SM taps elderly smiles to welcome shoppers

MANILA, Philippines - SM Supermalls has again tapped the smiles of the elderly to make their shopping malls brighter and more welcoming to thousands, if not millions, of Christmas shoppers.

For a few days this December and also last September when the country observed the month of the elderly, selected stores of SM Hypermarket, SM Supermarket and Savemore Market employed senior citizens aged 60-65 as greeters.

The SM “Grand Greeters” are stationed at the entrances of the stores to welcome customers and spread cheer daily from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

On its sixth year, the Grand Greeters program of the SM Food Retail Group annually helps close to 200 senior citizens make productive use of their free time by offering them jobs as customer greeters during Christmas and Grandparents Day.

“I meet a lot of people so I would not leave my post,” Erlinda “Lola Baby” Malet said in Filipino.

In her five years working during September and December, Lola Baby has met government officials and celebrities.

Some of the most memorable for her were her sightings of Richard Poon, Amy Perez and Benjie Paras and his children.

“It’s fun when they wave like they are giving back cheer when you greet them.”

She said a foreigner even offered her money. “No, just thank you is enough,” she told him.

Lola Baby used to be a domestic helper in Subic where she said she was able to polish her English.

By the time she reached 60 she got worried. “What will I do? Will they accept me?”

With SM, she said she was able to interact and meet different people and if given a chance, she wants to become a cashier. “Sir Henry (Sy Sr.) is good and he took us in even when we’re already seniors.”

She likes working at SM, especially when her grandchildren and neighbors visit her.

As Geronimo “Mang Gerry” Mamuyac said, “I am happy because I come face-to-face with different people.”

Mang Gerry used to be a stock clerk foreman for a snack company before retiring.

He has five children and seven grandchildren, but he rarely sees them. Most of the time, he stays home all day.

Mang Gerry has been a Grand Greeter for three years and he has enjoyed his experience being able to interact and mingle with people.

“Many are happy when I greet them,” he said. “Once they gave me soft drinks, but I didn’t accept it.”

He enjoys being a greeter especially when children and students approach him and they touch his hand to their foreheads in the Filipino gesture of respect.

He likes meeting different kinds of people.

“I have already interviewed a lot of sales ladies,” he said.

Another Grand Greeter is Berlinda “Lola Idang” Iclang, who is on her first term as a greeter and doesn’t mind missing her favorite soap opera at night.

She has seven children and 15 grandchildren and she immediately accepted when she was invited to join SM.

“I was in a hurry to apply,” she said.

She used to be a tailor who worked at different factories sewing clothes, stuffed toys and other things.

But now that she’s 60, it’s her first time to be stuck at home doing nothing.

“I like working as I’m still strong,” she said. “I walk to work at (SM Hypermarket Pasig).”

When asked what she’ll do with her salary, she said she will buy Christmas gifts for her grandchildren.

She finds work at SM very enjoyable. “My beauty is exposed when I greet people and they smile. I feel good,” she said.