MANILA, Philippines - For newspaper dealers, business is good despite the pressures of their early morning routine.
After all, selling newspapers, thereby giving readers their daily news fix in the farthest reaches of the archipelago, puts food on the table and sends their children to good schools.
It gets even better when newspaper companies such as
The Philippine STAR sweeten the deal with incentive programs designed to help them save for their future.
Last Tuesday, The STAR held a ceremonial turnover of P11.1-million worth of mutual benefit funds to over 300 dealers across the country as part of its dealer incentive program.
Under the program, dealers set aside a fraction of the price of every copy of The STAR they sell into a savings fund. Whatever amount they raise at the end of a five-year period, The STAR matches and gives them the equivalent amount.
“It’s like The STAR giving them a 100-percent interest on the money they save, which is unheard of. No bank is able to give that kind of return,” quipped STAR VP for circulation Fernando Lopez.
Cely Santos, a major newspaper dealer in Metro Manila together with husband Delfin, said, “The incentive program is of course a big help to the agents. Not only will it mean more savings, but also, we’ll be more inspired to work and help the vendors as well.”
As one of the biggest recipients of the mutual benefit fund, she hints that the money received from the program will serve them in good stead for business expansion and for investment in other ventures.
For her part, Bulacan dealer Mimi Valeriano shares, “It helps us dealers to save for our retirement. I am happy to say that this business has been good to us and that we are not treated merely as partners but are loved like members of the STAR family.”
The incentive program is actually a brainchild of Danilo Jose, a third-generation newspaper dealer who used to head the Newspaper, Magazine, Comics Dealers Association of the Philippines back in 2000 to 2001.
The way he sees it, the program is reciprocal, inasmuch as it helps secure the future of the newspaper dealer on the one hand and promotes the newspaper brand on the other.
He shares that the incentive program is already on its third incarnation and is a big help to dealers like himself, although he laments that the business can also be stressful at times due to the inability of some agents to pay him what they owe.
As one who understands the ins and outs of the trade, Jose observes that the newspaper industry remains profitable despite the onslaught of technology and new media, thanks also to the support of publications such as The STAR.
“We appreciate that The STAR is always sensitive to our needs,” he adds.
Cely Santos echoes this sentiment. “The Philippine STAR is one of the best if not the best partner we can find in the industry. They do not treat agents as mere business partners but as family,” she said.
For his part, STAR president and CEO Miguel Belmonte said, “This is all part of our sincere commitment to take care of our business partners who have taken care of us and contributed to the success we enjoy. It’s also our way of saying ‘thank you’ to them for making The STAR the most successful newspaper group in the country.”