Mandaue's finest woman micropreneur

CEBU, Philippines - She didn't have to nail her answers just to impress a panel of judges. Barangay Paknaan'sbet Delia Señerpida, 36 years old, has been true to herself right from the start.

"When I was picked to represent Barangay Paknaan for the WINNERs (Women in Need, Now Entrepreneurs and Rolemodels) search, I told the women development council that I would try my best in the interviews. However, I wouldn't speak in English. I can understand English, but I am not articulate enough before an audience," she disclosed this in Cebuano. "Mag-Binisaya lang ko para di ko mauwawan," she stressed.

But she was assured that such deficiency won't be a big deal. So she mustered confidence to go through a series of interviews before an 11-man panel of judges during a pre-judging, composed of the trustees of the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, event sponsors, and media partners.

For the second season of the Search for WINNERs (spearheaded by the MCCI to recognize women micro-entrepreneurs who are supporting their families and are struggling to rise from poverty through their business ventures), Delia is just one of 70 hopefuls interviewed during the early stages of the screening at the St. Theresa's College campus.

She shared that she would have wanted to become a teacher. Her early college days in the 90s sent her playing softball to, at least, defer the cost of a higher education. She is second child of a brood of 10. "Bisan free tuition, maglisod gyod ko’g bayad sa mga projects kay pobre man kaayo mi," she recalled.

It was her elder sister who would give her fare money so she could attend classes at the then Salazar Institute of Technology along Natalio Bacalso Avenue. SIT was kind enough to accommodate her to the softball varsity team after a scouting stint in Paknaan known for very sporty students. "For a time, agwanta lang ko bahala’g layo sa Paknaan. But then there were other concerns," she added. "But my sister is already a married woman at that time. Bisan og pwerte nakong serbisyo nila, to the point nga mora na sad ko’g maid, di gyod ko niya mahimong priority. That's when I decided to settle down."

She started a small stall to sell barbecue, and then vegetables and spices, with an initial investment of P3,000. From there, she moved on to sell a variety of items - from basic commodities to footwear.

She felt that her recent victory is predestined. She rationalized that there were other hopefuls who were more conversant, confident, eloquent, resourceful, creative, courageous, persevering, and intelligent than her. In fact, some have office work experience. "Naa koy katigi nga naka-work og opisina. Mga dagkong tawo ang iyang kaatubang. Pero sa akong pagdaug, na-prove nako sa akong kaugalingon nga kaya sad diay nako. So, para gyod ni nako," she went on.

Delia won P50,000 and sees this as a sure-fire way to sell wholesale over retailing. "Mas makaginansiya sa retail but I would also like to give back to our customers by doing wholesale para bahin-bahin sa grasya. I am also keen on selling some hardware items kay naa may kapuyan na moadtog hardware store nya ang tuyo kay lansang ra or ballast ra."

She also shared she felt she found great favor on God's rewards plan. "Daghan miingon nga ilaronon gyod ko (I could easily be duped). There was a man who came here at our store, pretending to be out of money he could not pay the fare to his hometown in the north. I gave him P200. He said he would return to bring me some fresh farm produce to pay off my generosity, pero wala man mobalik. But I was not really expecting that, I told my neighbors the money I honestly shared will come back to me a hundred-fold, as promised by God, and so it did," the teary eyed Delia shared.

She wasn't in good terms, though, with her husband Ed that moment she went through the rigorous selection process, the basic entrepreneurial skills training, basic banking, and exposure to various industries as learning experience. They had a fight over money matters. So she hadn't had to explain coming home late after their industry tours, training, and production number rehearsals for the competition.

"It was tough. Kay dili baya unta kabiyaan ning tindahan, pero gi-expose man gyod mi og personality training. May tour mi sa Virginia Food Farm. Naa pa mi production number gi-practice, and we had to go to Red Logo for our personality development seminar, and Lipstick for shoe fitting. Morag gituyo sad to sa panahon nga wala mi magtingog sa akong bana kay sayon ra nako paglakaw. Wala sad ko’y problema og madugay og uli."

When she was picked to become part of the Top 20, that's the time she said she would make it. She had this for a motivation: Because she started one good thing, she would watch it see completion. The Top 20 finalists were presented to the media in a presscon last August 16.

It was her teenage daughter who cheered the loudest when her turn to strut onstage took place last August 28. She saw how her honesty with her dealings was greatly appreciated by the judges. She then transformed from an ordinary Mandaue woman to an ambassador of micropreneurs – proud to share how one can move away from scratch and be of great value to a community.

Delia shared this insight as to how she has gained the confidence of her clients: "Bisan dili tanan time sakto ang customer, but since he is the customer, we have to give him that position nga he is always right. Walay negosyo mo-survive if walay customer, so we have to treat them right. Once they keep coming back, walay negosyo nga mayabo." (FREEMAN)