Bhei

I have a dream sweetie – a goal actually that consumes my mind for the most part of the day these past few months (obviously, since I am writing this blog at this very moment, even during office hours, this is all I can think of! Hehe). And that dream is to finally market my line of accessories that I lovingly called Bhei (Bhei …you know short for Bea?). Now, let me backtrack a little and give you a history of how this creative (?) side of your mom started.

A few years back (I think it was year 2001), my friends from Accenture (your Ninang Tegs, Ninang Dianne and Tita Anna Men) and I put up this accessories business which we called K.L.A.D. (Kristine.Lovella.Anna.Dianne -- smart name, huh?). I couldn’t remember exactly how we came to a point and decided to partner with each other in creating and selling different kinds of bracelets and necklaces. Basta, all I remember now were our trips to Divisoria to buy our materials and overnight stay in Teg’s house to actually design and produce the orders we got from friends or acquaintances (or those people Anna Men was able to trick into buying our products…hehe). Our business was surprisingly a hit. Perhaps because it was Christmas season (November-December timeframe) so we were able to have Anna’s friend sell those in bazaars and then some people bought our products to give out as Christmas gifts. Soon after December, we stopped producing accessories since we didn’t have time anymore to buy materials and make them. But from these K.L.A.D. days I realized I have a knack for designing kikay stuff.

Now, it’s only early this year (2006) that I again resumed making accessories. Basically, I started doing this as a hobby. The onslaught of mass produced accessories from China and Korea actually also drove me to design pieces that are unique so I won’t be scared of running into a girl wearing the same accessory! And probably, at the back of my head there was also this thought that I could turn this into business. So there I went with your Loli Onggay and bought my initial materials (worth P5,000). And soon after I went to buy materials again and this time with your Ninang Dianne. At that time, I was just making them without the serious intention yet of actually selling them because I didn’t even have an idea if my work is good enough to be sold to others. It was only after I showed my college friends and Dianne my creation and heard their positive feedback that I realized I might actually be able to market this in stores (or abroad)!

So from then on, my mind is all filled with ways on how I can sell Bhei’s. So far, the following are the initial things I plan on doing to make my dream a reality:

• First and foremost, I need to take pictures of my products so I can eventually create a portfolio or website that I can show my prospective clients. I actually plan on having my friends abroad market these products (like your Tita Lori in Australia) so I definitely need to post pictures of my products in the web.
• I will create a corporate brochure that I will present to local shops so they will want to consign (or better yet, purchase!) my products and be sold in their stores.
• Contact Summit Media publishing and inquire on how I can have my products featured in their magazines. I am willing to do this for free as this can very well be my way of advertising my collection.
• Partner with Michelle and Aleta in selling these through bazaars (although this can only be done come December).

I really wish and pray that I will be able to establish this business soon. I realized that this is actually my passion. Considering how much I love accessories and just the act of mixing and matching accessories with clothes, this is the perfect business for me. I am soooo kikay to the core so this is definitely one thing I know I’ll enjoy doing for years to come (forever even). And besides this being my passion, the other reason that drives me to attain this at all cost is because I would want to resign from corporate life 3 years from now at the latest. My reason being I would want to be a stay-at-home mom by the time you start school. I would want to be the one to bring you to school and be the first to greet you after your dismissal. Even if this business is not my passion, I’ll still pursue it nevertheless if it would mean I’ll be able to monitor your growing up years closely and just be there for you whenever you need me.

By the time you read this, you would know if my dream indeed became a reality. Otherwise, it meant then that the pressure of me being able to retire from corporate life fell on your dad’s shoulders (hehehe…).