Glico Philippines, Inc. is celebrating Pocky day (11.11) this November 11, 2022 with a new TikTok challenge that combines the Filipino culture of gift-giving with a cute Pocky[ “Pocky” is a trademark of Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd.] trend popularized in Japan. The Pocky Heart-to-Heart TikTok Challenge is perfect for those looking to showcase their love to the ones they hold dearest.

Every year since, Glico celebrates Pocky day globally on 11.11, because this popular Japanese snack that everyone loves looks like the number “1”

The tradition of giving gifts or pasalubong to loved ones is an integral part of the Filipino culture; this generosity and thoughtfulness are traits that perfectly resonate with Pocky’s brand philosophy of sharing happiness with everyone. This is why Pocky has chosen to celebrate their biggest day of the year, 11.11, with a gift-giving challenge for everyone in the Philippines to show their utmost love to those closest to them in the upcoming festive season.

If you have someone you want to show your love and appreciation to, here‘s how you can join the Pocky Heart-to-Heart TikTok Challenge:

1.Create a heart with Pocky boxes — Using at least two Pocky boxes, put your creativity and skills to work, and shape them into a heart. You can even decorate the Pocky heart with ribbons, flowers or anything else that adds to the love you put into the gift.

2.Give your Pocky heart to a loved one — With your valid TikTok account, take a video of you giving your Pocky Heart to someone you want to show your appreciation for. Make sure to share your happiness with us by telling us why you’re giving this person the Pocky Heart.

3.Share your love to the world! — Post the video on TikTok with the hashtag #PockyHearttoHeart!

Whether it’s a partner, an old friend, a teacher or your grandparents, there is bound to be someone dear to show your love to. Take the Pocky Heart-to-Heart TikTok Challenge and showcase your love in a Heart-to-Heart “Tok” with your loved ones. If you post the best entry, you’ll win a cash prize and a special limited-edition gift pack with “Pocky Happiness Flavour”!

You can complete the challenge in the comfort of your home, in a fancy venue of your choice, or at one of our Pocky day event booths coming soon to a space near you! Follow the Pocky Philippines Facebook and Glico Philippines Instagram to find out the locations of these events as they open up.

Gear up for a dash of holiday fun as Shopee gives users a great deal of exciting prizes this 11.11 and 12.12. From a chance to Win Gold or a year’s supply of essentials, to a caroling challenge with Shopee Christmas ambassador Jose Mari Chan, and a wider assortment of mas mura deals, here are a few things that shoppers can look forward to at Shopee’s Mega Pamasko Sale:

1. Win gold, groceries, or electricity when you shop on Shopee

Welcome Christmas with bigger, brighter prizes at Shopee’s ‘Shop to Win Gold’ promo. Claim your unique lucky code when you shop until November 11 for a chance to win either a gold bar, a year’s worth of groceries from Procter & Gamble and Rebisco, or subsidy for a year’s worth of electricity. Stream the grand draw via Shopee Live on November 12 and see if you're one of the 12 lucky winners who brings home gold or a year-long supply of groceries or electricity.

2. Win ₱10,000 and get a chance to sing with Jose Mari Chan

Channel your inner Jose Mari Chan and let your inner idol shine at Shopee’s caroling challenge. Form a group with your best buds or be a daring soloist and record a 30-second video singing your favorite Christmas carol for a chance to interact with Shopee Christmas ambassador Jose Mari Chan on Shopee Live and win ₱10,000 via ShopeePay.

Fans of Jose Mari Chan can also check out his golden rendition of the Mas Mura Sa Shopee jingle on Shopee’s latest TVC. Visit Shopee’s official pages on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube to stay updated on the most exciting content featuring the beloved Christmas icon.

3. Play Spin & Win to win appliances from American Heritage

Shopee and American Heritage are also treating lucky users with a chance to spruce up their homes with brand-new appliances. From November 5 to December 11, shoppers can test their luck by playing Spin & Win's Home Makeover Raffle and see if they stand a chance to win up to ₱500,000 worth of American Heritage prizes. Users just need to spin the wheel on the Shopee Prizes page in the Shopee app and collect as many golden tickets daily. Winners will be drawn on December 12, where a total of 11 winners can win up to ₱11,000 worth of American Heritage discount vouchers.

4. Get up to ₱2,000,000 Worth of Prizes with ShopeePay

More prizes can be won on Shopee’s Mega Pamasko Sale as ShopeePay hands out exclusive deals and exciting raffle prizes worth up to ₱2 Million this 11.11. Users who send at least ₱50 to any mobile number or Shopee user can play the Lucky Draw and get a chance to win 5% off load vouchers, ₱1,000 off on bills payment or up to ₱10,000 cash prize. Each transfer and Lucky Draw transaction also earns users a raffle entry to win any of these Samsung products: a Galaxy S22, a Galaxy Tab S8 or a Galaxy Flip4.

5. Shop and get mas mura discounts from your favorite brands

Stock up on go-to essentials or get a headstart on your holiday shopping at mas mura prices from leading brands like OPPO, Uni-care Hygienic Products Inc., Infinix, Unilever Beauty, realme, Johnson & Johnson, Enfagrow, Garnier, Maybelline and L’Oreal Paris. Visit and follow their official Shopee stores to know more about their latest promos this 11.11.

Win gold this Christmas and experience holiday shopping like no other. Download the Shopee app from leading app stores and visit https://shopee.ph/m/11-11 for more details.

Ahead of the official launch of Disney+ in the Philippines on November 17, Alipay+ together with its e-wallet partner GCash today announced that it will offer Disney+ as part of a special package to users of the Philippines’ No.1 e-wallet, GCash.

As part of an early bird deal from November 4 until November 16, GCash users in the Philippines with Alipay+ Rewards can sign up for the special package that includes Disney+ annual subscriptions, when they pay with their GCash e-wallet via Alipay+ Rewards on the GCash app.

Subscribers will be able to start streaming Disney+ from November 17, to watch exciting general entertainment content from iconic brands including Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, National Geographic and Star.

“We’re delighted that consumers in the Philippines will very soon be able to access our vast library of entertainment content on Disney+ and connect with their favorite characters and stories anytime they want,” said David Shin, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Hong Kong, The Walt Disney Company. “Consumers will be able to stream exclusive originals, blockbuster films, series, documentaries, and incredible content from Disney’s iconic suite of brands and franchises.”

Disney+ is the exclusive streaming home of an ever-growing library of global, regional and Asian language content such as blockbuster films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe to award-winning Pixar animation, to Korean content featuring BTS and other top Asian stars, under the Star brand.

Star also offers renowned movies and shows such as Emmy-award winning Grey’s Anatomy, Only Murders in The Building, The Bear, The Simpsons and The Kardashians. In addition, Star delivers exclusive originals produced in collaboration with producers and directors in the Asia Pacific region.

“As a company committed to delivering more value and choice to our customers, we are thrilled to be bringing Disney+ to consumers to offer access to a great selection of global, regional and Asian language entertainment to consumers across the Philippines,” said Jing Yin, General Manager of Global Strategic Accounts of International Business Group at Ant Group. “With innovative payment and marketing solutions, Alipay+ serves as a cross-border economic connector enabling consumers to make payments on global platforms to enjoy more rewards including world-class entertainment experiences through their preferred digital wallets.”

“Through GCash and Alipay+, Disney fans can enjoy their favorite movies and shows in just a few taps. We recognize this significant opportunity in the entertainment and streaming space and have high hopes for Disney+ in the Philippines market,” said Winsley Bangit, Chief Customer Officer of Mynt – operator of GCash.

After the debut of Disney+ on November 17, consumers in the Philippines can continue to use their GCash e-wallets via Alipay+ to subscribe for the popular global streaming service.

Procter & Gamble (P&G) Philippines​​ continues to intensify its efforts in creating a more sustainable world with its Project LESS program, a drive to expand the company’s efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle waste in its business ecosystem, especially in its retail delivery operations.

This latest program makes progress in often overlooked customer and consumer touchpoints, such point of sales materials (POSM), which spans materials such as displays, posters, shelf branding, leaflets, dispensers, and more, and in last-mile packaging for e-commerce.

P&G Philippines recently customized its product bundling packaging by converting laminate-based bellybands and stickers to 100% FSC-certified papers; reducing bundling material usage and resulting in a 380,000 kg reduction in plastic waste compared to the company’s previous year's consumption.

P&G also developed collapsible, reusable, and paper-based in-store displays called “Flexi POSMs” to increase the reusability of its displays and reduce its prior single-use displays. The collapsible design of P&G’s Flexi POSMs allows the company to transport more displays at a time to retail partners and helps reduce transportation emissions. To date, more than 80% of P&G’s POSMs across all its categories in various retail stores in the country are already made of reusable materials that partner suppliers can easily refurbish. With this shift to reusable displays, P&G successfully reduced its use of virgin material by approximately 20,000 kg. Prior single-use displays will be collected by the company for recycling.

On top of reducing solid waste and emissions, this change also aims to maintain or improve the overall customer and consumer experience to ensure that more sustainable alternatives do not compromise superior product quality and presence in-store.

“In P&G, we integrate sustainability by adopting meaningful changes in our business strategy and operations. It is possible to do good for the environment while serving our consumers and customers with superior quality products and experiences, and creating more value for our business and our partners,” said Anna Legarda, P&G’s Communications Director.

Sustainable efforts in e-commerce

The rise in online shopping has grown exponentially in the last two years due to limited mobility needs and convenience. A common method to protect products during delivery entails using excessive amounts of plastic wrap. In an effort to reduce this and find alternatives, P&G launched a regional sustainability partnership with Lazada to recycle cartons from their Cabuyao plant for use as last-mile packaging in e-commerce delivery. Cartons converted into honeycomb-like protective wraps are now being used as replacements for the previous plastic bubble wrap paddings. The honeycomb-like protective wrap ensures the same quality of packaging and delivery compared to using plastic bubble wrap. As of August 2022, P&G has supplied Lazada with over 4,000 kilograms of cartons for recycling.

(Sample upcycled cartons for use as last-mile packaging in Lazada) Additionally, P&G produced “Ship-In-Own-Container” eCommerce packaging for Olay bundles on its e-commerce platforms. The initiative eliminates the need for additional customization and last-mile packaging materials such as bubble wrap, fillers, and tape.

When small changes make a huge impact

As one of the largest consumer goods companies in the world and in the country, even small changes in P&G’s products and operations implemented at scale across its business make a huge impact. Project LESS shows its commitment to make changes where already possible while also working on long-term packaging innovations. It has also made packaging changes in the past years. Bottles of Herbal Essences bio:renew shampoo are made with 25% post-consumer resin (recycled plastic). P&G also eliminated plastic overwraps on Safeguard soap multipacks replacing them with recycled paper cartons. This reduced 8,500 km of potential plastic waste or a thousand times the length of the Boracay coastline.

Recently, P&G Philippines was recognized at the 2022 Asia CEO Awards with the Sustainability Company of The Year Circle of Excellence Award. The award recognizes those that achieved important success in environmental progress and demonstrated leadership and commitment to sustainability.

As the world celebrated the International Day of the Girl last October 11, World Vision Philippines successfully mounted its #GirlsCan campaign which highlighted the need to support and empower girls for a brighter future. The advocacy was able to gain over 700 sponsorships since its launch last August, with the help of various celebrities, partners and sponsors.

Multi-awarded actress and World Vision Ambassador Jasmine Curtis-Smith, together with Miss Universe Philippines 2020 candidate and fashion entrepreneur Ericka Evangelista and content creators Janina Vela and Lyqa Maravilla led in voicing out that empowered girls, empower girls.

The Women Business Council of the Philippines (WomenBiz) along with the other partners – Globe Kmmunity, Ever Bilena, Hello Glow, Lazada, Shoppee, Club of Marikina North Rotary, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Hera and Plus Network, made it big for the campaign. Adarna House pledged part of their sales to aid programs for girl empowerment.

Papemelroti paved the way for International Day of the Girl by offering an exclusive and personalized #GirlsCan articulated paper dolls as freebie when you visit their stores! You can collect the rest of the dolls each time you donate Php1,000 to World Vision’s #GirlsCan campaign.

Today, various issues surrounding girls in the country remain and violence against children is one of the major concerns, in fact there is an increase of 264% cases in online sexual exploitation. In education, over 2 million girls drop out from school while more adolescent girls get pregnant and give birth every day.

“Despite the many advances that we have achieved over the years in promoting the rights of children, unfortunately, there are a lot of issues still affecting girls around the world. The harsh realities faced by girls underpin the necessity for us citizens to advance their rights,” said Ms. Vanessa Retuerma, World Vision Director for Strategy Management, Impact and Learning.

While poverty remains to be the leading cause of these alarming problems, there are always ways on how to empower girls to break free. Just imagine what #GirlsCan do if we give them a better future ahead. They can be an influence for good and they can change lives.

To know how you can support #GirlsCan, visit https://t.co/RAUn2HPxP7 or follow World Vision’s official social media pages /worldvisionph on Facebook, @worldvisionphl on Instagram, and @worldvisionph on Twitter.

Christmas is coming early as OPPO opens up the celebrations with their biggest one-day sale of the year this 11.11! Shop ‘til you drop on OPPO’s Lazada and Shopee official stores and start stuffing your stockings with up to 63% off on OPPO devices.

Lucky OPPO shoppers are up for big prizes! Make sure to log onto Shopee and Lazada at 9:00am, 3:00pm, or 7:00pm on 11.11 to get a chance to score Php1 deals on Enco Buds and A16K. Additionally, five customers will also win 100% cashback when they purchase an OPPO smartphone valued up to Php30,000.

The crazy sale continues as more vouchers, freebies, and bundles await. Get up to Php200 and Php600 off with minimum spends of Php9,999 and Php14,999 respectively. Free shipping vouchers worth Php50 can also be enjoyed if you purchase at least Php500 on gadgets. Tune into the livestreams over the three-day sale and claim Php100 vouchers with minimum spend of Php4,999, and Php1,000 off if you spend Php14,999.

Shopee customers can also get an additional 15% off vouchers, capped at Php1,000, while Lazada buyers can take advantage of 10% off vouchers, capped at Php1,000, plus an additional Php50 off for every Php500 spend.

Choose value for money smartphones by purchasing OPPO A16K and OPPO A55, and take home a free 32GB memory card or free multifunctional Bluetooth speakers respectively. Power up with a new OPPO A94 and get a free 10,000mAh power bank along with it. If you’re eyeing #ThePortraitExpert Reno Series during this sale, your cart will also be stuffed with free Neon Island Deskpads for every Reno5, Reno6 and Reno7 Series purchase, and free OPPO Enco W11 Earbuds for all Reno8 Series transactions. Make sure to check out early, as freebies are only available until supplies last.

OPPO’s Bundle Deals make shopping even more fun this 11.11 Sale. If #Fitmas is on your mind, score the Band B1 + Enco Buds bundle for Php1,999, or the Band B1 + Enco Buds2 bundle for Php2,699. High performance for less? Look no further than the A16 3GB + Enco Buds bundle for Php6,299 or the A16 3GB + Band B1 bundle for Php6,399. If the ultra-powerful A55 is on your list, check out the A55 + Enco Buds bundle for Php8,999 or the A55 + Band B1 bundle for Php9,099. Live life at the fullest speed when you purchase the A94 + Enco Buds bundle for Php11,499 or the A94 + Band B1 bundle for Php11,599. Sync up to your new Portrait Expert, with the Reno5 + Enco Buds bundle for only Php15,999 or the Reno5 5G + Enco Buds bundle for just Php18,999.

Spend your 11.11 Sale weekend making the most of the sweetest deals from OPPO. Add those gadgets to your cart and don’t miss the chance to score your favorite OPPO devices on Shopee and Lazada on November 11, 2022.

For updates and detailed promotion mechanics about the sale, visit OPPO’s official website at https://www.oppo.com/ph/ or its official Facebook page at OPPO Philippines. You can also check OPPO Official Stores on Shopee and Lazada. To get the best care for your newest OPPO devices, visit your nearest OPPO Care Center or contact via the OPPO Support website or Facebook page.

They may not say it, but moms want their kids to develop and grow up to be able to achieve their dreams and aspirations in life. Most mothers would do everything they can, so their children do not fall behind and ensure their kids’ developmental superiority.

For moms of kids aged 3 years and older who feel that their overall development is lacking or “kulang”, there is now a holistic approach they can try. If before, child development was a piecemeal or “paisa-isa” process, the Upgraded All-Around Development of children can now be achieved by giving them the right stimulation, the proper nutrition, and the improved Vitaminized Lactum 3+.

Vitaminized Lactum 3+ has upgraded benefits that support the #UpgradedAllAroundDevelopment of kids:


With proper stimulation, correct nutrition, and regular consumption of the improved Vitaminized Lactum 3+, a child’s development can quickly go from “Kulang” to “Lamang”.

So Filipino moms- put your minds at ease and ensure that your kids are #LakingLamang! Make the switch to Upgraded All Around Development with Vitaminized Lactum 3+ with proper nutrition and stimulation.

 

Like his father before him, John Dizon, Jr. and his family have been long-time stewards of protected trees in their community in Tuba, Benguet. When the time came for him to take up the mantle, he did so willingly to honor his father’s legacy.

“My father passed away in 2012. It was then that we found out that the area he is managing in collaboration with the government was part of a community-based forest management program,” said Mr. Dizon.

A year later, Mr. Dizon, who now heads Benguet-based environmental conservation group, Nagawa, Manganese, Liw-Liw, Sadle Agroforestry Assoc. Inc. (NAMALISA), started working closely with the SM Foundation for an inaugural tree-planting campaign back in 2013 to pick up where his father had left off in his advocacy.

With the impact of climate change more felt in recent years, Mr. Dizon shared the importance of planting more trees in communities to thin out air pollutants in keeping the air fresh and people healthier. The trees which his father planted also helped prevent soil erosion and landslides caused by earthquakes.

He nurtures a dream that some of his children will take after him to help protect the environment. Getting closer to that dream, one of his sons is eyeing a career in forestry, a nod to his father’s chosen field.

To further this advocacy, Mr. Dizon supports the reforestation initiative of SM Foundation, Inc., the social good arm of SM and the Fast Retailing Foundation (FR Foundation), a general incorporated foundation in Japan through the Grow Trees Community campaign.

The project aims to plant and grow forest trees such as the Benguet pine, Alnus or Calliandra and Coffee trees to also help create livelihood opportunities for the community by working closely with People’s Organizations such as NAMALISA in Tuba, Benguet.

 

Many people have become more aware of the importance of sustainability in everyday living during the two years that the world faced the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Environmental awareness has caught on through practices such as shifting to paperless, reducing plastic use and planting more trees. For property developers, taking part in this movement means transitioning into green buildings and developments.

Such is the case for SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (SM Prime), a publicly listed subsidiary of SM Investments Corporation (SMIC) that is committed to building innovative and sustainable lifestyle cities. SM Prime is future-proofing its developments to be more responsive and adaptive to community needs and the effects of climate change in line with comprehensive sustainability goals ranging from energy to ecology.
Over the years, SM Prime has continued to elevate its approach to building and development of community spaces.  All these green initiatives have been recognized by reputable and well-known organizations such as the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) which awarded Conrad Hotel Manila and SM Aura Premier the Gold certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) in 2016 and 2017, respectively. 
“When we build, we build with the community in mind. This is why it is important to integrate sustainability in our developments and operations. We remain committed as an environmentally-conscious and responsible integrated property developer ready to serve the ever-changing needs and aspirations of our communities and stakeholders,” said SM Prime President Jeffrey Lim.

Building green office spaces

SM’s Commercial Property Group is renowned for balancing green design features with operational and practical considerations, enabling more companies and locators to enjoy environmentally sound commercial developments.

The CPG’s flagship properties are its five E-com Centers – all future-forward buildings catering mainly to technological, business process outsourcing, and Fortune 500 companies. All five E-com Centers are located in the MOA Complex. Each building has a proportionate amount of green open spaces and communal areas where workers can socialize and decompress from work.

CPG further promotes sustainable practices with its LEED gold-certified office buildings, solidifying its foothold and commitment to building green offices and commercial developments.  These certifications are a testament to SM Prime’s dedication to reducing its contribution to global climate change—all while enhancing the quality of life within its communities.

The ThreeE-com Center boasts architectural wonders and green features that eventually earned its LEED Gold certification. These include water recycling for landscape and non-potable use. The building is fitted with glass windows that minimizes heat from entering the building, allowing tenants to use less air conditioning. This 15-storey, semi-circular twin-tower office building features function and aesthetic complemented with state-of-the-art facilities.  While it was the first office building in the Mall of Asia Complex to receive such an honor, the new FourE-com Center also recently achieved the same certification—designed with its tenants’ needs in mind, improving work-life balance and office culture accordingly.

Both designed by globally renowned firm, Arquitectonica, the Three and Four E-coms are unique amongst business centers. “We designed the E-coms to functionally meet the BPO industry’s need for large, continuous floorplates, but also sculpted them in interesting ways so as to allow views and airflows between the buildings, while also, of course, giving them interesting architectural identities. At the same time, their landscaped podium decks create attractive communal green spaces for the tenants; they are envisaged to be interconnected via landscaped skybridges in the future. The combination of all these factors, architectural design and green spaces, have made the E-coms highly attractive to multinational companies and brands,” said David Zaballero, Arquitectonica Director.