FAME to feature Philippines lifestyle exports

MANILA, Philippines - The forthcoming Manila FAME virtually marks an ongoing expansion and opening up of the world market for lifestyle exports, placing the country’s industry at the crux of a landmark change in global consumption.

This trend is the motivating factor for the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) to turn the event into a key marketing strategy when it hosts the 61st Manila FAME at the SMX Convention Center on March 13-16.

CITEM executive director Rosvi C. Gaetos sees the opening up of world markets and the imminent rise in global consumption in key export areas as strong indicators in international trade expansion. “These developments present opportunities for our lifestyle export industry, and we better be ready for it,” Gaetos said, citing the 28-country European Union (EU) as a major market.

“We should take advantage of the EU’s grant of a GSP+ status to the Philippines,” Gaetos stressed, referring to the Generalized Scheme of Preferences exempting the country from duties on its exports to the region.

The Philippines is, so far, the only country in Southeast Asia to be accorded the GSP+ status by the EU, whose furniture imports alone from outside the region have almost doubled from 5.339 billion euros in 2003 to 10.1 billion euros in 2012, according to a report submitted to the European Commission by the Centre for European Policy Studies in November 2014 and published online recently.

Included in the report were two findings -- the share of domestic production in total consumption has been contracting fast, and import penetration from outside the EU region has increased over the last decade.

Cited as among the key factors in this trend is the creative capacity for combining raw materials with technology at a certain level of market affordability, thus a country’s comparative advantage can lead to a strong industry and “make it a preferred destination for other countries’ outsourcing strategies.”

Along this line, Manila FAME as an important global event helps position the Philippines as a sourcing hub for creative and design-forward home and fashion products.

Manila FAME 2015 features Philippine-made furniture and home furnishings, holiday gifts, décor, and fashion accessories for the global market, according to CITEM, the export promotions arm of the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

CITEM founded Manila FAME as a global platform for locally made products to make it into the export market. Over the span of 32 years, Manila FAME also yielded several success stories of Philippine exporters making it big in the international market; the number of which continues to grow. Philippine export products made their way to the biggest retail stores in Europe and the United States, produced by manufacturers trained and developed by CITEM through merchandise development programs.