the local government that, in turn, will be spent
on socio-civic development for the town. So what I basically did was
help generate movement of the town’s economy,” Bolos revealed.
Not content with simply providing
a venue for businesses, he also went ahead and invested in his own
7-Eleven franchise. The familiar logo of the world-class convenience
store now serves as a beacon of economic growth for the township.
“My decision to acquire a
7-Eleven franchise was a deliberate move to further push my personal
economic advocacy agenda. With a world-class brand now being seen in
the center of town, other entrepreneurs will be inspired and will
recognize the economic potential of the town that has a population
of 120,000 relatively young individuals with high disposable
income,” he said.
Bolos’s investment in 7-Eleven
paid off, since the store began to have a positive effect on its
surrounding establishments and also with the buying habits of the
people of Guagua. New establishments began to open up around the
area while old establishment began to renovate their façade to
present a more modern face. The local government also established a
PUV terminal a few meters away from the store front to service
commuters traveling between Guagua and the neighboring provinces.
The store also became a
convergence point for the townspeople, especially at night, because
of its 24-hour operations, quality products and services and a safe
facility where they can rest before traveling home.
“The 7-Eleven business is also
perfect for OFWs like me since almost everything involved in the
operation of the business is provided by Philippine Seven
Corporation. This means that I don’t have to re-invent the
business and no longer have to risk losing my capital through trial
and error,” he shared.
Bolos, the 51-year-old
businessman, also revealed another stage in his economic advocacy
wherein he will attempt to convince other OFW friends to pool their
resources together to acquire 7-Eleven franchisees of their own.
“They no longer need to
conceptualize on the kind of business they will set up with their
retirement money. Plus by working as part of the staff of their own
franchise store, they get to earn income without eating up their
capital. And the only challenge they will be facing is how to make
their franchise store more profitable,” he said.
And as his 7-Eleven business
grows, Bolos once again becomes a shining example of what an OFW
should be even after retirement—a successful and productive member
of our society.
7-Eleven is available for
franchise in La Union, Baguio, Olongapo, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga,
Bulacan, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Cavite and Metro Manila. For
inquiries, call 726-9968, 0920-9508651 or visit www.7-eleven.com.ph.
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