PANDEMIC season paved the way for the upsurge of sari-sari (variety) stores and other neighborhood retail joints like convenience stores. The trend would most likely continue and may even become part of the new norm. Statistics released in 2022 by data analytics firm Kantar Philippines showed many consumers still bought their daily necessities from a nearby sari-sari store rather than commute to big supermarkets. Mobility restrictions because of Covid-19 had made sari-sari stores a preferred choice for shopping, as they are accessible in the area where buyers live. Spending per trip on fast-moving consumer goods such as soap, shampoo, toothpaste and hand sanitizer, ready-to-drink beverages, snacks, sandwich ingredients, baby powder, cologne and laundry detergent, increased to P71 last year from P66 in 2020. Even Century Pacific Food Inc. cited 140,000 new sari-sari stores opened in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. This excludes home businesses that opened up online stores.

Packworks, a Filipino startup, recently launched "The Pack: Superstore" digital platform that empowers 150,000 sari-sari stores. Through The Pack: SuperStore App, store owners could process their business' inventory, bookkeeping, and data collection. They could also avail of financial products and order supplies for a cheaper price without the hassle of coordinating and purchasing new stocks. Currently, the app could be downloaded at the Google Play Store since their niche is Android users. Registration requires a company code or being affiliated with Unilever or Nestle. I could not register because I am not a sari-sari store owner. However, Packworks claim the app is easy to use with a low bandwidth and light footprint that would allow the users to process their businesses more efficiently with the goal of addressing the high cost of poverty, where store owners pay the highest interest rates and pay more for consumer goods. Bringing down the interest cost is one goal, as well as handling money through access to e-payments.

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