Assistant Secretary Demphna Du-Naga of the Department of Trade and Industry Regional Operations Group /Irene Sino Cruz
CEBU CITY, Philippines– Micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) have to level up their product design and packaging so they could expand their market.
Assistant Secretary Demphna Du-Naga of the Department of Trade and Industry Regional Operations Group, issued this statement at the sidelines of the 2019 One-Town-One-Product (OTOP) National Design Conference which opened today, May 28.
Around 170 delegates, composed of designers and entrepreneurs nationwide, attended the 2-day conference.
DTI organized the activity to improve and to develop designers so they could upgrade the products packaging and labeling, Du-Naga said.
She said that products with good designs like furniture and food tend to be very marketable.
Du-Naga also recognized Cebu as a leading area for design.
“Here in Cebu, there are many exporters and many success stories because of design,” she pointed out.
DTI-7 Director Aster Caberte said that designers also need to consider the environment when they developed their designs.
“It has been a challenge for micro enterprises in coming up with designs that are sustainable,” Caberte said.
She added that the design conference provides a venue for the sharing of ideas and best practices as well as some inputs by proven designers.
World renowned designer Kenneth Cobonpue, who was among the speakers in today’s conference, discussed design trends. Cobonpue is a trailblazer among Filipino designers since he had succeeded to export the furniture their company produced under his own brand./dcb