Trends and Opportunities in the Global Franchising Revealed

The franchising sector in the Philippines has been experiencing phenomenal growth since the 80’s. It has, in fact, become an effective strategy for entry into business, producing a number of successful homegrown businesses and spurring the growth of entrepreneurship in the country.

Location, ingenuity and human rich resources are the key.

“The Philippines is a key location for successful businesses to branch out. With limitless Filipino ingenuity and rich human resources for an educated, highly-trainable and dependable working force, the global market is not far from our reach” states Froilan Manotok, business and franchise development head and conference chair of Franchise 2008, the 16th Philippine International Franchise Conference and Expo (PIFCE), slated on July 9 to 11, at the Renaissance Hotel in Makati City, and co-presented by PLDT Business Solutions and Seaoil.

Among the top players in global franchising are:

• Food. While food is a franchise that will never go out of style, health consciousness has created a new market for food franchises, particularly those serving salads, smoothies, and other guilt-free food for people taking a more active interest in their diet.

“The food service category is always growing in franchising, and will continue to offer new concepts and niche products to cater to the market’s demands,” Manotok confirms.

• Body and Beauty. Franchised personal services in the form of gyms, spas, and salons are also profitable business ventures as more and more innovations become available on the market for weight loss, grooming, beauty treatments, massage, and even medical procedures such as cosmetic surgery and laser vision correction.

“The desire to stay fit and look good has spurred the growth of these franchises,” reports Manotok. “Beauty and fitness franchises may be young, but they are already a multi-billion industry all over the world.”

• Education. Franchised services are also expanding into the markets of childcare and child development. These are franchises in the form of tutorial service centers, pre-schools, play schools, and learning centers. – www.philstar.com

Sky Experience Adventure

Conquer your fear – this is one of the most common ideas that we know. I did apparently when I visited Cebu atop the 40-storey Crown Regency Hotel and Towers on Fuente Osmena with the hotel’s mini amusement complex.

The amusement facility features a 2-seater edge coaster runs around the edge of the building. It is called Insanity Ride. You get insane as the ride tilts on certain degrees. It is the first of its kind in the world to be mounted on top of a hotel tower as revealed  by US-based Interactive Rides Inc.

The ride starts to move at low speed and it automatically tilts once. While on the track around the building, thrill-seekers would enjoy the option of being able to tilt the coaster car 55 degrees away from the building. You will have the feeling of floating in air because you won’t see the building or the coaster car.

Sky Experience Adventure also includes the Skywalk, which allows one to walk on a platform outside the tower, at level with the 37th floor. Pathways are part steel and part see-through glass. Those who want to take a stroll around the building, almost 400 feet above ground are attached to a harness for safety. The Sky Experience Adventure will also feature a resto-bar, a gentleman’s club, observatory, Vivo game zone and a four-dimensional movie theater.

Entrance fee of P380 per person

Edge Coaster = P500 per person

Sky Walk = P500 per person

The facilities are meant to provide a place where the entire family can have fun.

I think the rides are safe. It’s safety aspect of the rides and their durability were also checked using a software that is used by industrial and space systems.

The roller coaster vehicles and track are made of aircraft steel and aircraft aluminum.

Should We Trust Technology?

I was with a friend helping another friend fix his computer, he asked is everything lost? He was asked if he backed up his data, of course not why would he do that? Then he was asked with the next question, when was the last time you backed-up your data? Then like he had a megaphone in our ears, I DON”T KNOW HOW TO BACK UP MY DATA! All my spreadsheets and word documents are lost, how can that be the computers brand new?

If I had a dollar for every computer that broke down out of the box I wouldn’t have to worry about money. But for some reason when we buy something we just assume it will work for ever, especially things like TVs, stereos, freezers and computers. We put more faith in those purchases than we do in anything else, well, outside of eating in a public restaurant anyway. Why? Why do we do that? Nowhere does it say these devices and equipment won’t breakdown or already be broken before we even get them installed. Most things we buy today all have some form of technology in them, try and think of one that doesn’t…well a potato peeler maybe but there’s not many.

There seems to be this unwritten law that if I buy something it just works, there’s no chance it won’t we’re thinking as we drive home. I have sold more computers than I can count over the years and manufacturer’s don’t always get it right, something can fall through the cracks. Assembly lines are not immune to malfunction, why? Technology!

I got a call to provide some input on what was thought to be a DNS issue, after asking enough questions, two or three I discovered that most likely it was that expensive high end Router that was installed. I said pull it and go get something different and see what happens. You guessed it, that high end router was faulty.

We put a lot of faith in technology, we build spreadsheets thinking that they are accurate and the software can’t make a mistake, really? How do you know? Society has gone down the technology road so far now we can go back, and would we want to? Most of us have High Speed (Broadband) Internet connections, would you go back to dial-up now? I rest my case.

Now technology is progressing at a rate that is exponential, explosive growth. People think linearly, one, two, three, and 30 steps later your at 30. But the reality of information technology it is going 2, 4, 8, 16, and 30 steps later you are at a billion! With growth moving that quickly how will ensure that it is accurate and not faulty?

Take nanotechnology, little blood cell sized nanobots will be injected into our blood streams and cure say diabetes. Will it? What if doesn’t, what are the side effects and who is going to guarantee that nanobots are full proof? I suspect no one will back them up 100% but how can we be sure these technologies will work 100% of the time and not fail in the future?

I believe there needs to be a body that overseas and sets standards to protect us against faulty technology in the future, in light of this exponential growth curve. You may assume that there will be, but, let’s not assume please. So, should we trust technology? Some of it? Yes. A Lot of it? Yes. But when it comes to injecting blood cell sized nanobots into our bodies, I want to know for sure something won’t go wrong. How far do we allow technology to go, to intrude on our privacy and watch over us? How deep is your trust in technology?

I’m just asking the questions nothing more. I’m suggesting we keep things in perspective, make sure we put the proper framework in place now to ensure the safe use of these new technologies being worked on today.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

If the natural order of maturity reverses, and a man can be born old and die young—at least physically—what would his life be like?

Enter Benjamin Button, a charming character who looks older than your grandfather when he was seven and a cute little boy in his 60s. Adapted from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story of the same title, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button narrates the absurdity of his daily life in this premise. And yes, it’s quite long.

You can expect some dragging scenes but the there’s a touch of grace and subtleness in director David Fincher’s treatment. He focuses more on the setting and the characters, even the minor ones. They make this movie worth sitting through until the end. (I specifically like the man who got struck by lightning.)

However, I would like to cite some important scenes that were not given the running time these deserve, which thus makes the film lack depth. I’m sorry to say that there seems to be little on-screen chemistry between Benjamin (Brad Pitt) and Daisy (Cate Blanchett).

Pitt’s cold acting also gets tiring sometimes. Don’t get me wrong. I like Brad Pitt in the beginning but my fascination stops when I see him in his dashing middle-aged scenes. Yes, this is the part where he was at his most drool-worthy state.

Benjamin and Daisy’s love story starts a bit creepy, develops timidly, and ends sadly. You anticipate it to end depressingly but you’ll be surprised that it ends the way it does.

But the production design is amazing and meticulously detailed. I was surprised to see a can of oatmeal with the old label in the background.

You should watch it not just because it stars Brad Pitt or you’re curious about how he looks when he ages. It’s an inspiring touching movie, completely different Forrest Gump, the screenplay of which was also written by Eric Roth.

Achingly ironic, lush, and funny, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of the movies you should watch–at least once–in your lifetime.

The Verdict: Yes, it’s worth your hard-earned pesos.

Synopsis:

“I was born under unusual circumstances.” And so begins ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,’ adapted from the 1920s story by F. Scott Fitzgerald about a man who is born in his eighties and ages backwards: a man, like any of us, who is unable to stop time. We follow his story, set in New Orleans from the end of World War I in 1918 to the 21st century, following his journey that is as unusual as any man’s life can be.

On the day that Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, elderly Daisy Williams nee Fuller is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital. At her side is her adult daughter, Caroline. Daisy asks Caroline to read to her aloud the diary of Daisy’s lifelong friend, Benjamin Button. Benjamin’s diary recounts his entire extraordinary life, the primary unusual aspect of which was his aging backwards, being born an old man who was diagnosed with several aged diseases at birth and thus given little chance of survival, but who does survive and gets younger with time. Abandoned by his biological father, Thomas Button, after Benjamin’s biological mother died in childbirth, Benjamin was raised by Queenie, a black woman and caregiver at a seniors home. Daisy’s grandmother was a resident at that home, which is where she first met Benjamin. Although separated through the years, Daisy and Benjamin remain in contact throughout their lives, reconnecting in their forties when in age they finally match up. Some of the revelations in Benjamin’s diary are difficult for Caroline to read, especially as it relates to the time past this reconnection between Benjamin and Daisy, when Daisy gets older and Benjamin grows younger into his childhood years.

Directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett with Taraji P. Henson, Tilda Swinton, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas and Julia Ormond, Benjamin Button is a grand tale of a not-so-ordinary man and the people and places he discovers along the way, the loves he finds, the joys of life and the sadness of death, and what lasts beyond time.

Facts About Online Business

When I first started exploring the online business arena, I did not have the slightest idea what to look for. I had absolutely no idea as to how anybody could make money with an online business, nor I had a clue as to how a business could come to life and make you money without an office, employees, inventory and all of those things one usually associates with an enterprise.

All I knew for sure is that there were people out there making money out of websites and blogs, and some of them were cashing in big time with only a computer and a cell phone as their weapons. As anybody else would have done, I started looking for information in the search engines and of course, as you can imagine, I found basically millions of results. At this point I did not even know what a text link was, so I really could not tell the difference between a promotional site and what I call an informative site. Therefore, I was being bombarded with information that in most cases pursued only a sale instead of helping me find and actual online business opportunity.

So, instead of going ahead and paying for any of the so called business opportunities, I decided to start taking advantage of some free stuff that I stumbled upon from time to time, like e-books and other resources that allowed me to begin understanding what online businesses were all about. These freebies helped me open my eyes to a whole world I had been missing. I quickly realized that there were basically two types of online business:

1) Affiliate or online marketing

2) Online retail of products or services

This does not mean that there are not other ways of making money online, but it does mean that for a newbie these are the two most intuitive ways of starting a realistic online entrepreneur effort.

Well, after getting a general idea of what online businesses were all about, and understanding a little bit about what it takes make money with an online business, I decided to take the next step got myself one of the so called money making systems.

I tried over 10 online business systems or programs and frankly only a few of them were actually helpful to me. Truth is I spent almost a year crashing my head onto the wall with no significant results, even though I have to say that year came as an important and necessary learning period that got me to where I am today in the online business arena.

You see, the thing is that many many of the so called money making systems are truly a waste of time and money, because once you get your hands on them you realize there is nothing really fancy or new about them, and often they only want you to spend more money in “tools” that will supposedly help you achieve the results they promise.

So trial and error has been definitely a part of that learning experience, which of course has not come without a cost because I have spent probably over $1,000 looking for something that could put me on track and lead me to online success.

In the end, after being a bit more aware of what to look for, my latest choices were really wise decisions, because as it turns out, I managed to put my hands on systems that finally helped me fill in the holes in my strategies. However, it is important to note that I had to do some hard work at the beginning, because when you start this journey you are actually studying and working to build an online business.

As a general rule, the programs that genuinely seek to help you are the ones which do not present you with magic formulas, but instead hand you a set of tools, resources and material for you to study and learn. Of course, I understand that for some people this might be a little disappointing, because everybody is dreaming about making money online with absolutely no effort, but sadly, that is not possible.

The good news is that once you have done the hard work (study, study, learn, and then execute) you will then start seeing some magic, because once you get to understand the dynamics of internet marketing you will realize that making money without a lot of work is actually possible, but only after you have put your back into it for some time.

If you apply the right strategies and build a suitable business structure you will have to work (make no mistake about it), but it will be like building a hotel, once it is finished and you set up all your business structure, it will keep making money for you provided that you -or someone you hired- are supervising the whole operation.

Fact: You can make money with an online business, but you must be willing to put your back into it in order to learn and build it, and you must make some wise decisions when it comes to choosing your tools and resources.

Fiction: You will become rich overnight or within a week (big NO!).

Upcoming: Transporter 3

In my opinion, it could have been much better. The movie went straight down hill from the moment the main character, Frank Martin (Jason Statham), submitted to doing a striptease (yes! s-t-r-i-p-t-e-a-s-e). He was gorgeous though.

Statham’s character has been known from the previous movies to have had rules of conduct yet he ends up choosing to bump ugly ducklingos with a girl whose looks was supposed to be a 17-year-old nice Ukranian girl but looked liked my aunt having an irritating borderline junkies. There wasn’t even any development in their relationship. No friendship was built but just a few conversations prior to them having sex in the car. Yeah, nobody sees that kind of relationship lasting a long time… By the way, before I forget, the reason for the striptease thing was to get his car keys back from the girl, which he was unable to take from her hand but yet was able to take out 14 guys at once earlier in the movie.

Overall, it was disappointing mainly because of the whole involvement with the new girl, which is totally out of character for a highly stick-into-the-rule Frank Martin. BUT! (there is a big BUT… ) I have to admit… there were awesome buttkicking stunts and excellent car tricks.

Synopsis:

Combining Western-style car chases and Hong Kong-inspired fight sequences choreographed by martial arts legend Cory Yuen, the Luc Besson-created TRANSPORTER films have found international success as a sort of working-class James Bond series. Jason Statham, who has become the go-to guy for big-budget B-movie thrills, returns once again as Frank Martin, the driver-for-hire for whom no job is too risky. Brimming with the usual jaw-dropping stunts, this is another crowd-pleasing entry in the saga, delivered at a brisk and flashy clip by director Olivier Megaton. Following the coercion of Ukrainian environmental official Leonid Vasilev (Jeroen Krabbe) into signing papers permitting the shipping of toxic materials into a harbor by criminal mastermind Johnson (Robert Knepper), Frank Martin is forced into accepting the job of driving Vasilev’s kidnapped daughter, Valentina (Natalya Rudakova)–acting as human collateral–from Marseilles to the Black Sea coastal city of Odessa. On the chance the Martin should attempt to flee, Johnson has rigged him with a bracelet that will detonate if he strays more than 75 feet from his car. When Valentina is intercepted by a rival group, Martin will have to push his Audi M8 to the limit to complete his mission and ensure his own survival. The TRANSPORTER films require copious amounts of suspension of disbelief, but then again, one doesn’t hope they will strictly adhere to the laws of physics. The third volume provides ample thrills, not the least of which is the sight of a car driving off a bridge onto a moving train. Plenty of screen time is also given to Statham’s superhumanly chiseled torso, while freckled Rudakova’s unconventional beauty balances out the sex appeal. In the end, Statham’s undeniable likeability propels the film, and his chemistry in a handful of scenes with François Berleand, returning as Inspector Tarconi, provides some nice comic moments. Combining Western-style car chases and Hong Kong-inspired fight sequences choreographed by martial arts legend Cory Yuen, the Luc Besson-created TRANSPORTER films have found international success…

Genderipity

If we look closely at the sexual attraction of both genders, we notice a very odd thing… Males are turned off by a woman who is with another man while women are turned on by a man who is with another woman!

I know there are many exceptions to this observation. But I’ve seen this more than I can disregard it.

Some consider it jealousy, some consider it competitiveness but one thing is certain… it’s there and it’s very observable. I’ve noticed this more in the eastern cultures but this doesn’t mean I have not seen it in the west.

It’s very odd to see that women tend to be attracted more to men who are engaged, involved or married than the abundant available men. Somehow, the one who is in a relationship seems to be more attractive.

“He’s with her. There must be something good about him”. This is how many women think. Sometimes purely out of jealousy. While for guys, the notion that “She’s with him” is enough to turn most men off. (Don’t believe what you see in the movies about how Mr. #2 was attracted to the lady who was out with the jerk!)

I might be completely hallucinating here (that coffee I had this morning sure tasted funny) but this observation kept coming back to me… day after day. It’s just forcefully presenting itself. Women are attracted to men who are with other women!

This probably explains why most men don’t shy from furnishing all their previous affairs on their resume the minute they apply to the courtship of a lady. Alternatively, most women discovered through their amazing intuition that they shouldn’t be mentioning much about their history since it is a turn off.

Many would say this is one of the social double standards. To be completely frank, I’m a big proponent of double standards here. You just can’t treat men and women the same way. It just doesn’t work like that. Each has his or her own insecurities and sensitivities and it’s just not possible to produce one-size-fits-all social treatment.

Similarly, women are attracted more to guys who are not attracted to them. I’m not sure the same is true about men. But that doesn’t stop a guy from following a chick back home.

Three Kings: A Reminder To Be Giving

As Christians celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany today, bishops reminded the faithful of the Three Kings who, apart from introducing Jesus Christ as the savior of humanity, taught the virtue of sharing, especially to the poor.

Msgr. Hernando Coronel, rector of the San Carlos Seminary in Makati City, said, “The significance of the Feast of the Epiphany is the spirit of charity. The Kings’ gifts tell us that during these difficult times, we should think about the less fortunate and we should give gifts to them.”

Coronel, a former Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) secretary-general, said the fact that baby Jesus was born in a manger and not in a posh hospital stresses the teaching of the Church that encourages the faithful to help the poor.

He said Gaspar, Melchor and Balthazar, collectively known as the Three Wise Men or Magi, came from foreign lands and guided by an angel, followed a star that led them to Jesus Christ who was born in a manger in Bethlehem.

“The Three Wise Men searched for the child Jesus who would become the King of Kings or the King of Nations,” Coronel added.

For his part, Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iniguez, who is also the CBCP Public Affairs Committee (PAC) chairman, said today’s celebration of the Feast of the Epiphany is a reminder that the savior of mankind is born and that the faithful should welcome Him into their lives.

He said the child Jesus, who was born into a poor family, is the savior of mankind.

“The solemnity of the Epiphany proclaims that Jesus is the savior of all. May all accept him in their lives, their families and communities,” said Iniguez.

In the liturgical calendar, the season of Christmas starts on Dec. 25 and ends on the Baptism of Jesus that falls on the second Sunday of January.

But for Filipinos who are known to have one of the longest celebrations of Christmas, it begins on Dec. 16 at the start of the nine-day pre-dawn Masses (Simbang Gabi) and ends on the first Sunday of January that is marked as the Feast of the Epiphany. – Evelyn Macairan

Post Holiday Diet Tips

It’s that time again when thousands of people resolve to lose weight and get in shape for the New Year. If, after over-indulging in food and drink during the holidays, you have decided to trade all those unhealthy habits for a new healthier you, the most important thing is to lose weight slowly and continue to enjoy food and life.

There is no magic formula to losing weight. Most of us know that if we consume more energy than we need we will put on weight; if we use up more energy than we consume – by eating less food and being more active – we will lose weight. Why then do so many of us find it difficult to stick to lose weight?

The first thing you should do is assess your own eating habits and identify areas where there may be room for improvement or areas where you are doing well. Each day make sure you get a good mix of carbohydrates, proteins, fruit and vegetables. Limit your intake of fats and sugary foods.

•	Eat three meals a day: breakfast, lunch (or dinner), dinner (or tea).
•	Enjoy healthy, nutritious snacks such as fruit between meals.
•	Grill, stew, casserole, bake or microwave food instead of frying.
•	Fill up you plate with vegetables.
•	Finish a meal with a piece of fresh fruit instead of cakes and biscuits.
•	Use low-fat varieties of foodstuffs – but remember they do still contain calories.
•	Eat foods high in fibre and starch that are naturally low in fat such as potatoes and pasta.
•	Drink plenty of water. Aim to drink about 6-8 glasses of water per day.
•	Be patient. Slow weight loss allows time for you to make changes to your eating habits and is much more likely to result in a lasting weight loss.

As well as changing your eating habits you should make an effort to increase your amount of daily activity.

•	Be active every day. Start slowly by incorporating 10-15 minutes of light physical activity into your daily routine. Aim to increase this to a minimum of 30 minutes on alternate days.
•	Make sure that the activity is enjoyable (otherwise you will soon give it up).
•	Think active whenever you can e.g. use stairs instead of lift/escalator and walk instead of taking the car or bus.
•	It is better to exercise 1-2 hours after you have eaten when the body can burn off an optimum number of calories.
•	Suitable activities include walking, dancing, swimming.

Make sure you participate in moderate to active leisure on most days. Why not ask a friend to join you? You can keep each other motivated and losing weight will be easier and more enjoyable.