“I am a proud Pinoy. I believe in our products and I want the world to see that Filipino products are made of good quality.”
Engineer and entrepreneur Eilene Brazil says her strong faith in Filipino brands pushed her to open her first physical store in Westfield shopping centre just before the pandemic hit.
“We opened our store in Australia just before the pandemic that’s why we were able to import products from the Philippines.”
And while many businesses feel the pinch caused by the pandemic, the odds are in Ms Brazil’s favour as her sales skyrocketed.
“Unexpectedly, my business did well during the pandemic. I was overwhelmed as our sales went up after we launched our website. And when the restrictions eased, we have seen many customers coming into the store again. Mostly Filipinos from regional areas.”
Ms Brazil opened her physical store in Westfield, WA just before the pandemic hit. Source: Eilene Brazil
Introducing Filipino Fashion and cosmetic brands in Australia
Through her business, Ms Brazil is able to introduce popular Filipino brands like Kamiseta, Bench and Gingersnaps to the Australian market. The said products are also receiving good feedback from her non Filipino customers, she shares.
“There are many non-Filipinos who appreciate our clothes and cosmetics. They have expressed good feedback about the products.”
She adds that because of the overwhelming response, she entered into another venture where she partnered with local cosmetic brands like BLK, Happy skin, Issy and co, Luxe organics and Fresh cosmetics.
Ms Brazil introduces the local brands Filipinas love Source: Eilene Brazil
While most Filipino-Australian entrepreneurs are involved in the food business, Ms Brazil focused on women’s fashion because of her considerable experience in the retail industry.
“I already have 3 franchise stores of Kamiseta (clothing brand) in the Philippines and I want to expand here in Australia. Mainly to make our brands known."
Filipino brands deserve a spot in the international scene
Ms Brazil believes that Filipino brands have the potential to reach a global scale and this perspective is enough to persuade her to open her first physical store in one of the most popular shopping centres in Australia.
“Ambisyosa lang po ako,” she laughs. (I’m ambitious)
It’s been really my ambition to open a store here. I went to Westfield during my day off and I inquired about the possibility of opening a store with Filipino brands and the shopping centre was supportive of it.”
“I envision that I can open branches in Sydney and Melbourne so these products will be widely available and accessible all around Australia.”
