VARIETY STORE. A woman tends her sari-sari store in this undated photo in Siaton, Negros Oriental. The Department of Trade and Industry-Negros Oriental will launch next week a program on training sari-sari store owners on the use of electronic apps for faster and seamless transactions. (PNA file photo by Mary Judaline Flores Partlow)
DUMAGUETE CITY – Around 50 to 70 sari-sari (or neighborhood sundry) stores in this Negros Oriental capital are gearing up towards the use of electronic applications for seamless transactions, an official of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) here said Friday.
Krystle Jade Bato, DTI-Negros Oriental spokesperson, told the Philippine News Agency these pilot sari-sari stores were tapped to participate in the Tindahan Mo, e-Level Up Mo: A Sari Sari Store Advancement Program in the province.
“We will have a technical run on Monday before the official launch on Wednesday next week with the participants joining in person at the city public market complex,” Bato said.
The program aims to equip sari-sari store owners to connect directly with suppliers and distributors, thus eliminating middlemen or having to purchase their goods at supermarkets, grocery stores, and other retail outlets.
They will also be trained to use online applications like GCash and Pay Maya.
The DTI has already received a commitment from one supplier who would help facilitate the sari-sari store owners’ requirements for their specific products.
The idea of the program is to teach sari-sari stores to improve their business transactions in the neighborhood with the end goal of going fully digital and keeping up with the current trend, Bato said.
Many countries are now engaged in cashless transactions, Bato pointed out although she admitted that for the neighborhood sundry stores, some purchases may not require online apps for a minimum purchase for practical reasons.
The DTI will bring the same program to the towns and cities in Negros Oriental in the coming months. (PNA)
