Participants of the 24th Likha ng Central Luzon Trade Fair held last 26-20 October 2022 at SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City earned a total of P57.04M in sales. This is almost five times more than the sales made in the trade fair last year pegged at P11.7M. Majority of the sales came from booked orders amounting to P36.08M. Cash sales generated were at P7.5 M while another P13.4M sales are under negotiation.
The annual trade fair was participated in by 148 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the region. Participating MSMEs exhibited products such as processed food, furniture and home furnishings, wearables, gifts and holiday decors, and other organic and cosmetic products.
Based on reports of the SME Development Division of the DTI Regional Office 3, Bataan generated the highest sales among the seven provinces with about ₱26.9 million. It was followed by Pampanga – P11.4 M; Bulacan – ̈́P4.9 M; Aurora – P4.9 M; Tarlac – P3.7 M; Nueva Ecija – P3.1 M; and Zambales – P2.2 M.
“The long weekend may have helped and contributed to the increase in sales since most of the people flocked the event during the weekend, despite the rains,” DTI – 3 Regional Director Leonila T. Baluyut said. She extended her gratitude to those who visited the fair and supported the MSMEs. “The positive sales figures may be indicative that our MSMEs are slowly recovering from the effects of the pandemic”, she continued. She added that “this is also indication that the public really misses these kinds of face-to-face events where they can sample the food products and see for themselves the fine craftsmanship of our MSMEs”.
The trade fair was organized by DTI-Regional and Provincial Offices in Central Luzon in partnership with Philexport-3, Regional Development Council-3, SM Supermalls, and Central Luzon Growth Corridor Foundation Inc. (CLGCFI), which is composed of the 7 governors of the region with DTI as member. It served as a culminating activity of industry and trade related programs given to entrepreneurs in Region 3. Capability building seminars were also conducted before the fair to develop the technical capabilities of the micro and small enterprises especially in terms of negotiating with buyers and how to effectively dress their booths. Product development activities were also done to come up with new designs and products that were showcased during the 5-day fair. ♦
Date of release: 8 November 2022