A sari-sari store is a retail store or convenience store found in the Philippines. The word sari-sari is Tagalog meaning “variety”. Such stores form an important economic and social location in a Filipino community. It is present in almost all neighborhoods, sometimes even in every street. Most sari-sari stores are privately owned shops and are operated inside the shopkeeper’s house. Commodities are displayed in a large screen-covered or metal barred window in front of the shop. Candies in recycled jars, canned goods and shampoo sachets or even fruits and vegetables are often displayed while cooking oil, salt and sugar are often stored at the back of the shop. A small window is also present where the customer’s requested commodity is given. Sometimes benches and tables are also provided in front of the sari-sari store. A shade is placed above it which is also used to cover the large window when the store closes.
The sari-sari store allows members of the community easy access to basic commodities at low costs. In the Philippines, following the concept of tingi or retail, a customer can buy ‘units’ of the product rather than whole package. For example, one can buy a single shampoo sachet for five pesos (around 0.12 US dollars) rather than a whole bottle. This is convenient for those who cannot buy the whole package or do not need much of it. The sari-sari store also saves the customer extra transportation costs, especially those in rural areas, since some towns can be very far from the nearest market or grocery. The store also serves as a secondary or even primary source of income for the shopkeepers. The owners can buy commodities in bulk in groceries then sell them in the store at a mark-up price. Trucks usually deliver LPG and soft drinks to the store itself. The store requires little investment since the products are cheap and only a few modifications on one side of a house are needed to convert it to a sari-sari store. The sari-sari store also allows credit purchases from its “suki” (repeat customers known to the store owners). They usually keep a record of their customers’ outstanding balances on a school notebook and demand payments on pay days. (Info derived from Wikipedia)
The sari-sari store will be one of AJCKG ministry livelihood projects this year, 2014, to help augment the meager income of most poor Filipino families in the rural or countryside areas. The initial capital that AJCKG will assist for now will be 5,000 to 8,800 pesos (around €112.98 to €188.31) for each family. This is one way to teach our people to make money out of their own efforts and help in their daily expenses. We pray we can at least do one project on a monthly basis.
Budget: US€112.98-200.00/Sari-sari store
We accept donations of any amount to pursue this project. Likewise, your prayers to make this endeavor profitable and long lasting for the people concerned.