They say "fortune favors the brave". Absolutely. During the pandemic retrenched employees turned to entrepreneurship and microbusinesses flourished. And as it turns out, the coffee biz is really one of those pandemic-proof business ideas in the Philippines.
25-year-old Anna Magalona can prove that. She started a side hustle with only 6 thousand pesos in capital selling coffee when the pandemic hit. It was her being proactive; in case, you know, she gets laid off from her job. But retrenchment didn't happen.
After selling her coffee to friends and family and delivering the coffee herself, she worked her way up and started getting her own physical stores.
Then she quit her job. Because why not?
Her pace gets more impressive by the end of 2021 as she opened a total of 15 branches. Now it's another year, the pandemic continues but so is the coffee brewing.
Check out her story for how she did it and the rest of the nitty-gritty.
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Using the power of video to tell one good story at a time... ONLY GOOD... OG.
OG is Summit Media's video first brand. And like all Summit Media brands, OG is anchored on top-notch storytelling to delight, inspire, and connect with our audiences.
We are deliberate in creating content that spread positivity, inspiration, and good vibes. Expect only good here at OG. Subscribe and be part of the community!
25-year-old Anna Magalona can prove that. She started a side hustle with only 6 thousand pesos in capital selling coffee when the pandemic hit. It was her being proactive; in case, you know, she gets laid off from her job. But retrenchment didn't happen.
After selling her coffee to friends and family and delivering the coffee herself, she worked her way up and started getting her own physical stores.
Then she quit her job. Because why not?
Her pace gets more impressive by the end of 2021 as she opened a total of 15 branches. Now it's another year, the pandemic continues but so is the coffee brewing.
Check out her story for how she did it and the rest of the nitty-gritty.
Click here to subscribe to OG:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIj3xiW-RIO2cpr5LBvokRg/?sub_confirmation=1
About OG
Using the power of video to tell one good story at a time... ONLY GOOD... OG.
OG is Summit Media's video first brand. And like all Summit Media brands, OG is anchored on top-notch storytelling to delight, inspire, and connect with our audiences.
We are deliberate in creating content that spread positivity, inspiration, and good vibes. Expect only good here at OG. Subscribe and be part of the community!
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00 We started with a 6,000 peso capital.
00:02 People are really doubting, "Why is it really 6,000?
00:06 It's very expensive to open a coffee shop."
00:09 I was a credit and finance solutions manager
00:21 at a software company in Makati.
00:23 I was employed there for almost three years.
00:26 Basically, I was working with several clients and teams.
00:29 Actually, that was one of my dream jobs before
00:33 because I was able to learn a lot in there.
00:35 I was able to apply my course when I was in marketing.
00:39 Last August 2020, when the pandemic hit,
00:41 I wanted something that could be a backup plan
00:43 if in any case I would get laid off or whatever happens to my work.
00:47 I was thinking to myself, "What could be a backup plan?"
00:50 I really wanted to have my own business,
00:52 but what business could I start with that is very low maintenance,
00:57 easy to prepare, and easy to launch online?
00:59 I thought of coffee because I love coffee,
01:01 and coffee is quite easy to prepare.
01:03 I started it since I had no idea about running a business.
01:08 Everything was like a blank canvas.
01:10 It's just, as long as I know how to do the basic math,
01:14 it could work for me during that time.
01:16 And then just, you know, eventually work my way.
01:25 The next challenge here is how will you sustain it?
01:27 How will you get more customers?
01:30 How will you market your brand well?
01:33 Because building face was the very hard part.
01:35 I wasn't able to identify my target market yet.
01:38 There were discouragements from people like,
01:40 "That will just pass, you're just lost now."
01:44 "But that will pass, you won't continue."
01:46 So I was having thoughts that,
01:48 "Will there be other people aside from my family and friends to purchase from me?"
01:52 As I was personally delivering the coffee,
01:54 I had coffee in my car.
01:56 And then the car suddenly didn't start.
01:59 I had to run to a battery shop to have the car jumpstart.
02:04 So it needed to be replaced.
02:07 So I thought, "The battery is around 5,000 to 6,000."
02:10 I didn't even do the ROI yet, I was still at a loss.
02:13 So, what was it? Will this really pass me or not?
02:16 Up to several trial and errors,
02:20 I was able to have that perfect blend,
02:23 where it's good enough to sell online.
02:25 I started posting on Facebook, sharing it to all of my friends.
02:29 People were able to love the coffee.
02:31 People were able to know more about us.
02:34 So that is when we were able to develop additional flavors,
02:38 additional items on the menu.
02:40 We were able to save a bit
02:45 to put up our own physical store below our condo.
02:48 It was a very small kiosk, but people were able to see us physically.
02:52 So it kind of boosted our credibility as well.
02:55 And that helped us gain more customers,
02:57 and also people interested to franchise our business,
03:01 to know more about our business.
03:02 And then that's where we were able to venture out
03:06 and close the year 2021 with 15 branches.
03:09 We started with only 6,000
03:18 because we did not have a physical store back then.
03:21 We just operated in a condo.
03:22 And then that 6,000, we bought a basic home coffee maker
03:27 that's just around Php 800 to Php 1,000.
03:30 Packs of cups and labels on it for us to market and put our branding on it.
03:36 We also bought 1 kilo of coffee grounds,
03:39 and a few milk and sugar syrup.
03:42 So I think that was very enough
03:45 to start with selling at least 50 to 100 coffees.
03:49 [music]
03:57 Our bestsellers are Vietnamese style and Spanish latte.
04:00 So the Vietnamese style is at Php 70 right now.
04:04 It's a brewed coffee served with condensed milk.
04:06 It's inspired by the authentic Vietnamese coffee of Vietnam,
04:10 but we tweaked it a little to suit the taste of the Filipino.
04:13 It's also a bit sweet.
04:14 And then we also have Spanish latte as one of our bestsellers.
04:18 Now that's a bit more premium compared to Vietnamese
04:21 as it's Arabica beans and being done with a commercial espresso machine.
04:27 [music]
04:30 I had a lot of realizations, especially during my But First Coffee journey.
04:35 I get to stick with our mission and vision,
04:37 which is to create job opportunities for people
04:40 or help people start their own business.
04:43 I get to offer people with good quality
04:47 and at the same time affordable coffee.
04:48 So it's like, don't need to break the bank just to get good coffee.
04:52 I really, I really value our customers
04:54 and I really want them to experience good quality of service from us.
04:57 That's why, you know, sometimes it's not all about the money.
05:01 Sometimes what matters the most is how you treat them.
05:04 My advice for those who want to put up a business in this pandemic
05:07 is I would definitely recommend you to start online
05:10 because every day people are on the web.
05:13 So they can see your products, what your services,
05:17 as long as you're able to market it very well.
05:19 Invest on yourself, invest in your knowledge,
05:21 invest everything that you can to make your business a success.
05:25 [music]
05:31 If you have an inspiring story like this,
05:33 email us at stories.onlygood@gmail.com
05:37 And don't forget to subscribe here on the OZ Channel.
05:40 Thank you for watching.