B1
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2017
Business
Ray S. Eñano, Editor / Roderick dela Cruz, Issue Editor business@manilastandard.net
FILIPINO PHONE MAKER RISES A
six-year-old Filipino company started producing mobile phones from a factory in Laguna province this year and now plans to become a major player in the so-called ‘Internet of Things’ in the country.
Star Telecom Alliance Resources Inc., the Filipino company behind mobile phones and tablets under the Starmobile brand, has already assembled 20,000 units of UNO B208 and UNO B308 featurephones at a Calamba facility since June 2017, according to Gerardo Balderrama, the sales and marketing head of Starmobile. “We are the first local brand to actually produce phones here. We are proud of two particular models—UNO B208, which retails for P599 and UNO B308 which retails for P699. These are made by Filipinos for Filipinos,” says Balderrama. “The factory is located in Calamba. And this one we are very, very proud of because this is the first time that a local brand is actually producing phones coming from the Philippines,” he says. Star also teams up with international companies to assemble other featurephones, s m a r t p h o n e s, t a b l e t s, m o b i l e p h o n e accessories, routers, APs, switches and other network devices. The technology company led by chairman and chief executive Joey Uy, president Michael Chen, chief finance officer Ulysses Lao and chief operating officer Jerry Manus, employs around 140 people in its Pasig headquarters. “We have produced 20,000 units in our Calamba plant. We are very proud of that. We are the first brand that is really able to provide jobs for Filipinos,” says Balderrama. Balderrama says aside from the 140 employees in the Pasig headquarters, the partner company that runs the Calamba facility has around 500 employees. Star started its operations from a single room in Pasig City in 2011. The company initially decided to outsource the manufacturing operations to China, but adopted a Filipino brand to appeal to local consumers. In 2015, Starmobile sold around 50,000 phones each month. Locally produced UNO B308 exhibits premium design with big TFT screen. It has a camera with flash, multimedia player and LED flashlight. It retails for P699. UNO B208 is a dual-SIM feature phone with a long battery standby time that sells for P599. It is equipped with FM radio, camera with flash and multimedia playback. Both featurephones are part of Starmobile’s Star-Tagal Christmas promo which runs until Dec. 31, 2017, where customers who purchase any Starmobile product can get a chance to win prizes. Starmobile is giving away over P4 million worth of prizes, tax-free, including Starmobile devices, home appliances, eight Honda motorcycles, two brand-new Toyota cars or P1 million in cash. Balderrama says there is a possibility that Star will venture into smartphone assembly in the future. “If it merits that the technology can be brought here, then we can discuss assembling smartphones. That is also our vision or dream to eventually produce or develop smartphones,” he says.
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PHONE MAKER
Starmobile sales and marketing head Gerardo Balderrama
Aside from the two locally-made featurephones, Starmobile also distributes other feature-packed featurephones and smartphones. “The feature phone market is still very, very strong especially in the provinces. I think, we are still looking at around 50/50 ratio,” he says. “When we see the broadband signal improve in the provinces, then we will see a higher uptake of smartphones. But I am not so sure if that is coming soon. That is also an expensive undertaking to upgrade all your sites to broadband capacity.” Balderrama says aside from the consumer segment, Star is also moving strong into the corporate sector. It recently teamed up with MLhuillier Group of Companies to design a customized Android smartphone powered by a Smart SIM for the latter’s employees and customers. He says Star signed a distribution agreement with international network solutions company TP-Link to provide network devices in the country, as the company expands its business beyond smartphones and tablets and into providing connectivity solutions to home, SMEs and enterprise clients. Balderrama says the company is also expanding its retail distribution to include sari-sari stores and loading stations. It says under the initial phase starting the second half of October 2017, Starmobile’s featurephones will be available in over 20 sari-sari stores and loading stations in Metro Manila, Cagayan De Oro and Zamboanga, providing the brand both urban and rural settings to pilot the pioneering initiative. “This year, we continue to reach new frontiers in retail as we enter into sari-sari store distribution, again becoming the first tech
brand to explore this channel in the Philippines,” he says. Balderrama says Star also strengthened its ‘Star Standards’ campaign, highlighting the company’s compliance with international industry certifications. Starmobile’s worldclass standards also apply to its featurephones assembled in its factory in Calamba. “Even though we are a local player, we are proud to say that Starmobile can stand toe-to-toe with products from international brands in terms of performance and durability,” he says. “We see this as an opportunity for us to strengthen our position as the leading quality local brand. If there is one thing at Startmobile we are very proud of, it is the fact that we can compete with the leading brands when it comes to quality,” says Balderrama. “Over the years, we have talked to a lot of people. The general sentiment of people is that they are very happy, with the phone that they got,” he says. “The reason why we are able to claim that is because of the very strict standards that we follow for quality. We have come up with the material that actually defines how we envision the products—starting from the suppliers that we choose to deal with, the parts, the software and to our partner factories who are all certified,” he says. “We ensure that these are all following the European standards for quality. That is why we are proud that our return on defect rate is at an all-time low. Very recently, we have added the tagline ‘tatagal’ on all our handsets. That is what Starmobile stands for. We believe that this is now an opportune time for us to harp on the quality that our phones have,” he says. Turn to B2
FOOD FIRM INTRODUCES CORNED BEEF WITH ANGUS HIGHLANDS, the brand that introduced the corned beef with Angus in the Philippine market, has launched the new Highlands Gold Corned Beef with actor Piolo Pascual as brand ambassador. Brenda Miranda, vice president for marketing of Highlands, said: “Filipinos are very accustomed to eating corned beef but there are only a few offerings available in the market today. That’s why we wanted to provide a better option for our dear consumers.” “Through Highlands Gold, we guarantee a high quality of corned beef satisfaction which our consumers will not find in their usual corned beef, ” Miranda said. Highlands Gold is not only made from 100-percent pure beef but is made with imported and high-quality Angus. As the product is made with Angus, Highlands Gold has real and natural beef taste that moms would love, Miranda said. Compared to ordinary beef, Angus has better marbling which makes the product more delightfully and naturally delicious and tender, according to experts. They define marbling as the fine white streaks in beef which give the cut its flavor, juiciness and tenderness. The higher amount of marbling, a characteristic Angus is known for, the higher the quality is. No wonder steakhouses offering Angus steaks have good consumer following. “Being one of the country’s top and trusted brand ambassadors, Piolo is known to be discriminating when it comes to the products he endorses. He only promotes products he patronizes himself,” Miranda said. “ We are h appy to l e ar n that Piolo was already a fan of Highlands Gold even before we tapped him to endorse the brand,” she said. Pascual said he considers it a blessing to be the brand ambassador of Highlands Gold. “I’m happy when I tasted it. It is so good! It is something familiar yet new. I will never go back to my old corned beef,” he said. “And what I like best is that it’s not only made from 100-percent pure beef, it is also made with Angus beef. I love its natural and superior beef taste,” Pascual said. “Filipinos deserve corned beef with Angus.”
SM OPENS SUSTAINABLE DESIGN MALLS IN PALAWAN AND CAGAYAN SM Prime Holdings Inc., the property arm of SM Investments Corp., has opened two more malls in Luzon, showcasing sustainable designs that respond to various market and environmental changes. The SM Puerto Princesa City in the tropical capital of Palawan and SM Tuguegarao in the booming town of the North in Cagayan province are both environment-friendly as a part of SM Prime’s commitment to disaster mitigation and the reduction of the property firm’s carbon footprint. Architect Fides Garcia-Hsu, vice president of SM’s engineering, design and development said the newly opened SM City Puerto Princesa has cost-efficient, energy-saving as well as disaster-mitigation features. The three-story mall, which spans a floor area of over 69,000 square meters has high or clerestory windows to allow natural lighting and minimizing the use of electricity during day time. She said restaurant and toilet waste are treated through the sewage treatment plant and rainwater collection
is incorporated with the water recycling system which will be repurposed for toilet flushing, plants irrigation, cleaning or maintenance and other non-potable purposes that helps in the conservation of freshwater. “Recycled water will also be used in the air-conditioning system’s chilled water and cooling towers to reduce fresh water consumption. Paver blocks are strategically used in the parking areas to allow rainwater penetration in the grounds to replenish underground water table,” she said. The design for SM City Puerto Princesa made by architectural firm DSGN Associates creates a unique identity along the island’s well-known thoroughfare and within a short walk to the popular Baywalk Park and nearby pier. Landscaping and sculptural façade blend the mall into its setting while providing sheltered walkways for pedestrians along the street. On the other hand, the newly opened SM Center Tuguegarao Downtown which is SM Prime’s 65th mall has taken great
care during the design and throughout construction to preserve two large trees along Mabini Street. As a benefit, the East entrance of the mall is located between two shady tree canopies. The mall uses LED lighting and has solar panels installed on the roofdeck which can provide 484 KW of electricity. A rainwater catchment located at the entrance driveway can hold an equivalent of 215 cubic meters of floodwater equivalent to 215,000 one-liter soda bottles.
Also designed by DSGN, the SM Center Tuguegarao has blue facade that provides an accent to the main thoroughfare. Its interior is organized around an efficient “T” shaped plan that allows a clear lineof-sight to multiple shops on multiple levels at all times. Strategically placed spacious openings, flanked with sleek escalators and a centrally located elevator and stairs, provide for optimal customer convenience and access to all portions of the mall.
Beyond the mall’s aesthetics, SM believes that investing in sustainability safeguards the welfare of customers, tenants and the malls’ host communities. “More than distinct and iconic designs, SM also takes great care in considering that the designs fit a purpose, for the convenience of shoppers, for energy conservation, for higher visibility of tenants and for easier navigation which have always been the lessons from our founder, Mr. Henry Sy,” Garcia-Hsu said.