Tags: Consumer Goods and Concerns, Wholesale and Retail
By KC Santos
QUEZON CITY, METRO MANILA -Admit it or not, what excites us more than the thought of Christmas is shopping in numerous bazaars that start as early as September.
Shopping in bazaars can be a bit tricky and would involve a lot of haggling, particularly for bargain-hunters.
A seasoned bazaar junkie says that one useful tip is to maximize your budget on quality products and not to splurge on cheap items that actually cost more.
Another tip is to choose your bazaars wisely. For example, if you are looking for a specific handmade item, you might want to visit a bazaar that supports micro-enterprises which promote local products rather than a bazaar that merely markets mass-produced and sometimes imported items.
If you want to splurge your hard-earned money on bazaar items, at least spend them on products that have added value. Here are a couple of upcoming bazaars in the metro that you might want to visit:
Regina Iustitiae Sorority’s Carnival de Rainhas. Patterned after the Carnival of Queen held annually in Brazil, the Carnival de Rainhas is a festival celebrated a month before Easter to bid negative events of the past year goodbye. In this bazaar, the Regina Iustitiae Sorority, the oldest sorority in Ateneo, will offer a wide variety of food selections, clothes, bags, accessories, and toys for sale; game booths, face painting, balloon twisting, glitter and henna tattoos, cotton candy, photo booth, caricature art, and tarot card reading. It’s shopping plus an assortment of activities you can enjoy with your family and kids for an entrance fee of 100 pesos. You can also help the sorority in its advocacy for women empowerment. This bazaar will start on September 18 at the Rockwell Tent in Makati.
Triple Treat Tiangge a Bazaar+Latagan Bonanza! The second leg of this bazaar is on October 15 at the UP Bahay ng Alumni. This bazaar is one of my personal favorites. It offers a unique range of apparel, vintage and hand-made art pieces. Most of these items can be customized, which is ideal of you’re looking for more personalized Christmas gifts.
This bazaar supports micro-entrepreneurs whose products are mostly novelty items. The bazaar also supports non-profit agencies.
SIA Bazaar for a Cause. The Soroptimist International of Alabang (SIA) has always used the bazaar model to raise funds to sustain their outreach projects and the needs of their chosen charities. If you want to shop while helping underprivileged children by giving them shelter, then this bazaar fits the bill. It will be held on November 5 to 6 at the Cuenca Community Center in Ayala Alabang is the bazaar for you. There are also native and hand-made novelty products sold here for bargain prices.
Bazaar for all Seasons 3: A Christmas Wishes Bazaar. Also held annually at the UP Bahay ng Alumni, this is the bazaar for Christmas season. In store for visitors are premium gift items like fashion accessories, organic herbal products, even Filipiniana and handicrafts. This might also be the refuge for mothers who don’t want to go all the way to Divisoria for affordable Christmas decors. This bazaar will be held on November 18 to November 19 and another in December 2 to 3.
World Bazaar Festival. Held annually at the World Trade Center, this is one of the biggest and longest running Christmas bazaar that begins December 2 and ends on December 18. The World Bazaar Festival is essentially the coming together of Filipino entrepreneurs. It is considered the culminating bazaar of the year and is the last major big event for shopping before Christmas day finally comes.
Shopping and visiting bazaars can be physically and financially demanding and knowing the right bazaar to visit can help you a lot.
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Great list of bazaars. i am looking for a local christmas market at the moment in London. I went to one last year and it was fab!