SM Seaside Tower Garden, a new chill place open for people and pets

CEBU CITY -- SM Seaside City Cebu unveiled its newest attraction, free and open to the public starting August 16 at the Upper Ground Level, Tower Garden where people and furry pets/ friends can chill, play and enjoy the day with fun-filled adventure, exploring the Paw Maze and other exciting attractions.

Meet Stevie, a towering 20-foot-tall installation that's quickly becoming the mall's superstar companion.  Stevie is ready to steal the spotlight and hearts as he guides visitors through the Paw Maze, creating unforgettable moments along the way.

Stevie, with his vibrant green fur, makes for the perfect backdrop for selfies and snapshots, adding a playful touch to your visit to SM Seaside City Cebu.

As the latest member of the SM Giant Squad, Stevie joins a series of larger-than-life installations found in select SM malls across the country, continuing the tradition of bringing joy and excitement to shoppers nationwide.

Today, I was fortunate to see the parade of dogs, meeting with Stevie, a towering 20-foot-tall installation, roam around the garden with giant installations of animals and sports spaces where people play badminton, and other ball games.

The Tower Garden is also a place where furry friends join shows, or just strutting around joining other furry pets and owners alike to bond and enjoy the day.

Meet Koji and Aya and their Alaskan Malamute Ares.  The couple loves dogs and cats. They have 6 dogs and several cats at home that they take care and dote on.  Now that there is this place at SM Seaside City Cebu, it is not surprising to meet them here with the many other furry friends in the City. (Photos: MBCNewman)

 

 

CCCI unlocks solutions, empowers MSMEs at Expo 2024

CEBU CITY-- The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) mounted the “Empowering Cebu MSMEs Solutions Expo 2024 on August 16-17 at the Atrium, SM Seaside Cebu with some 40 exhibitors which focus on the essential resources and solutions to propel the MSMEs businesses forward.

“This gathering is a cornerstone of our collective journey towards a more inclusive and prosperous Cebu.  MSMEs play a pivotal role in fostering sustainable development, worldwide, it’s over 90percent that fall under the category of MSMEs. But in the Philippine context, it is 99.4 percent are MSMEs and they are instrumental in creating employment, 65 percent more or less on the average are employed by MSMEs, fostering innovation and contributing to GDP growth,” CCCI president, Jay Yuvallos said in his opening message at the event.

Yuvallos added that as part of the Cebu Business Month (CBM) activities, the expo featured a diverse range of service providers, B2B solutions, and support organizations dedicated to fostering the growth and success of Cebu's MSMEs under the theme, "Empowering Cebu’s MSMEs," to serve as a vital platform for networking, learning and business development.

The expo offered exhibitors a unique opportunity to engage directly with a pool of MSMEs actively seeking innovative solutions and support and had the chance to present their products and services to a targeted audience, establishing their brand as a leader in MSME support.

Expected to happen at the Expo 2024

Meanwhile, participants networked with key decision-makers to generate qualified leads ready to invest in their solutions to further contribute to Cebu’s MSME success. A panel discussion on August 16 with stakeholders from logistics, IT and Tech Solutions sectors allowed MSMEs to engage with industry experts, identify key challenges and opportunities, and foster networking and collaboration among attendees.

The Meet & Match on August 17 was a business matching activity to build and create business connections with companies and individuals of common business interests. Its goal is to forge partnerships and business opportunities, support the value and supply chain, foster collaboration, and build meaningful relationships to create an enabling ecosystem that strengthens and revitalizes Cebu's business community.

According to Briggite Garcia-Alegado, Chair CBM 2024 Entrepreneurship, the Chamber recognized the important role of MSMEs in driving Cebu’s economic growth. They’re essential for both creating local jobs and serving as catalysts for community development.  When MSMEs offer numerous advantages, they also deal with considerable challenges in sustaining their operations. 

Alegado added that these challenges include, limited access to funding, scarce resources, and regulations that affect them.  In collaboration with our government partners, CCCI continues to help in developing a supportive environment that promotes their growths and success.

“Through this Expo, we intend to provide a solid foundation and access to programs including but not limited to mentoring, networking and funding opportunities that strengthen the capabilities of our MSMEs,” Alegado said. (Photos: MBCNewman)

  

Globe Business’ GSummit highlights connectedness as key to biz sustainable growth

CEBU CITY – Globe Business brought to Cebu, for the first time, its flagship event, “GSummit 2024” where the brightest minds, influential leaders from key sectors in the business and an audience of nearly 300 converged on August 13 at the Sampaguita Ballroom, Seda Ayala Hotel, Cebu City to highlight the importance of building stronger relationships and exploring how interconnectedness enhanced by new technologies can drive business growth and uplift lives.

 With its theme, "CONNECTED,” the GSummit 2024 showcased an outstanding lineup of speakers led by KD Dizon, VP and Head of Globe Business and Josiah Go, Chairman and Chief Innovation Strategist of Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. that put emphasis on collaborative ecosystems and strategic partnerships in business.

 “At its core, a collaborative ecosystem is a dynamic network of internal and external stakeholders working together to drive innovation, efficiency, and sustainability,” Dizon said with her presentation entitled, “Collaborative Ecosystems: Globe Business Partnerships for Digital Success."

Dizon bared that bringing in technology within this ecosystem elevates workplace dynamics through advanced tools and platforms that enable seamless communication, data sharing, and real-time problem-solving. These innovative solutions foster a collaborative environment, empowering companies to thrive in a rapidly evolving landscape.

The collaborative ecosystem at Globe has yielded substantial benefits around improved communication, streamlined processes, and data-driven decision-making. Customer satisfaction has also risen due to more personalized and efficient services enabled by Globe's advanced analytics and digital solutions, Dizon added.

 More insights from keynote, other presentations

Josiah Go, Chairman and Chief Innovation Strategist of Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. in his keynote address, shared insights on “Connected Marketing: Driving Sustainable Growth Through Strategic Partnerships.” 

 “It is the capability to do what you need to do for what you lack and so you need somebody else to help you do it. This is most important when digital adoption is needed by a business. Being able to choose trusted and credible partners to trailblaze one’s tech journey is essential in being abreast to new innovations,” Go explained.

Go talked about Strategic Partnership that allows businesses to enhance capabilities to do what the company needs and lacks based on need analysis on resources, relationship, tech, reach, and more. 

“Actions are aligned (prompt, accurate, complete); Fit with values, ambition and brand image; Engagement is professional (full disclosure, knowledgeable, governance) and finally it’s a Win - win collaborative culture,” he added.

In the breakout track, the talks featured on building synergy to streamline operations and sustainable success where the participants discussed how building synergy within an organization with AI and cloud-powered solutions can streamline operations for sustainable success.

The discussion tracks on “Building Enterprise Growth: Harnessing Martech, Cloud, and Analytics for Business Expansion” offered insights into leveraging Martech, cloud technologies, and analytics to drive enterprise growth and enhance brand value.

The “Resilient Connections: Strengthening Enterprise Security Amid Evolving Threats” track addressed the critical issue of enterprise security, highlighting ways to fortify customer confidence by safeguarding operations against evolving threats.

The sessions presented technology leaders from Globe portfolio companies Inquiro, m360, Adspark, and global names in tech such as Fortinet, Genesys, Huawei, Google, Navagis, Orca, and Snowflake explained how these powerful technologies can be harnessed to create a robust growth engine for enterprises.

There were also engaging booths that featured interactive activities from Samsung, Aruba, and Sprout. 

Globe Resource speakers at the press conference talked about the power of connectedness and the concept of collaborative ecosystems to streamline processes for more efficient solutions to improve the institution’s competitiveness. The speakers also shared how the latest innovative solutions and strategies to empower businesses help them thrive in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

The Summit also showed how Globe Business understand it customer challenges, providing reliable business-grade connectivity, and partnering with best-in-class providers to support various industry and business needs.

To learn more about Globe Business, visit https://glbe.co/globebiz. (Photos: MBCNewman)

ZEUS of BNI launches Zeus88 biz expo at 88th Avenue, November 22

CEBU CITY – ZEUS, a member of the Business Network International (BNI)-Philippines launched on August 15 the simulated Zeus88 Business Expo in a press conference with some members in attendance putting up mini-booths at the Honda Cars Cebu showroom as a “look see” of Zeus88 business expo to  happen on November 22 at 88Avenue in Banilad, Cebu City.

“We’re Zeus88 and we’re part of ZEUS which is a member of BNI and we meet on a weekly basis as a group of companies that come together not only to support local business and promote our businesses too, but most importantly, we help in the community of businesses in Cebu. We decided to create an event called Zeus88 Business Expo on November 22 at 88^th Avenue in Banilad, Cebu City,” Steve Howe, Zeus88 organizer said in an interview with the Cebu Online News Press Corps (CONPC) today.

 Howe said that BNI is the largest and most successful business networking organization offering its members the opportunity to share ideas, contacts, and most importantly, business referrals and it is working with a number of its business cooperatives to produce a business network day during the Zeus88 event. 

Howe also bared that 88^th Avenue in Banilad is its strategic partner for the expo venue and they are using their facilities outside and partnering with restaurants and bars there that would provide the catering and food during the event.

Zeus88 expo is working with a number of its business cooperatives to produce a business network day at the venue.   Some 500 invited guests, leaders of some of the biggest and most influential businesses in Cebu and the surrounding region are joining the expo with a full day of activities, expo stands and presentations to highlight the business community potential in Cebu.

Zeus88 provides the expo area that enables the members to exhibit their products and services to the guests that will get to sample food from the restaurants at 88th Avenue including, Weekend, Minute, La Carne, Bell & Amadeus, and more at the lunch for the stars, Howe shared.

 What to expect at the Zeus88 Business Exposition

“The reason on having this event on November 22 at 88th avenue is not only to be be able to get and grow new members but also introduce us to the community of business in Cebu so we can partner with them and we can also create a network where we are growing Cebu as a business sector,” Howe explained.

According to him, this is a full day program presenting a business network community, fashion show, special guest speakers from the top of Cebu Business, a gala raffle with spectacular prizes from the sponsors and partners and a lot more.

The event has an entrance ticket at P1,500 per person inclusive of food and refreshment, parking, raffle and full color brochures are produced and handed to every attendee and the expo package includes a full-page advertisement for every business that wants to advertise.

“This activity is a culmination of ideas coming as a kick off for Zeus88 tis coming November at 88th avenue in Banilad, it would be a bigger venue on how we can further create an impact here in Cebu, the province of Cebu or in region 7 on making sure that business is of mutual growth,” ACMobility Honda Cars Cebu/ VisMin branch manager, Bryan Enerio said, in an interview with CONPC.

One of Honda Cars Cebu’s partnership is BNI and the Zeus88 is part of the collaborative initiative campaign towards upholding the company’s pillars for sustainability and overall growth of partners in their respective businesses and partnership really involves growing the business market because the company believes that when it comes to mobilization, as being ACMobility Honda Cars Cebu, it is really putting a mobility solution to the businesses, Enerio said.

All about Business Network Intl (BNI)-Philippines

According to its website post, BNI is the world’s leading business referral organization supporting 328K+ member businesses in over 76 countries worldwide since it was established in 1985 and began franchising in 1996. BNI Chapters are currently meeting using BNI Online®, a powerful and convenient platform that enables members to continue sharing new client referrals.

BNI-Philippines on the other hand is the largest and most successful business networking organization and since its launch in November 2014, BNI-Philippines franchise has established itself in 16 cities and has shown year-on-year growth in subscriptions.

All BNI Members are actively supported by regional, national, and global BNI staff that provide the training, structure, and technology needed to help them grow their businesses, now more than ever, business people need to network to stay in business. BNI provides a structured and supportive system of giving and receiving business, the website said. (Photos: MBCNewman)