Some people say that it is not wise to launch a business during a crisis, like the current COVID-19 pandemic. But what if the opportunity shows itself to you, will you shy away from it, or will you embrace it with all your might.
Laila Opina Briones did not allow the current health crisis to stop her from taking on business opportunities that come her way. During the early days of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), she launched TinaPay Online, an online bread delivery service. According to her, nothing about it was planned.
“The online business was not intentional,” she shares.
Image: Facebook/TinaPay Online
“My in-laws have a 26-year-old bakery in Sta. Mesa, Manila, and it so happened that before the ECQ. I sent out some tinapay to a few friends who ordered,” she narrates.
Laila added that some of her blogger friends also ordered and posted some photos on social media. And, then, the rest is history.
Through TinaPay Online, she was able to hit two birds with one stone—deliver goods to those who cannot go out to buy food and help out her in-laws with their business.
They deliver an assortment of baked treats—from the bestselling ube cheese pandesal and Spanish bread to the neighborhood bakery classics, pandesal, pianono, and ensaymada.
Humps along the way
“One of the challenges in the beginning was in booking a Grab or Lalamove to deliver the orders. It wasn’t easy.” Laila explains.
However, she turned this problem into an opportunity to help strangers when she met three Grab riders who had no income because of the ECQ.
“They needed to earn for their families, so through TinaPay Online, I am helping them by getting their services,” she says.
Image: Facebook/TinaPay Online
From delivering breads alone, she already earns about P7,000 a day and such amount does not yet include her earnings from walk-in customers.
For Laila, the success of TinaPay Online stemmed from her desire to help her family and those who lost their jobs.
“It’s not only about profit, but how you can help in this time of crisis,” she adds
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