MEET OUR CLIENT: Jennilyn Antonio
Jennilyn Antonio became a MABS client in 2004 when she applied for a micro loan with MABS participating bank Rural Bank of Mabitac (RB Mabitac) in Cabuyao, Laguna. Her first loan of Php 30,000 was used to buy a peanut grinder for her startup business of homemade peanut butter. Later on, her succeeding loans of Php 30,000 (second), Php 50,000 (third to sixth), and Php 100,000 (seventh) were all approved and repaid 100% on time. All her loans were invested in their business, which saw significant results.
By 2004, her product and brand Ehje’s Peanut Butter was established and approved by the Bureau of Food and Drugs. In 2005, the business reached gross sales of Php 3.6M and a profit of Php 555,000 (50% of which was reinvested in the business). By 2006, the assets of the business reached a market value of Php 989,000. Also in that year, the business was already employing six workers and an accountant, besides the Antonio couple and their four kids who were helping out in the business.
Due to the remarkable success of the business, Jennilyn Antonio was recognized as the Maunlad category top winner in the 2006 Citigroup Microentrepreneur of the Year (MOTY) Awards. The MOTY Awards is a joint undertaking of Citigroup, the Microfinance Council of the Philippines, Inc., and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). In addition to this, her product label (produced by KimBells pack, Inc.) won first prize in the International Category of the 2006 Awards Competition sponsored by the Tag & Label Manufacturers Institute (TLMI) in the United States. Mrs. Antonio was also featured in Go Negosyo and in Masigasig Magazine of Globe Telecom, Inc.
At present, the Antonio family’s peanut butter business processes tons of dried peanuts per month and averages Php 2M of gross sales. Ehje’s Peanut Butter is now being supplied to two big bakery chains and a supermarket operating in the Greater Manila Area. Likewise, there is an offer for the product to be distributed in Japan.