I realised that by May of 2016 I am eligible for retirement and tried to weigh my options whether to stay with my corporate job as an Assistant Director for Sales and Marketing or pursue the path of Entrepreneurship.
My passion for events and wedding started even before that. I would take on hosting jobs for supplementary income and tried my hands at event planning on my spare time.
After extending a few months in my day job, I decided to leave my company of 10 years to start my own business.
I know its a huge risk, but I cannot postpone my dreams any further.
The idea of an online bridal shop came, when I was asked to help plan the wedding of a former colleague based in Papua New Guinea. They chose Boracay as their wedding destination for December 28, 2015. Being based in Manila, I had to find a beach front resort that would accommodate them, during peak season and closed off dates because of the holidays. I also need to make sure that the venue availability matches with the church schedule. Search engines provided me with a list of hotels, but I still had to narrow it down to those that accommodate weddings. I was finally able to book the church and Fridays Resort in Station 3.
Then came even more challenges, searching for the essential suppliers like Photographers, Makeup Artists, Flowers, Outfits etc. I'm aware that this can be done by wedding planner, but a hands on bride could have easily done this given the right information.
Among the task that I do on my previous job involved monitoring Online Travel Agents, and it gave me the idea that booking for wedding suppliers should be as easy as booking for hotels online. Online bridal directory had been in existence but it does not have the convenience of selecting the right supplier based on the budget. I also realised that travel agent transactions were done manually in the past, and Wedding Agents must follow.
To get a better grasp of the wedding industry in the Philippines and establish connections, I joined my event stylist best friend Teddy Manuel in running the operations of his business after my retirement. It gave me a better understanding of the brides behaviour from proposals to closing the deal up to the event execution. I learned that Weddings are very personal and relationships with suppliers is essential for a successful outcome.
This become my take off in developing the site. To make it convenient for brides but not take out the aspect of human connection to the suppliers.
In September 2017, I started building the site but eventually changed it just 2 weeks after going live. The first platform I chose is not designed for selling so I changed it to a store format.
Our Facebook account, Bride Guide Philippines was created September 14, 2017 followed by the Instagram account 3 days after. The website www.brideguide.ph currently being used went live on September 25.
As we approach our first year, I would like to celebrate on milestones instead profit. Our Facebook reached 7,606 followers, and 802 on Instagram.
Thank you to all the wedding suppliers, namely Vincent Duke Photography, Boy Kastner Santos, Weddings at Camp Benjamin, and Teddy Manuel who took risk with me in taking the Wedding Industry into the Digital Age.
To our followers, WEE-Commerce The Wedding and Events, Electronic Commerce has arrived.
Thank you also to my partner and family for their patience and support.
The next year is dedicated on converting soon to wed couples to go digital. I know that through God's grace, It will it happen.
Happy Anniversary to all of us!
Omar C. Palero
Developer and Owner
Logo evolution:
