Lifestyle

Smile Train, the world’s leading cleft charity, is introducing Cleft Con Radio, a series of talks about comprehensive cleft care, in collaboration with RMN Foundation (RMNF), RMN Networks, Inc.’s corporate social responsibility arm.

Smile Train hopes to educate more patients and parents of children with clefts, as well as teach more communities in the country, by using the RMNF’s extensive network in the country. Apart from extensive cleft treatment, Smile Train applies what it has learned through its telehealth program by discussing subjects that may be useful to persons with clefts and their loved ones who need more information on how to help and engage with them in their everyday lives. Feeding and nutrition, surgery and post-surgical care, speech therapy, and oral hygiene, among other topics, will be tackle, with each one suited to the unique needs of persons with cleft palates.

“This partnership means a great deal to the foundation. We know that there are millions out there who rely heavily on radio to receive much-needed information, especially during this time when access to information is limited. We wish to lend a helping hand not only as believers of Smile Train’s advocacy but that we are cognizant of the needs of our fellow Filipinos around the country,” said RMN’s President and Chairman, Eric S. Canoy.

Cleft Con Radio will start May 25, 2:30 p.m. on RMN DZXL 558 and will be on air every other Tuesday thereafter, until July 27. Each discussion is designed to help more people understand the cleft community better. Starting with basic topics such as What is a cleft?  to more in-depth ones such as breastfeeding and nutrition of infants with a cleft and challenges cleft-affected individuals face such as bullying.

Each episode will also be made available online for those who are unable to access the discussion in real time. To check the topics, schedules, and uploaded episodes, interested parties can go to Smile Train Philippines’ Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/SmileTrainPhilippines/ and RMN DZXL’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/RMNDZXL558Manila/.

“Smile Train is grateful for like-minded partners like RMNF. The pandemic truly highlighted the needs from people affected with cleft. Cleft Con Radio is an initiative meant to enable patients and their parents or guardians to continue their learning, as well as educate the public about cleft during the time we all have limited access to information. Through RMNF, we are confident that we will be able to reach more individuals and communities,” said Smile Train South East Asia Area Director, Kimmy Flaviano.

Since the start of the pandemic, Smile Train’s speech telehealth program in the Philippines has treated over 200 patients, providing them with more than 1,000 cleft care-related sessions—including speech therapy, nutritional support, breastfeeding guidance for mothers of babies with clefts, pre-surgical consultations, and psychosocial care. Recently, the organization launched the country’s first Filipino speech therapy mobile application which serves as a platform for more patients and families born with cleft to continue to receive comprehensive cleft care with minimal disruptions.

For more information about Smile Train’s global efforts and to donate, please visit smiletrain.org. To learn more about Smile Train’s local programs in the Philippines, please visit smiletrain.ph, follow Smile Train Philippines on Twitter and Instagram @SmileTrainPh, and like us on Facebook at @SmileTrainPhilippines. The Smile Train Philippines mobile application can be downloaded via Google Play.

About RMN Foundation
The RMN Foundation (RMNF) was established on September 5, 2012 as the corporate social responsibility arm of RMN Networks, Inc., which is committed to support and cultivate humanitarian relationships that uplift the Filipino’s quality of life in every part of the Philippines. With a nationwide broadcasting strength of over 60 AM and FM owned and affiliated radio stations, the RMN Networks aims to only provide public service through the airwaves, but also in the most meaningful way directly to local audiences through the efforts of RMN Foundation. The Foundation is a non-stock, non-profit organization that develops and implements programs to address the needs of the underprivileged and contribute to address the social problems in the country. To learn more about RMN, please contact [email protected] and visit their website rmn.ph.

WalterMart Supermarket, one of the Philippines’ largest supermarket chains, has launched Palengke Fresh with Mayani, the fastest-growing farm-to-table digital platform, to improve its agricultural supply chain while alleviating the plight of our local farmers.

WalterMart will purchase directly from Mayani’s network of over 12,000 smallholder farmers as part of this scheme, providing fresher produce at a better value to all of its customers.

 “Our commitment to the communities and our customers is to win through malasakitfrom farm to market,” says Rose Caalam, General Manager of WalterMart Supermarket. “Malasakitto ensure a sustainable income for our farmers during this pandemic through Mayani, malasakitto our customers by providing them quality and affordable fresh produce assortment, and malasakit to employees by making our proud local ambassadors of fresh and healthy products.”

WalterMart has been helping various farmers cooperatives and associations since the roll-out of Palengke Fresh in 2019. Given WalterMart’s expansive network of community shopping malls across Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and South Luzon, the program sought to leverage such footprint to aid more rural farming communities by integrating Mayani into WalterMart’s responsible, “support local” value chain.

“This team-up is a huge leap forward for our smallholder farmers not only in terms of higher rural incomes for them, but the predictability of it during these volatile times,” remarked JT Solis, the Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Mayani.

Solis also pointed out that because of Mayani’s role as the direct platform conduit between farmers and big commercial customers such as WalterMart and other reputable retailers, the pricing of fresh produce on supermarket shelves becomes even more competitive drawing from supply chain efficiencies and lowered transaction costs.

WalterMart Supermarket hosts a “bagsakan” market in the parking lot of WalterMart malls on Palengke Fresh weekends, making it a convenient and favored buying option for shoppers.

Furthermore, WalterMart is sponsoring numerous community pantries that have sprouted in various parts of Luzon for the entire month of May. It allows all of its customers to buy local produce from Palengke Fresh and donate it to various community pantries in the areas where WalterMart operates. Customers can purchase a Chopsuey Pack for as little as P50 to help uplift grassroots communities.

WalterMart is available both online at www.waltermart.com and in-store with 39 WalterMart Supermarket branches in Luzon.

That’s no surprise that beauty pageants are popular among Filipinos. On coronation nights, Filipinos come together to support the country’s representative, cheering her on with the rest of the country. Our Country is also a beauty pageant powerhouse, and we are clearly the second most recognized country in international beauty pageants, thanks to our dedication to the art of pageantry. We’re also one of just five countries to have won at least once in each of the Big Four international pageants: Miss Universe, Miss World, Miss International, and Miss Earth.

The remarkable Filipinas who have competed in international pageants are all strong women who, in their own unique ways, contribute to the country’s quest for female empowerment. They, like TikTok, are inspiring and entertaining, and they share this part of themselves with their fans and followers through their app updates.

Here are 5 homegrown beauty queens that you can follow on TikTok.

1. Rabiya Mateo

https://www.tiktok.com/@rabiyamateo

Rabiya represented the Philippines at the recently concluded 69th Miss Universe pageant, where she placed in the Top 21. She is a licensed physical therapist who graduated Cum Laude from IloIlo Doctor’s College. While she doesn’t practice clinically, she instead chooses to teach at review centers in different provinces around the country.

2. Catriona Gray

https://www.tiktok.com/@catriona_gray

Crowned Miss Universe 2018, Catriona is the fourth Filipina to win the Miss Universe pageant. Best known for her signature “Lava Walk”, Catriona is truly a woman of many talents. Apart from modelling and joining beauty pageants, she also holds a graduation certificate in Music Theory, and was even the lead singer in her school’s jazz band. This beauty is tough too, and is a black belt in Choi Kwang-Do martial arts.

3. Maxine Medina

https://www.tiktok.com/@maxinemedina

Maxine placed in the Top 6 when she represented the Philippines at the Miss Universe 2016 pageant. She is an interior designer who enjoys spending time at the beach with family and friends whenever she can. Here’s a fun piece of trivia – Maxine is not the only beauty queen in her family. In fact, her aunt, Gem Padilla-Thomas, also held the title of Miss Universe Philippines back in 1990.

4. Pia Wurtzbach

https://www.tiktok.com/@piawurtzbach

Pia is an HIV awareness advocate who promotes zero discrimination towards individuals living with the disease. Showing a tenacious side to her, it took three tries before Pia finally won the right to represent the Philippines at Miss Universe. She then went on to win the title that year, reigning as Miss universe in 2015. Before joining pageants, she acted in multiple films and TV shows, working hard as their family’s breadwinner since she was only 11 years old.

5. MJ Lastimosa

https://www.tiktok.com/@mjl.23

Another fierce female with a persistent side, MJ also joined Binibining Pilipinas three times before finally being crowned Miss Universe Philippines. At the 2014 Miss Universe pageant, she ended up as one of the 10 finalists. This beauty queen is also a Computer Engineer who graduated with honors from the University of Mindanao in Davao City.

Check out these incredible beauty queens, and use TikTok to find many more inspiring ladies to follow. To get started, download the app on your  iOS or Android device today.

If you’re a wife and a mother, it’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. However, this does not rule out the possibility of getting a good career when raising a family. The trick is to strike a balance between work and home life, accept the necessary sacrifices, and find satisfaction in everything you do. Doctor Mom, Mirah Borja, has done and continues to do all of this while juggling her family and career.

Mirah is a TikTok creator who posts helpful tips on obstetric and gynecologic disorders, the transition from conception to motherhood, and the wonders of parenting. She goes by the handle @doctormomph on social media. She says,  “In this time of pandemic, access to health care has become limited and this is why I have dedicated majority of my videos to respond to medical inquiries that have been posted on my comments section. I myself went through a pregnancy during this pandemic, and it felt tougher than I had imagined. Like how I felt, I know that there are pregnant mothers out there who wanted to seek consult but fear putting themselves and their babies at risk.”

One of Mirah’s first videos talks about danger signs to watch out for during pregnancy, a subject that is important to her as a medical professional. “As an Obstetrician, I am very particular about this, and this is what we advise all our patients to watch out for before sending them home. Not only does it assure me that I have well advised my patients, but it also makes my patients feel empowered that she is able to look after her and her baby’s well-being as well,”  she says.

Apart from being a doctor, Mirah is also a first-time mom. She says that, while she is devoted to her profession, her top priority will always be her child. But being able to balance family time and work is hard enough, and the COVID-19 pandemic has made things even more difficult. Mirah shares, “Being a devoted mom, being a devoted wife, all the while being a devoted doctor takes practice. It took a whole lot of patience and skill to attune myself to this constantly changing environment that is full of uphill struggles, decisions, and joy.  I try to balance work and family by creating a “To do list” for the following day before I go sleep, waking up early every day and being productive as much as I can during the day so that I can spend the night with my family.”

Having to abandon her two-week-old daughter to attend to her patients was one of Mirah’s greatest challenges during the pandemic. According to Mirah, “I think it was the hardest moment I had during this motherhood – the first time that I had to leave her side. Imagine not being able to breastfeed, not being able to go home to hold, hug, and kiss your baby because of fear of exposing her to the disease. I longed for her, and knowing that she too was longing for me was the hardest thing to endure at that time,” she shares. Despite the sacrifices, Mirah believes that the best thing about being a working mom is being able to continue doing what she loves. Being a physician is, for her, the most fulfilling job. Mirah’s advice to other moms, whether they work or stay at home is, “As moms, we will always somehow tend to put everyone else’s needs before our own – Mommy’s instinct! But this may eventually lead to mommy burnout. So take a break once in a while.” She add, “Do not be ashamed to take a breather. Making time for yourself is a must.”

On TikTok, you will find more inspiring mothers like Mirah. To get started, download the software on your iOS or Android device today.

After a year of being compelled to try online shopping by the pandemic, Filipinos have completely embraced e-commerce, and their online buying behavior is changing. ShopBack, APAC’s leading pre-shopping portal, discovered this as one of its major findings.

According to We Social and Hootsuite’s April 2020 Digital Statshot survey, 64 percent of Filipino internet users said they spend more time on social media, while 23 percent said they spend more time shopping online. Digital payments have a tremendous potential for increased market adoption as e-commerce acceptance grows.

According to ShopBack, the number of customers purchasing retail and basic products online has increased significantly. Filipino online shoppers, the brand commissioned a survey, which revealed that as the country continues to manage through the global pandemic, customers have established more value-conscious shopping habits as e-commerce and the acceleration to go digital has grown.

Window Shopping…But Online

Evidently, today’s online consumers are active browsers who spend time to get the best deals. The survey revealed that 88.4% of consumers usually know what they want to purchase before going online to shop. Even then, the majority seem to still enjoy browsing on e-commerce websites and marketplaces, as 73.8% of respondents spend an average of over an hour browsing each week, while 15.3% of respondents spend more than 5 hours a week browsing different products.

Interestingly, women appear to spend more time browsing when online shopping, with 77.1% clocking in more than an hour, compared to 64% of men.

Furthermore, major sales have an impact on browsing behavior. The study found that  79.8% of respondents tend to spend more time browsing online during major sales days such as the recently concluded 4.4, 9.9, 10.10, 11.11, and 12.12.

Consumers tend to stick to their usual shopping platform, but are platform-agnostic when lower prices or specific products come into play. Around 92% of respondents indicated that they make most of their online purchases on marketplaces such as Shopee, Lazada, Amazon, etc – the top reasons for this are that products are cheaper, convenient payment methods, and user-friendly platforms. Another 71.3% have made purchases from other online websites, such as directly from brand.coms, last year, for reasons such as finding better discounts, wider product selection, and exclusive brand promotions.

Since more and more Filipinos become savvy e-commerce consumers, they are also becoming more value-conscious, but not at the expense of product quality. In fact, 89.7% of respondents compare prices of an item across different websites and marketplaces prior to making a purchase.

More Value-conscious Shoppers

The survey also found that 72.3% of the consumers spend more time comparing prices now, compared to last year. On average, shoppers spend around 50 minutes comparing prices, with 14% indicating that they take more than 90 minutes choosing in between products and website platforms.

Interestingly, the main factors that influence purchase behavior vary between females and males. For women, the main factors that drive purchase behaviour are the quality of the product (94.7%), pricing (91%), and good reviews (89.2%). Notably, good customer service is also important to Filipino women, with 63.9% listing it as a key factor that influences their purchase decision.

In contrast, for men, the main factors that drive purchase behaviour are pricing (95.9%), the quality of the product (90.3%), and good reviews (85.2%).

Millennials and Social Media Commerce

Based on the findings, e-commerce will continue to thrive in the Philippines, with millennials as the biggestmarket. 86% of theyounger respondentsspend the most time researching and looking at different options before deciding on the best product available for them as compared to the older age groups.

Participants were also split when asked if they bought products directly from a brand’s social media platform, with 58.3% indicating they have done so, with the remaining saying they have not yet bought from a social media platform. Among the participants who tried purchasing via the brand’s social media platform, 68.3% declared that they have been more inclined to buy via social media now as compared to pre-lockdown.

“The survey findings have shown us how e-commerce acceptance has grown tremendously over the past year. With Filipino shoppers discovering the conveniences and benefits of online shopping, we expect continuous growth in the Philippines, and along with it, the rise of digital payment solutions. All these will, no doubt, enhance and steadily upgrade Filipinos’ online shopping experience,” concluded Prashant Kala, Country Manager of ShopBack Philippines.

Mother’s Day is a day of personal celebration between mothers and families. This celebration is once a year so we need to show to our moms that they’re loved and cared for, make it a moment to remember. Make this year’s Mother’s Day fun and memorable for her and for the whole family with some bit of creativity and planning.

This year’s Mother’s Day celebration, Ortigas Malls has made it far easier and extra special for you. Check out these treats and tips specially curated for our dear mothers:

• Treat her to her favorite dishes. Good food is one of the easiest and quickest ways to cheer up your mom. Take her out for a special meal al fresco style at any Ortigas Malls! Alternatively, you can have your food ordered and delivered from the restaurants through My Home Dashers—just call, text, or Viber 0917-815-6640 for Greenhills or 0917-851-9262 for Tiendesitas and Estancia.
• Indulge the domestic goddess in her. Get your mom some nice home finds and fab tipsto spruce up her personal space and let her enjoy home styling. Make sure she joins the Home Styling workshop offered by Ortigas Malls on May 9 at 2:00 PM via Facebook page, with stylist Zenas Pineda offering valuable tips that all moms would find valuable!
• Pamper her to bits. All moms deserve some rest and relaxation. For some refreshing home pampering, give her a pamper package that would make her feel good inside and out. Make sure to pick up a special gift for her whenever you accumulate P2,000 worth of receipts from any Ortigas Malls on May 9.
• Turn on the music. Show your mom you love her with some beautiful music. Because music is the balm of the soul, Ortigas Malls is holding a special “Serenade for Moms” on May 9 at 11:00 AM via Facebook page, an online entertainment specialty that she would definitely enjoy.
• Capture the moment. Moms are sentimental beings who love capturing and looking at photos to keep the family memories alive. Visit the photo nooks located at Greenhills, Tiendesitas, and Estanciafrom May 4 to 9 and take that IG-worthy photo to share online.

Check out this year’s activities and visit Greenhills, Tiendesitas, Estancia, and Industria for a Mother’s Day Celebration. For more information, you may check their official Facebook pages –Greenhills,Tiendesitas,Estancia, and Industria.