APPLIANCES SHOULD BE AFFORDABLE TO EVERY FAMILY

with any appliance store in major malls before buying any appliance and we will assure them of price match guarantee on all appliances that we carry,” said Lim.

“Our campaign brought awareness to all our customers that we offer the best price not only for cash purchase, but also for installment purchase,” he added.

As a Filipino brand, ESLA has evolved from the time Lim’s father, Emilio Lim Jr., founded the company in 1967. The store back then introduced term payment for purchase of appliances, which was an innovation that allowed the masses to have the appliance of their dreams without shelling out a one-time huge payment. The installment business made purchase of appliances easier for the people who didn’t have access to credit cards.

Lim took over ESLA in 1992 and he expanded ESLA’s reach in the country by establishing more branches in Metro Manila and in nearby provinces. ESLA has 40 stores in the South of Luzon, 40 stores North of Luzon and 25 stores in Metro Manila.

As he took over the management of ESLA, Lim focused on the needs of the C and D market, which currently makes up the customers of ESLA. He personally chooses the brands, appliances and consumer electronics to sell in the store that would appeal to this market segment.

ESLA features brands and appliances that are affordable to the low income market (C and D market segment) which comprise 80 percent of the population. For example, the store only carries flat TVs that range from 24-inch, 32-inch, to 48-inch screen sizes. It’s the same thing with refrigerators and washing machines as the store only sells single door to two-door refs, and twin tub washing machines and automatic types with 6 kg to 8 kg capacities.

“We don’t carry expensive items, like the other dealers in the malls. We make sure that our stores only cater to the people who can afford our products. Fifty-six percent of our customers are minimum wage earners, while 25 percent are business owners who use the appliances like refrigerator for their own business. While 20 percent of our customers are OFWs.”

As his father successfully made ESLA a household name as the store to purchase appliances on install-

ment, the younger Lim has successfully strengthened the cashbasis purchase in the store, alongside installment option.

Today, people’s perception of ESLA as an “installment appliance store” has changed, as more consumers are now opting to pay in cash rather than installment.

“Before people thought that ESLA is only for installment because we were the first to introduce the installment business. But many Filipino consumers today are smarter and would pay in cash because they do not like long payment terms with interest.”

“The behavior of consumers has evolved. When I took over in 1992, the trend was the installment option because people could not afford to buy in cash. But now, we are getting more cash purchases rather than installment purchases.”

ESLA is now more known as the store to go to if you want an affordable product, according to Lim.

“If you want something affordable and within your budget, you can buy it at ESLA. It’s cheaper than going to the malls and having to pay 15 percent more for the same prod- uct—because appliance stores in malls have higher overhead cost and they do markup a little bit higher.”

Lim admitted ESLA’s installment business diminished compared to what it was before, but the cash purchase significantly grew over the years. ESLA still maintains its attractive installment offerings that provide consumers with great deals. For example, consumers get promotion and rebates, like not having to complete the remaining two months payment if you pay on time, pay at the store, or pay in advance.

“Compared with other stores who offer installment, ours are also priced affordably,” said Lim.

Being in the business of selling appliances, Lim has witnessed the trends and technologies that shape households today.

According to Lim, for the LED TV market, the latest trend is the NETFLIX function. TVs sold today now feature the NETFLIX app to stream movies via Wi-Fi on your TV.

“With the lowering cost of Wi-Fi in homes, a lot of class C and D buyers are seeing the value of NETFLIX, thus saving on going to movies or paying for cable.”

Refrigerators, air-conditioning units and automatic washing machines with inverter technologies are gaining popularity among consumers, as prices of some of these white goods continue to drop.

“But the latest and most improved segment in the appliance business today is the cellphone. The growth is three times from last year’s. It has affected the LED market and laptop business significantly.”

When ESLA started, appliances for the common folk used to be something of a luxury since not everyone could afford to buy a refrigerator or a TV during that time. But times have changed and appliances are now considered as basic necessities in homes.

“I believe appliances should be affordable and every family should be able to enjoy the basic essentials like an LED TV, a refrigerator, a washing machine, a room aircon, a sound system, a laptop, and a cellphone. All these are available in all ESLA stores at very reasonable prices. You don’t have to pay more than the ESLA price.”

As part of ESLA’s 51st anniversary, the company will be offering savings of up to 50-percent off. This three-day sale will be held starting on Aug. 15, until Aug. 17 in all 105 ESLA stores.