Micro-retailers share stories of hope from the Coca-Cola ReSTART program.
FINANCIAL deficits hit the smallest enterprises the most” notes the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) in its recent report. “Economic losses have a ripple effect that magnifies and multiplies the challenges, especially for microenterprises.” And it is sari-sari (variety) store owners such as Corazon Caballero who experienced these difficulties first hand.
“Malaki po kasi talaga yung epekto kasi humina ang sales po nung nag-lockdown,” Caballero says.
Through its 108 years in the country and across numerous volatile economic cycles, one company that has a pulse on the needs of micro-retailers not only as pillars of their value chain but for their significant contribution to economy at large: 88.4 percent of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are sari-sari stores for example is Coca-Cola. Going beyond providing refreshment through their well-loved beverages, the C