I have always marveled at the Toby's Sports Arena branch in Alabang Town Center and how they have traded some of their ordinary selling space into sports and recreational area where ordinary people could experience using their sports equipment, try on their merchandise before they purchase and do an intelligent decision, as Toby's cares much for its customers.
How long has it been? Apparently, it's their 40th year in the business and they've done remarkable strides to stay lucrative in spite of the Philippines challenging retail landscape. Recently they have opened their new flagship store in BGC so they could serve more folks using their omnichannel experience approach as they continue to strive for excellence and employ world class retail standards. On November 28, they let celebrities, athletes, sports enthusiasts and members of the media experience the "Pinnacle of Sports" lead by the city Mayor Lani Cayetano. The star studded occasion was attended by Ms. Christine Jacob-Sandejas, Miss International Kylie Verzosa, Adidas PH Country Manager Adrien Semblat, celebrities Bubbles Paraiso, Bobby Yan and Tessa Prieto-Valdes, plus athletes from the PBA, UAAP, and NCAA.
The new branch in BGC boasts of a 1,000sqm of selling space, two-stories high, that has got an assortment of top of the line footwear, sports apparel and equipment. from the worlds best brands. Company President Mr. Toby Claudio says "We wanted to have people feel the pinnacle shopping experience in Metro Manila. We use cutting-edge technology, LED displays, interactive touch screens, RFID so we could display information on our products. We have the PLAYZone for events and sports clinics, a basketball court, shooting machines where we give prizes to top scorers. We also have the LAUNCHZone. As its names suggests, the LAUNCHZone to do product launches and innovations from top sports brands. They will also do curated installations, VIP events and athlete appearances to better suit the taste of sports fans in the country.
The second level will house the Tobys Custom Lab which does apparel customization services. So if you need full custom uniforms and jerseys, they have this already inside the store. Other services like the Run Signature Analysis that measures the bodys natural running characteristics will also be there to fit you into the perfect shoe anytime, anyday!
If you want to visit Toby's Sports today you may proceed to their store at BGC today or their other 55 stores nationwide. Remember, if it's sports or hobbies, it's gotta be Toby's!
If you're a mushy person like me, I'm sure you've seen this on Facebook lately. MEGA Sardines has been doing videos like Tipidity and this next one called Adulting so you get to touch with emotions you probably haven't seen in quite a while.
Honestly when a friend shared this on his timeline, I admit I was just curious at first. The veteran character actress Ruby Ruiz in it had me going but once the story was laid out, I got hooked. Let me warn you because this will play with your feelings, starting the most important person in your life, your Mom. I guess this stemmed from our busy lives, our yearning to be independent, but forget that our parents only want the best for us, to keep us safe from harm, and ultimately to spend treasured time - hopefully not to waste and become memories.
I don't wanna spoil things so here, come and watch it!
“Adulting” was produced by Tiu Lim Foundation, Directed by Chris Cahilig, Rommel Sales (cinematography), Yuji Gonzales (screenplay), Alec Figuracion (offline editor), Kenneth Amparo (online editor), Melai Entuna (line producer), Clark Lopez (assistant director), Kat Salinas (sound design), Richard Gonzales (scoring), Yani Bautista (production manager) and Johanna Evangelista (production coordinator). “Adulting” was also shot on location at Bria Homes in Pampanga.
This is part of MEGA Sardines #MegaGandaAngBuhay web series and I can't wait to see how you would react to this and the last one. I hope you learn something from this too because your parents would probably appreciate if you spend time with them even more.
You may check out their channels via megaglobal.com.ph or facebook.com/officialmegasardines because it's all there!
People are literally waiting for this (on their cart or pressing the Buy Now button), and if my hunch is right, they already have set their alarms for Realme's flagship phone the new REALME C1. Currently, it is available in two colors, the shiny Blue and Mirror Black. What is amazing about this phone though is not just the price point, but the specs.
It can last you the whole day with its 4230mAh battery, watch videos strong and play games with the 6.2 inch Large Notch Full Screen Display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 Octacore Processor so you can use apps with ease, Dual Rear Camera for those lovely travel shots you wanted to have, Color OS 5.1 via Android 8.1 and super tight Facial Unlock so you get heightened security all the time.
The Realme C1 will be sold exclusively on Lazada today December 5 12pm for only Php 5,490 or if you prefer to buy it now or days after, you can get this for the full price of Php 5,990 which is already a good deal.
Now if you are wondering why it's called the Entry Level King, you must order today so you can get it for that special price. You don't even have to think about it at that price point, it is affordable as it can get.
Underwater photography has always been an awesome niche that I haven’t touched on because for starters, the equipment you need to take shots underwater come at a pretty hefty price and two, I can’t swim. I am a bit sad because our country has the most diverse underwater subjects, creatures, wrecks and just about any fish there is in the ocean and to be in the midst of all these things and not see them at the same time, is just a whole lot of frustration for me. Good thing some of the most amazing photographers from around the world are converging in Mabini Batangas for the 6th Edition of the Anilao Underwater Shootout. This is a competition organized by the Department of Tourism in cooperation with the Local Goverment of Mabini Batangas and the Resort Owners Association of Mabini (ROAM).
Mind you last year they have had 175 participants from 17 different countries like Singapore, China, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Korea, Turkey, Portugal, USA, Switzerland, Germany, Hong Kong, France, Australia, Canada and the Philippines. It was won by Lilian Koh a female photograper from Singapore (Open Class Champion) and PJ Aristorenas from the Philippines who got his Macro shot of a skeleton shrimp win first place.
The prize is not a joke. They’ve got 40,000 US dollars worth of dive packages, diving and photography equipment, gears and accessories. This is part of the reason why they have exceeded the number of participants this year. It’s like the Grand Prix of underwater photography, running from November 28 til December 1, 2018. They had to go through hundreds of photos to choose the champion this year, and boy they didn’t disappoint!
Asec Roberto Alabado III says “For this competition it will showcase our country, our dive spots, as a sustainable tourism destination. Last year, we had about 12% our GDP contributed to tourism. For this year we have 241 participants who come from 24 countries so this is like a mini UN scene you’re seeing.”
Check out the highlights of my trip and the event here!
The judges include John Thet, Ellen Cuylaerts, William Tan, Indra Swari and famed underwater genius Laurent Ballesta. They look at the manner people dive, the quality of the photos, to show the beauty of the animal, to showcase the beauty of Anilao. The judges even said they wanted to learn because the standard here is high. The silent rule is, a right photo is better than a good photo so there will be almost no photo manipulation as we have to be strict about it. True enough there were amazing, it has to be different, to wow, not just taking photographs. A lot of these photographers were inspired so they all came out with beautiful photos. They are all shot naturally, stunning even in their own environment. Every year the competition is getting tougher and the photographers are getting even more skilled, but they never forget nature. The support coming from the resorts are all making this successful because even with that increase of contestants, they still were able to accommodate it. The Department of Tourism is planning to duplicate this in other provinces because this one is successful, so I am really excited about the other emerging sites like Leyte, Dumaguete, and other provinces.
Ellen Cuylaerts says “I was blown away by the diversity, I go from one place to another and say wow again just in Anilao. Everybody works together in making sure this is sustainable, I am glad I am excited until now for you to see what they got from just one place.”
Willam Tan adds “I just arrived yesterday and I dived once and I have seen a lot of creatures that I have never seen before, even if this isn’t my first time, I would be happy to go back!”
Now that it has been a very successful installment this 2018, they have no where to go but up! I am also excited about what the DOT and Dive Philippines has planned for the other parts of the country that have not yet been developed as a diving destination. We really have so much promise, and their people are exemplary in hosting this event, the whole DOT and local government wants this same successful hosting to be replicated in other provinces so they too could be dive havens like Anilao. Make it happen, make it happen real soon!
Thank you so much Dive Philippines and Department of Tourism! This was so much fun for photography people like me, the prizes and the experience is just amazing! Hope to see you next year!
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