Puregold Recognizes the Role of "Sari-Sari Store" in MSME Growth

It's so heartwarming to see how small businesses, MSME's get the spotlight they deserve as part of the Sari-Sari Stories that Puregold released on their socials. It mirrors what is seen in the Philippines, and realize it's role, how significant it is despite it's size, that it has direct economic significance. This follows the previous parts called "Ways", "The Sign", "The Witness" which also discussed their connection to the community, to commerce and what people need. It's not just a story, but a show of resilience, of how it affects family life, plus this new one called "Pangalan". 

This part talks about how the normal Sari-Sari Store becomes a place of convergence in a community, and get what they need, when they need it especially when they need questions answered, or just plainly hang out. It is undoubtedly Filipino, which is pretty cool to see in stories like these. 

Now don't be surprised because you'll see some pretty famous folks like Jhoanna from BINI, Stell Ajero from SB19, even Skusta Klee. They tell a story of retail, and how it becomes an integral part of a community, and this economy. 

If you haven't been to a Puregold Tindahan ni Aling Puring Sari-Sari Store Convention, one will be happening in May. It's where brands and businesses offer crazy deals, with real people who own their stores, groceries and source it from Puregold. 

Here's a glimpse of the series, enjoy! 

Make sure you sub on the Puregold Channel on YouTube, and their socials as updates about the conference and more will be posted there. See you in May!

AWIT AWARDS 2025 Powered by VibePH Shot on Honor 400 5G

VibePH jocks all looked so gorgeous and handsome at the Purple Carpet

It's my first time covering the Awit Awards who has partnered with MQuest and the folks from VibePH. They also have partnered with Honor Philippines who lent us their newest phone, the Honor 400 5G which we used to take videos on the purple carpet before festivities began inside the newly revamped Meralco Theater. We needed to be there early to make sure we had time to see the artists arrive around noon, and they were quite generous posing for us at the VibePH Purple carpet. Awit Awards is an annual event where the PARI (Philippine Association of the Record Industry) honors some of the remarkable musical artists in the country. Even before the event began, I heard PPOP greats SB19 and BINI were receiving awards which I'm super happy about! 

Saw Lolita Carbon, Donita Nose, Ben and Ben, Tutti Caringal, Iñigo Pascual, and a lot more musical artists at the Purple Carpet

Here's some of the scenes at the Purple Carpet, this was in front of the Meralco Building which houses the theater. 

This event was certainly one of the grandest ones I've ever seen. I could see the dedication and work they put in to honor the bands, the groups and individual artists who received awards. I specifically love the part where I saw my own idol Ely Buendia who received the "Dangal ng Musikang Pilipino Award" for his contributions to the music industry. They also gave awards to SB19, their collabs, individual members (including my bias Felip!) and femme PPOP artists BINI. 

This was something that was expected, and they definitely delivered. Hosts Joao Constancia and Ryle Paolo Tan also.gave something extra for this hosting stint. I'd like to send our thanks to MQuest Ventures, PARI and HONOR Philippines for letting us cover the Awit Awards 2025 Powered by VibePH and shot entirely during this event with the Honor 400 5G.

You are not just a business, but passionate people who want to further help the music industry and these artists. May your tribe increase tenfold!

Congratulations to all the winners!

PUREGOLD OPMCon 2025 Makes History: OPM Generations Showcased!

I'd be lying to you if I said I didn't despise going to the Philippine Arena because 1, it's too far, 2, travel is too tiring, and 3 if the artist is worth it. I reckon it's the same sentiment for almost anyone from Manila right? Well the folks from PUREGOLD got me thinking because as members, they'll be giving us VIP treatment plus a lineup of artists that NOBODY in the right mind could ever resist. Imagine, the BIGGEST acts in Filipino entertainment all in one place. The boys from SB19, girl group BINI, top band Sunkissed Lola, vixens G22, rising KAIA, artists Skusta Clee and talented Flow G in one stage made me say a resounding YES as soon as I heard it. Whatever hardship I'll be experiencing traveling there will all be worth it just as long as I see them all.

As you can see on the top photo, I'm a silent A'Tin and have that guy Ken as my bias. But no, that doesn't mean I don't like the rest, because I do. There's a reason why, because they've continued to represent the country, and really, they've made us all proud! This goes the same with the other groups in the list, and I just can't believe it happened. Plus, there's more. 

BINI with James Reid

KAIA

Sunkissed Lola

G22 was so hot!

Flow G

Skusta Clee

They did a collab too!

When SB19.went out, everybody just lost it!

The finale song was super sweet, a fitting end to see them all singing one song!

At the event, they also surprised us with other iconic artists that performed with them. Names like James Reid, Rico Blanco, Mayonnaise, Yeng Constantino shocked us. . . then went on and did collabs with each other. It was really crazy, but crazy good. I felt I was witnessing history, thanks to Puregold who put this together out of their own pockets. They also had free stuff given away by their partner brands like Nestle, Nescafe, Koko Krunch, Chuckie, Tide, Safeguard, Cream Silk, Surf, Champion and Colgate. There were more but I didn't get to see them so they will remain unnamed haha! 

PUREGOLD OPMCON 2025 was certainly one for the books! It made history, seeing them all in one place was just a dream come true. Whoever says there was a group or fan war must be crazy. They're literally friends, and I'm sure this is not the last time that PUREGOLD is doing this. Thank you PUREGOLD!

SB19's MINTYLADORSES Come Alive with Acerpure Cozy HF1

Acer's Home appliance arm Acerpure just made a remarkable idea come true specifically SB19's MINTYLADORSES through a special edition model of their Acerpure Cozy HF1 which they mentioned during Christmas on YouTube.

It's handheld, has 100 speed, pretty easy to carry around so you can show it off to fellow A'Tins. It also comes in a box with their faces on it, plus a few stickers, sketchpad and a lanyard so you can wear them proud in concerts or just about any occasion. This has already been out since April 16, and available at the Acer Online Store for Php 1,999.00. 

Go visit their social channels to know more about it!

Acer Leads PH Laptop Market

Seen this coming, but now it's confirmed. Acer is officially the leading consumer and gaming notebook brand in the Philippines. With over 35.7% of the market share according to GfK, they are lading in the consumer notebooks with 34.2% and gaming notebooks with 40.6% market share. This is huge, imagine having one in three of the laptops here in the country!

I guess this stems mostly on how they kept the costs down, often having best of value offers and endorsers like girl group G22 and PPOP Kings SB19. They also have the annual Predator League that is participated by a lot of ESports teams here and around the region. They are also easily accessible because of their presence in shopping apps and their very own online store. So if you are planning to have your laptop before the school starts, see if it is possible to own an Acer.

Follow their social channels for more information about their products and latest offers.

Acer's 6th Asia Pacific (APAC) Predator League All Set in Malaysia!

We witnessed the competition here in Manila a few months ago and now, they get to travel to Malaysia for the actual Acer APAC Predator League for 2025.

Since the finals is being hosted in Malaysia, the event will be done at MITEC which usually is a venue for trade expos. This time though there will be 28 teams from different regions in the world. Teams will be battling it out in MMORPG game DOTA 2 and top FPS game Valorant. The winner will be holding up the coveted Predator Shield and a whopping cash prize of 400,000 US Dollars (which will surely change lives no?).

The event will also be a place for different activities because it will be attended by gaming greats, online stars, even cosplay. This is part of their efforts to promote eSports not just in the country but the whole region. The athletes will be donning Acer's Predator gaming rigs, to hopefully showcase how great it is when it comes to response, power and beating your opponents. From Predator Orion X desktop units, to Predator Galea 365 Gaming Headsets, people will surely enjoy every blood rushing game on the Predator XB253Q screens. Folks will also be seeing the "It Lies Within" as performed by different world class artists (perhaps SB19, G22, Dara, Minzy and Sarah Geronimo included!). Hopefully, our boys from ZOL ESports and IVORY would win and make this an even better time for the Philippines! Laban Pilipinas!

Epic Celebration at #AcerAtingPasko with Kings SB19 and Ladies from G22

We had so much fun at the #AcerAtingPasko event at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall a few days ago. Thousands of fans, media partners and onlookers took time out to celebrate Christmas with the PPOP Kings SB19 and the fabulous and talented ladies of G22. Before the festivities, we were treated to Christmas songs by world class UP Madrigal Singers. 

At the event, they first showcased their newest products and announced their offers during the holidays including Php 5,000 off on premium Acer products (select models on laptops and projectors) and up to Php 10,000 worth of appliance center EGC's when you purchase select products from their stores this season. For the fine print, please visit their social channels and see announcements for these. But from what I gathered it's all about the 2024 AI PC's they have specifically the Swift Go 14 AI and the CoPilot+ PC that it has in the system. It's going to make life easier especially if you're more of a creative or using them for office functions. The new laptop has better battery life than its previous models. That alone is something so good to see on the holiday sale.

 

Anyway, Bullets and A'Tins then had the time of their life when SB19 and G22 performed on stage and did several of their worldwide hits, no doubt, we could feel the screams from the same floor we were in and the bleachers. It was deafening, and we're not surprised. They were ultra talented, good looking and knew it was time to treat their fans with their music! (make sure you follow @kumagcow on TikTok because we've got their performances there!).

Meanwhile, one of the most exciting part of the show was when SB19 and G22 exchanged gifts. Here's how it went!

See why we had fun that day?! Make sure you follow Acer because there's more of this happening soon!

SB19 and G22 Given Accolades in TAIWAN

You wouldn't believe what Acer ambassadors and some of the country's hottest PPOP group did in Taiwan. Your favorite boys Pablo, Josh, Stell, Ken and Justin of SB19 and ladies AJ, Alfea, and Jaz of G22 visited Formosa as part of their responsibilities and duties as Acer brand reps, and were welcomed by giving them honorary employee titles in the Taiwan headquarters because of their contribution for promoting them in the Philippines.

Aside from that, they appeared in Atom Boyz 2, a reality show and had some of their contestants tour the boys at Shilin Night Market, something they really enjoyed. They ate a lot of canides, chicken cake, the infamous Stinky Tofu, sweet potato balls and joined other activities in the show. G22 did the same and performed at the variety show with Sandy and Jacky Wu, popular Father Daughter hosts of the show. Acer's Sue Ong Lim was ecstatic on how they were received because she knew how both groups had so much fans in the region. There will also be a bring project she hinted, something we should look forward to in the coming months. She hopes you remember how the Limitless Acer Day 2024 song was, there might be bigger news about more projects soon.

Acer has over 36 percent market share in the Philippines, and of course, fans had a hand with that for sure. They plan to maintain this post, and introduce more technologies that are environmentally good. Make sure you follow their socials and acer.com to know more about these. 

SB19, Sandara Park, G22 + More Artists Made Acer Day 2024 Epic!

 

I think I'm still trying to recover from the recent Acer Day 2024 celebration at the Mall of Asia Arena. Seeing some of the country's brightest stars, singers, performers in one stage must have been impossible at one point, but Acer Philippines made it happen.

It was like a dream, seeing Cup of Joe dish out several trendy songs, TJ Monterde singing some of his hits, Ebe Dancel also doing some heartfelt numbers, and Rico Blanco taking the performance level to even greater heights, it was just amazing!

TJ Monterde telling us stories about his songs, and one of which was for KZ Tandingan

 

The younger ones in the crowd surely had a different type appreciation of Ebe Dancel

Rico Blanco was on a different level!

Sandara Park, G22 and SB19!

SB19 showed why they are the kings of PPOP!

If that was not enough, they also had our lovely Sandara Park performing with G22 her hit single IN or OUT. Plus G22's PPOP hits, and our favorite boys from SB19. Seeing them this time, I now know who my bias is and yes, it's Felip! His vocals are unique and deep, which I absolutely felt so crazy about. If you missed the concert, I have their performances on my TikTok account, you can check TikTok.com/@kumagcow for it (and follow please!). It was unforgettable, and felt that we can do anything after that. We are LIMITLESS!

Congratulations Acer Philippines and thank you so much for giving us an extraordinary treat! Being in this year's celebrations of Acer Day is just on a different level and people appreciated the booths, the appliances you displayed, and the new laptops you made accessible at the MOA Arena grounds.

SB19, Sandara Park, G22 Headline Acer Day 2024

 

Another year, another installment of ACER DAY!

Today we just got word that ACER day is happening this coming August 4, 2024. It will be held at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City and the stars coming are phenomenal!

Since it's 2024, everything will be going with the theme of AI, but theirs is kinda quirky as they call it "AI'm Limitless", which means YOU have the power to push your limits and see what kind of products, PC's will fit your lifestyle.

Acer Ambassadors will be in full force which means performances from well loved PPOP Kings SB19, the national krungkrung Sandara Park and G22 are expected to do several numbers. Add to that, Rico Blanco, Ebe Dancel, TJ Monterde, and Cup of Joe,

Want a surprise? SB19 and G22 will be telling you more about "Acer U: Charged to Lead" Back to School Promo where you can get discounts on the latest laptops, Acer home devices, and even gear from Under Armour as a freebie (depends on purchase and will be given GC's). It can range from 10-14K, and must be registered at warranty.acer.com.ph to claim it. If you want to know more about how you can take advantage of the discounts, visit their social channels and official website. You can get information about the concert there too.

See you there! I'll be covering it!