Arlene P. Panit has been a client of TSPI since 2013. She’s been married to David Panit for ten years. They have a lovely daughter who is now ten years old and in fourth grade. She and her husband are partners in their businesses.
Transition from Employee to Entrepreneur
Arlene and her husband were both former SM City employees. When they resigned in 2013, they decided to invest in a piggery business. It was also at this time that they became TSPI clients.
In 2018, they were faced with the most devastating blow of their lives. Their pigs were infected with African Swine Fever (ASF,) a highly contagious viral disease of pigs. At that time, they had 12 sows, 46 fattening ready to be sold, and over 100 piglets. All of them died from ASF. What happened was extremely difficult because the piggery was the primary source of income for Arlene’s family. But God could never be outdone with His generosity. That same year, their pig feed supplier advised them to invest in the quail egg business. With 1,000 quails, they began their quail producing business. On average, 80% of the quails lay 1 egg every day, resulting in 850-900 quail eggs per day.
Their first egg harvest did not sell well due to the low price. They were again on the verge of going bankrupt at that time. However, because the husband and wife are entrepreneurs by heart, they continued their quail egg production business and studied it more carefully. In 2019, they already have 2,000 quails that produces 1,700 to 1,800 eggs a day.
In the first quarter of 2020, they already had 4,000 quails. During that time, their supplier of laying masks or quail feed also served as their primary egg buyer. Additionally, there were some local street vendors who sell “kwek-kwek” or deep fried boiled quailed quail eggs coated in an orange crispy batter. This is a famous Filipino street food.
COVID-19, the Real Deal Breaker
The unexpected COVID-19 pandemic came when Arlene’s livelihood was reviving gradually. Their sales declined because there were no buyers for the eggs. The economy stalled and big restaurants closed down. They were the primary buyers of Arlene’s quail eggs. Even local street vendors did not buy because of total lockdown. Arlene’s family had no other income source at that time. They began selling plants online by posting on Facebook. “Plantitos” and “plantitas” became popular during the pandemic. They were given free plants to sell by a relative. Even though they sold some plants, it was insufficient to support their family. There even came a time when they found it difficult to pay their loan as TSPI members because of the lack of income. Even though egg sales were low, they continued to sell them alongside vegetable crops such as chili, ampalaya, and cucumber which they also started to grow. They transport and deliver the vegetables to Urdaneta Market.
Along with their quail egg production business, Arlene and her husband have ventured into a variety of other businesses. They engaged in buy-and-sell business of frozen goods, as well as household items and pastries. They also had vermicast production, or the use of worm castings as an organic soil conditioner and 100% natural fertilizer.
Business Innovation and Digital Transformation
Arlene knew she needed to adapt to the growth of the digital era. She became increasingly involved in Facebook online selling in late 2021. She began with a variety of products from her suppliers, including pastries, Ready-to-wear (RTW), handicrafts, accessories, home decors, and others. Last quarter of 2022 when she tried to also market quail eggs and vermicasts online. She only tried it because she didn’t think there would be a market and demand for such products. In addition, Arlene also offered “Surprise Gift Service” to cater her OFW customers who are requesting to surprise their families by sending them directly the products they ordered from Arlene. She said, “Through this service, my customers from overseas can express their love and greetings to their families on important occasions, even if they are far away.”
She has gradually created a network of online customers whom she mostly informs about her new products by sending them photographs over Facebook messenger. Arlene now gets 90% of her customers and sales online.
Benefits of Business Digitalization
Arlene’s business has been greatly impacted by digitalization. She can save time and money by going digital because her orders, pick-ups, and deliveries are all scheduled. She also stated that communication with clients has become more convenient because there is no longer a need to go there all of the time, particularly for simple product inquiries and orders.
Personal Growth and Impact to the Community
With the continuous growth of their business, Arlene was able to go back to studying. She is now taking online English degree at Kingsville Tayug Pangasinan.
One of the things that makes Arlene and her husband the happiest is being able to provide for their only child’s basic needs and let her experience the great deals in life. Arlene is also starting to build up their personal savings from the profit she gets from the business.
Arlene is happy that through her online business, she is able to make some products from more distant places available to her community. Her business on “Surprise Gift Service” becomes instrumental for her OFW customers to convey their love to their families. She would personally deliver the orders of the OFW directly to their loved ones, adding an element of surprise.
With her quail production business, she employed 3 workers to help them out. By also offering vermicast online, she was able to provide an additional income source to some farmers and kids by buying cow manure from them. They are also able to help educate farmers on the use of organic fertilizer as an alternative to synthetic fertilizers. They were even invited to speak on vermicast business at the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) convention this month.
