Making Money from Scrubs

Scruburbia Scrub Suits Co. is the brainchild of 21-year old entrepreneur Dondi dela Llana. He got the idea from his sister, a nurse in New York who mentioned that printed scrubs suits there were either hard to come by or too expensive. He recognized that such is also the case in the local market and figured that he may have discovered his niche.

True enough, if one will talk about a huge, partially untapped market, it is the nurses and nursing students. The nursing shortage in the West caused an overwhelming growth of nursing students in local schools like Xavier University, Liceo de Cagayan and Capitol University. Even I.T. schools like STI and AMA have followed suit and are now also offering nursing and care giving courses. The retrogression of immigrant Visas by the U.S. embassy however, has resulted in nursing graduates staying in the country for a few more years – and needing scrub suits.

Scruburbia Scrub Suits Co. addresses this need for cool, unique scrubs. It is fast becoming the primary producer and dealer of printed scrubs to local nurses and other health care professionals. The company attributes its initial success to its competitive price and pop-culture designs like Tinker Bell, Peanuts and frog nurse. Integral to its marketing is the use of a business website wherein prospective customers can browse the gallery of designs and make orders, proving once again that we are in the age of e-commerce.

The future is bright for Scruburbia. Besides catering to the local market, the company has begun small-scale exporting to New York. Filipino nurses from other states in America who came across the company’s website have also contacted them and expressed interest in importing the Cagayan de Oro product. This will definitely facilitate their plan of expansion, and make us Kagay-anons truly proud.

 

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It's the 14th of February. A 'Brownies' Heart Month.

Who says Valentine's Day is only for lovers? That ain't true actually. We live in a world where love doesn't choose anyone. So why be lonely?

If you're just one of those who are tired of the usual and would want to be extraordinary thinkers when it comes to coming up with something new (and sweet)this Valentine's Day, then you came to the right spot.

The possibilities are endless! But we finally came up with for the most anticipated 14th day of February was to have a beautifully packed assortment of brownies that would actually make great gifts for friends, for special people, and most of all - for yourself.

Not only do they look great but you also get a double dose of chocolate as each brownie is stuffed with chocolate pieces giving it the extraordinary chewy middles. The colorful frostings turn these brownies into something deliciously special. They come in seven different looks. Though we only have the chocolate and white chocolate chunk brownies, we made them special by picking different ingredients to add in. By using any combination of chocolate and white chocolate chips, chopped nuts, candy-coated chocolate pieces, etc. we finally came up with these:

♥ chocolate frosting topped with white chocolate chips

♥ white chocolate frosting topped with chocolate chips

♥ chocolate frosting topped with grated white chocolate

♥ white chocolate frosting topped with grated chocolate

♥ pink frosting garnished with white chocolate chips

♥ white chocolate frosting topped with colorful candy-coated chocolate sprinkles

♥ chocolate frosting topped with colorful candy-coated chocolate sprinkles

So after spending much time and money with those bouquets and cards, try adding up this great box of Valentine's brownies. For just 180php for a box of eight brownies, you'll surely melt the hearts of those to whom they will be given.

For inquiries and orders contact Tabby - 0927.510.63.26; Jeedo - 0922.490.95.53

 

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I met Kevin Sardines, a Kagayanon.
By: Jay Tee, contributing writer

We’re in the can of fish, Kagayanons! Before you wax quizzical, no, this is no fishy matter, I tell you.  It’s a brand of sardines to check in our favorite grocery shelves. What’s the buzz about this but another canned good in town?
Huh, this one is “our own,” I learned.    

Yes, just recently, I discovered a sardines brand manufactured and marketed by fellow Kagayanons who wants to serve quality yet affordable, not to mention favorite viand, in many households of this part of our fish-bounty country. 

I was naturally caught by surprise that I only came to discover Kevin Sardines which has seen relative success in the market since the mid 90's.   

Thanks to the fast approaching Christmas season – but no thanks to the prices shooting up by the day.  I was forced to do my groceries these past few days. Hoping to find better value for my hard earned money, I shied away from the usual air-conditioned supermarkets and chose to scour the humid groceries along the Cogon market strip.  There is this Kevin Enterprises in J.R. Borja, Cogon Market. 

I’m a natural curious – for stuff new and intriguing.  What’s an Caucasian sounding name doing in a can of lowly sardines, I pondered.  Interestingly enough, this ‘Kevin’ is the least expensive among the canned lot.  I took a chance – because, I have to admit that when it comes to sardines, I have always been brand-loyal, always sticking to the brand that is of my preference.  Do I need to mention one? 

So decided I was to try out this new product – okay, not that new.

Upon reaching home, I hurriedly heated the sardines and savored it, curios just the same.  You guessed it right, I wouldn’t be writing about ‘Kevin’ if I’m not an instant fan. Talk about instant foods.    

Kevin tastes twice as good as my now used-to-be-preferred sardines brand.  And with a much lower price, hungry me wants to stock a pile of this comfort food. 
If we like the things we discover, we inquire some more, right? So I went over to now my good friend Kevin’s label and checked more the locals responsible for bringing this sulit brand in the market. Good thing telephone numbers were printed on it and indeed it read familiar: local Cagayan de Oro City numbers.

So this is proudly ‘Made in Cagayan de Oro’ -- reason for every Kagayanon to hear and check about it.  Now being a contributor for CDOKAY and a true blue "anything from Cagayan de Oro" lover/supporter, I decided to call up the said number and arranged for a chit chat.  
Needless to say and like one beating a deadline, I pulled a one on one interview with Kevin Sardines Brand Manager, Mr. Dennis Nicol Tan, at a coffee shop in Divisoria.

Our casual chat leaped ‘out of the can’, so to speak and proved to be patriotic about Cagayan de Oro.  I can sense in his words that Mr. Tan is highly passionate about being a Kagayanon, even fervently wishing that Kagay-anons would excel in different fields.

Mr. Tan would love Kagayanons to identify with his brand as well his brand to identify with the Kagayanons. In fact, he related to me that he is on the lookout to support Cagayan de Oro based initiatives that are also being cooked up by passionate Kagayanons. As long as the budget fits, he laughingly quipped.  

Cagayan de Oro City doesn't have a sardines yielding industry, but this did not hinder Mr. Tan from sourcing fresh sardines catch, which he found in Zamboanga. 

‘Kevin’ is not massively distributed in the entire Philippines, not yet.  Presently, ‘Kevin’ sits in large groceries and sari-sari stores in Cagayan de Oro as well as in the provinces of Bukidnon, Misamis Oriental towns, and in Iligan City and Lanao provinces.

Curios still -- Why in the world is the brand ‘Kevin’? Mr. Tan has a ready answer.  Believing on Chinese business sense and wish-for-luck, ‘Kevin’ was named after the owner’s son who was born in the Year of the Dragon. Not bad.

What a “CDOKAY!” that was. I went home from the interview with a bagful of Kevin Sardines to fill my food shelf.  In this age of instant foods, call me an instant fan of Kevin Sardines, which every Kagayanons should try tasting.

I met Kevin Sardines, a Kagay-anon.  Who – or which? – Kagay-anon have you been meeting lately?

 Our contributor challenges us to find local products that can give the popular brands a good run for their money.  Send us your articles and like Jay Tee, the promise of a bagful of goodies is something.

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Here at CDOKAY, we value the spirit of micro, small and medium entrepreneurs – with the passion and drive, striving to improve the lives of their own families and the people around them.  Notably, the Filipino entrepreneurs are helping advance the Philippine economy. 

Calling all local entrepreneurs!  CDOKAY welcomes you.  We like to make your products known and help you grow your businesses – online.  The true benefit of the Internet its ability to empower customers to go straight to the source. 

Your business is maybe pretty much set in its old ways. And it may be difficult convincing you to go dotcom -- but we insist, because these days, ‘No Online presence’ can mean ‘NO presence’ for your business. 

Think of having the whole world as your selling place.  CDOKAY will make it easy for you and your business.  Entrepreneur, all you truly need is an online presence.  Start here in CDOKAY.  (Contact us)

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Do our local products make us proud?  Let’s try and taste some.  This is a privileged spot for our homegrown produce.  Presenting our ‘Local Products Feature’:

Darling Food Products started its operation in 1986. With a capital of only P150.00, Mrs. Aileen Tello Lazo, the owner, produced 3 kilograms of chorizo and tried to sell them to her neighbors and friends. Her acquaintances loved the taste of her chorizo product and soon after the praises were passed around. She started receiving orders from her friend’s friend and neighbor’s neighbor.

In 1988, when Ororama Supercenter was beset with supplier’s strike, the purchaser of the said store invited her to display her products.

In no time, her family found themselves grinding daily with kilos and kilos of chorizos to keep up with the increasing demands.  

Branding the saleable product was not at all hard. The inspiration came from the amiable, sweet and friendly character of the mother of the house, thus the brand name “Darling,” which up to these times has undeniably earned the heart and stomach of its buyers.