By: Business Inquirer
Leading fashion distribution and retail company Terry S. A., which handles the popular Havaianas brand in the Philippines, is no longer the company it was this time last year. COVID-19 saw to that.
Because of the pandemic that bludgeoned the economy and severely restricted the 18-year-old company’s cash flow, Terry S.A. had to quickly adapt to the new circumstances as it needed to survive, in the name of the over 900 employees working in a retail network of 245 stores across brands (Havaianas, Dupe, CommonThread and Aura Athletica) all over the Philippines.
Anne Arcenas-Gonzalez, president of Terry S.A., which she co-founded with her husband, Freddy Gonzalez, told the Inquirer that when the lockdown was imposed in March last year, a small task force consisting of key members of Terry S.A. was immediately assembled to work on financial models reflecting various scenarios, including a yearlong hard lockdown. It believed in preparing for the worst while hoping for the best.
After securing the safety of its employees, the next priority was to immediately generate income. To do this, Terry S.A. launched an Employee Entrepreneurship Program, allowing its people to resell the company’s products in their communities.
This approach combined with a heightened focus on e-commerce became its lifeline for months until the quarantine measures eased starting June, allowing some retail activity to resume.
Nine months later, Gonzalez is proud to say that Terry S.A. has been able to reactivate the majority of its employees.
Read full story HERE.
