General business conditions are not good at all—small businesses are closing, and unemployment numbers are record high due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, while many people only see the difficulties, there are those who see the opportunities and have the moxie to open a small businesses, a lot of them based largely online, like the couple Cedric Pasco, 25, and Anna Sofia Cinco, 27, who started an online selling business for imported Korean puppies September last year, and then converted it last March 20 into a physical shop, MINIPET Philippines, which can be found along Madre Ignacia right across ABS-CBN, this at the request of their growing number of clients.
“Right now, people cannot travel nor do regular shopping, a lot are having anxiety or stress problems, and having dogs as pets is a welcome change for them. When we first opened online, a lot of clients were hesitant unless they see the actual dogs they were buying. We were not in a hurry as we know we need to really learn about this business before expanding, and the ones we import from Korea range from P160,000 to P350,000, while the locally-bred ones are from P50,000 to P90,000,” explained the couple who between them have six dogs, not to mention Cedric’s pet snake, iguana and a gecko.
“We are focused on puppies at present but eventually we want to go into cats, hamsters, and guinea pigs for a future expansion program, and since we are the first franchisee here of MiniPet, we are looking at having five franchises in five years’ time,” said Anna.
“Fortunately, the initial capital [for a franchisee] is not all that intimidating, just enough to rent a two story space building with the second floor serving as the dog show room. We were fortunate too that our partner in Korea was kind enough to trust us without having to have any personal meeting, and we believe we have proven that we have earned that trust,” said Cedric, who with Anna had an imported shoe stall in Greenhills that collapsed due to the pandemic.
The couple said they get 80 to 100 inquiries from both regular and new clients on a daily basis, and even as the shop had to close due to the lockdown, “people can still visit the store to see our dogs by arrangement, and we were able to sell around 20 dogs in less than a month’s time.”
There was a time that a couple bought three pet dogs, costing almost P700,000 for their three children. They also count some noted personalities and celebrities among the store’s clients.
On the other side, there are also people now who have decided to have their pets adopted by selling or giving them away because of the costs involved in maintaining them.
“Their food alone will cost more than what people buy for themselves, and when dogs get sick and need serious medical attention, it really costs a lot. In our case, one incident with our Corgi dog cost us P60,000. It’s a good thing our parents were there to help us,” said Cedric.
And that is why when they fully reopen the store on May 8, assuming the present condition will be lowered to a GCQ, the couple will have their own community pantry but only for dog owners, and they plan to give free dog food to pet owners.
“We know how expensive it can be to maintain pet dogs, and this is our own little way to give back to our clientele which has expanded beyond Metro Manila. In fact we do exporting already—Cebu, GenSan, and all the way to Canada,” concluded Cedric.
There are indeed business opportunities awaiting those who look for them, and dare to take advantage of them even during a pandemic.