Womentrepreneur
- Women -
By Pennie Azarcon dela Cruz, Executive Editor
Sunday Inquirer Magazine
IT was our version of this year’s global meltdown.
It was 1984. The year struck a fearsome chord in us, and not just because of George Orwell’s futuristic novel and its vision of a totalitarian society. It was the year after the Ninoy Aquino assassination and suddenly, the country erupted into daily protest rallies, capital flight, business slowdown and a general sense of panic and doom. Pundits gleefully described it as 1980-POOR, and indeed, everyone feared for their jobs and their wallets.
Everybody was talking sidelines, ingenious ways to make ends meet, and soon enough, everyone in the office had something to peddle—from frozen hotdogs to local chocolate bars to Bangkok clothes and Marikina shoes. Except for me. Well, I’ve never been good at business, thinking it an imposition on other people to take their money in return for my merchandise. “Baka hindi lang makatanggi,” I would think when people actually bought the toys I had thought of selling on installment basis at one time when I wanted to add up to the kitty for my C-section delivery.
I’m definitely the exception, but most women I know, especially when faced with the prospect of their kids going hungry, manage to hold their own in a strange trade, including business. In fact, given a bit of training, women have excellent business sense. A few logical explanations:
