"you'll never really know how much you love something until it's taken away from you..." This saying is so spot on for us OFYs the first few months we leave the Philippines and no, I'm not only talking about family, friends or boyfriends/girlfriends here.
Growing up, there are a lot of things we got used to that are readily available to us in the Philippines. We can eat green mangoes with bagoong whenever we want to, buy kakanin (or better, make mom cook kakanin) when we feel like it, or even get a cheap haircut or pedicure whenever we want with an F salon or Reyes Haircutters in every block. This list of things we are used to taking for granted just goes on and we don't really care because most of the time, it didn't really cross our minds that we will lose them.And admit it, back in the Philippines we'd probably choose anything MADE IN USA or MADE IN ITALY or MADE IN BANGKOK than buying something out of Divisoria or the local palengke. Why go to Reyes Haircutters when you can save up for those Korean owned and staffed hair salons?
But as with every alamat, there comes a twist to the story. We find ourselves miles way from home and craving for that fatty tocino or disease-prone kwek kwek sold at the street corner. So it is not surprising then that in countries/cities outside the Philippines with a high population density of Pinoys , a lot of Filipino speciality stores are continuously attracting a massive following. Obviously applying the basic economic law of supply and demand, these stores sell these imported Filipino commodities 300-500% more expensive than the products' original selling price in RP.
And who are we to complain, paying a couple of extra dollar for that Choc-Nut is way cheaper than shelling out at least thousand bucks for a two way ticket to Manila and back.
I myself was so surprised at my own uncontrollable delight the first time I discovered that I can buy Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs and Eng Bee Tin Hopia without having to bargain favours from friends going back home. Who cares if the TJ hotdogs cost twice than the American brand hotdogs, I'll take my Alvin Patrimonio-endorsed hotdogs anytime, thank you very much. The funny thing is that back home, people think Pinoys who go abroad generally become snobs with all the branded stuff around but in reality, it is us OFYs who become more appreciative of Pinoy products.
But do we yearn for Pinoy products because they are really better in quality, taste better or lasts longer? Well maybe in some cases yes, but I think it has more to do with the feeling we get when we buy these products. Having these things around us makes being away from our families and everything familiar to us less difficult. Maybe having Lily's peanut butter and Lucky Me for breakfast somehow substitute for the fact that mom is not the one cooking it for us...maybe the reason we're dabbing on Baby Bench or Lewis & Pearl cologne is because it brings us right back to our highschool barkada memories,which somehow lessens the sadness of missing all the barkada get togethers and reunions we missed while being abroad.
Drama aside, I'm sure having these Pinoy products available abroad will not stop the never ending "pakipadala" mentality we are all so used to :)
OFYuppies came up with a list of top 15 Pinoy products that are most likely available in Pinoy stores around the world.
- Mama Sita / Knorr Sinigang sa Sampalok Mix (and other Mixes)
- Lucky Me Pancit Canton
- Datu Puti Suka and Toyo
- Safeguard Soap
- Barrio Fiesta Bagoong
- Century Tuna
- Boy Bawang / Ding Dong
- Sky Flakes
- Purefoods TJ hotdogs
- Moddess Sanitary Napkin
- ChocNut
- Likas Papaya Soap
- Magic Sing karaoke system
- Marca Pina/ Rufina patis
- Pampanga's Best Tocino and Longganisa
How about you OFY's, What Pinoy product would you love to have available abroad?
