Choco Mani emerges as sari-sari store best-seller

There are a lot of goods and products sold at a sari-sari store. It may be a small enterprise but combining the millions there are all over the country, these sari-sari stores serve as a "backbone" of the economy since it serves as a catalyst for entrepreneurship at a barangay or town level.

The products sold at a sari-sari store vary from necessities such as toiletries or cooking ingredients; to simple luxuries such as beauty enhancement products or imported goods.

A staple of sari-sari stores since the post-American era are various types of snacks and candies. These may be peanuts with different flavors, or chocolates that come in various shapes and sizes.

And for a majority of Pinoys, their favorite is the choco peanut candy which has been dubbed as one of the best comfort food. This "humble" candy brings a sense of pride and ownership since it is "invented" in the country. Much like dinuguan, halo-halo, and halayang ube, peanut chocolates cannot be found anywhere else in the world. It is our own version of a homegrown, Pinoy chocolate candy. And sari-sari stores are only too happy to carry this peanut chocolate.

Times have changed and the prices of goods continually challenge a sari-sari store owner to price his or her goods well in order to earn.

When prices are going up, the makers of Choco Mani decided to lower their price in order to help sari-sari owners make a decent profit margin. This was made possible by the modern technology and machines used to produce Choco Mani. In simple economics, " the increase in the supply of the product enabled the price to be competitively low.

"The reception of the sari-sari owners was very encouraging for Choco Mani," said Richard Chua, president of Candyline Food Manufacturing Corp., manufacturer of Choco Mani.

"They realized that we are also helping them earn more that’s why they are more enthusiastic in pushing the brand to their suki," added Richard.

Six years ago, when Choco Mani was first conceptualized, Richard knew they could not find a machine to manufacture the product. This being the case, they hired several experts to customize a machine that they can use to produce Choco Mani.

"New packaging materials were sourced out to make sure that the product gets enough attention and at the same time have ample protection. Production methods were carefully analyzed, modified, and standardized to make them conform to today’s more stringent requirements," Richard revealed.

Each piece of Choco Mani is machine-packed in foil and then in semi-permeable plastic. Machine packing in itself adds to the quality of the product by decreasing the human handling and thus decreasing the chances for contamination. Choco Mani coins are even pillow-packed. This allows for a more hygienic product.

"Sari-sari store owners realized that even though Choco Mani lowered its price, it has maintained its high quality. Eventually, their customers noted that and Choco Mani is now being bought by more people, making it one of the sari-sari store’s best sellers," said Richard noting that their investment on the quality of the product paid off well.

"Customers have noted that Choco Mani is more tasty, and each bar or coin tastes the same way as the next piece," he said. "They now realized that this is the perfect enhancement of an all-time favorite candy."

Choco Mani comes in coins or bars. It is sold at all leading groceries, supermarkets, and sari-sari stores nationwide. For inquiries on distribution or delivery, call 364-6507/ 360-4115, or e-mail: [email protected].