Local coffeeshop chain to push Cebu products

CEBU, Philippines - Along with its aggressive national and overseas expansion plan, Bo's Coffee Club announced to showcase Filipino social enterprise brands in all its outlets.

"While we are strengthening Bo's Coffee as a pure Filipino coffee brand, the company's advocacy is not only to promote Philippine coffee to the world, but also showing off quality Filipino-made brands that are marketed via social enterprise," said Bo's Coffee president Steve Benitez.

In an interview, he said that all of Bo's Coffee outlets nationwide will also serve as an outlet for social entrepreneurs offering products directly sourced from farmers.

Aside from getting 100 percent of its coffee bean requirement from different coffee farms in the Philippines, Bo's Coffee outlets now are also offering social enterprise lifestyle products such as Bayani Brew juice, Theo and Philo chocolates, Loudbasstard, and also partners with Anthill Fabric Gallery for coffee shop's requirements for Filipino inspired interiors and Bo's collectible products.

Likewise, the coffee chain is also supporting independent Filipino musicians, through playing their music in every Bo's Coffee Club around the country.

"I want to help Filipino farmers to be part of the business eco-system," said Benitez explaining that it is primarily the reason why he is working closely with social enterprises as the company's way of helping the farmers directly, and promoting pro-Filipino advocacy.

With its current 58 outlets nationwide, Bo’s Coffee Club is using Philippine-produced coffee beans, except for de-caffeinated which is not grown in the country.

He said while the Philippines used to be the top exporter of high quality coffee beans in the world, “never in the recent history that Philippine-grown coffee has been featured. Other countries have successfully branded their coffee variety, but the Philippines has yet to show its global potential.”

The Philippines produced four variety of coffee beans, these are the commercially-viable coffee: Arabica, Liberica (Barako), Excelsa and Robusta. Climatic and soil conditions in the Philippines - from the lowland to mountain regions - make the country suitable for all four varieties.

While Bo's Coffee is on its way to the international arena, it is committed to bring with it Filipino brands, not only the Philippine coffee, but other Filipino-made products as well.— (FREEMAN)