Starbucks Coffee: mass market appeal

There's something about Starbucks that makes it appealing to most age brackets. High school students enjoy hanging out at Starbucks, and even "older" office people and retired seniors could be seen hanging out there enjoying a frappucino.

Our metro's populace isn't necessarily one where an average person has extra money to buy cofffee from a high end shop everyday. What makes people actually sacrifice spending on more important things just to have a venti caramel frap?

(Lady and I sharing a frappucino)

Looking inside a Starbucks outlet, you rarely see people just getting a cup of coffee to drink and go. Most of the people patronizing Starbucks tend to stay for a while there. Some don't even drink coffee, yet stay there. Many could be seen typing on laptops and using their wi-fi, while some are just enjoying a book. Plenty of business meetings happen in Starbucks as well, salespeople and clients could be seen meeting to discuss deals.

How many cups of coffee are bought per table per hour? Sometimes, you see ten people chatting over two or three cups of coffee. Do people really go to Starbucks because of the coffee? I don't think so.

It's a great place to hang out though, What Lady and I do, we buy one frap and share it, and I get a few cups of their milk. I'm sure some of you readers have your own Starbucks experiences. Don't hesitate to share them. :)

Fitness First: Upmarket Gym

My oh my, what a coincidence! I was just singing praises about C-3 gym, and saying how other bigger gyms are not worth it.

During my CWTS class, I got a call from Richard, a promotions person for FF Greenhills, saying that I was recommended for a free one-day pass. I accepted the offer and agreed to be there by 8pm.

Lady went with me, as well as Touie. We took Touie's car. One thing I noticed was the parking, or rather the lack of availability of it. Once we were able to find a slot, we proceeded to Fitness First and we were greeted by Richard, who showed us the locker rooms and left us there.

The three of us went upstairs. We started our warm ups on the elliptical machines. After five minutes, Touie and I proceeded to work out chest. We warmed up with lying-down dumbbell presses.

One thing we noticed is the lack of respect for others from the other members. The matching pairs of dumbbells were hard to find.

They had plenty of machines, but all the machines lacked the "hardcore" feeling of the free weights training C-3 emphasized. Also, the patrons of C-3 tend to be bigger and more serious in weight training than in Fitness First.

On the plus side for Fitness First, they have all the tools you need to sculpt your physique with the least effort. No loading of plates on machines, all you need to do is move the pin. Also there is duplicity of machines for the most commonly worked out body parts: chest and abs.

I heard from my friend Blossom that the monthly fee is P2,400. The perks you get: free bag, water bottle, use of shower facilities, locker facilities, headset (?), air-conditioned gym, and aerobics classes (I don't know if this is good, I prefer non-airconditioned gyms so I could really sweat it out). I don't know if you would really want to pay such a premium for those perks. Anyhow, it's a matter of personal preference.

My personal preference? I'd rather go to C-3 gym instead for the atmosphere and "hardcore" feeling. :)

Pics to follow.

C-3 Fitness Gym: Fitness for Less

Are you cash-strapped and out of shape?
Do you live, work, or study near Mandaluyong or San Juan?
Fitness First and Slimmer's World out of your budget?

Visit C-3 Fitness Gym and get real value for your money!

• No Membership Fees
• Low Monthly Usage Fee (P500)
  
• Daily Rates also Available (P50)
  
• New Equipment
• Free Parking
• Free Fitness Program Consultation

Left: Lat Pulldown Right: Bench Press

These are pictures of my then-10 year old brother who also works out at C-3 Fitness Gym. The equipment is at par with other gyms, and the owner, Carlo Capati, used to teach at Fitness First.

Personally, from a skinny 120 lbs I increased my bulk to 140 lbs, which is just about right for a guy standing at only 5'5.5" I have gained a lot of strength in all of my lifts. Try it and see your own transformation. The best part is that there are no membership fees. If you have P50 and want to try out a new gym, C-3 fitness gym is definitely the place to try.

How to get there:
(From Shaw Blvd.) Turn at Torres St. (towards Nissan Shaw) and turn left at the end. Turn left at the next corner and follow the street to the sign "Cookbook Kitchen." C-3 Fitness Gym is located on the left side of Cookbook Kitchen.

(From Wilson Ave.) Turn left at P.Guevarra (You will see Asiatrust Bank and Happy Feet at the corner) and turn left again to Luna Mencias (the downhill street.) Go straight down until the road begins a mild incline. Go up the road and turn left at the first corner and follow the street to the sign "Cookbook Kitchen." C-3 Fitness Gym is located on the left side of Cookbook Kitchen.

/Be Bench Model Search

I am sure that most of us Filipinos have heard of the /be bench model search going on in the country. I had the privilege to have a friend tell me his experiences as a bench model search contestant.

He summed it up like this:

"10,000+ contestants
1,400 qualified contestants
10 from Trinoma(Where I auditioned)
200 contestants battling it out in Studio 1
15 Girls, 15 guys for the show..."

He maintains a multiply site. The contest was very competitive. 200 people with model-type bodies battled it out at ABS-CBN studio 1. Only 30 will be accepted to join the show, and 12 will be named the next bench models.

Wow.

From 10,000+ to just 12!

Looking deeper though, it looked like an effective marketing strategy. My friend practically had no Bench(TM) clothes. A minimum purchase of P200 is required. An added requirement is a full Bench outfit from underwear to shoes to jeans to accessories. That could go all the way up to P1000 or more!

Assuming P1,000 per outfit per person, and 10,000 contestants, an estimated additional P10,000,000 in revenue will be generated. In addition to that, Bench will be able to recruit new models who won't command a talent fee as high as those already in show business.

There was no consolation prize, which was the sad part. The lunch given to the 200 qualifiers was just siomai and garlic rice from PotDog. Hardly a sumptuous meal. There should have been at least a gift certificate for those who made it to the final 200. Anyhow, they might have thought that bragging rights are enough.

As of the posting, the show hasn't been aired yet. You might see me, or my friend in the show when it gets aired on July 29, 2007.

Opening Metro Explorer

Metro Explorer is now officially open! I hope you will be following my adventures in, around, and outside the Metro. I won't only post about places, I will also post about personal experiences in and out of the Metro.

We may all have different points of view of urban life based on our natural environments. During the course of your viewing of my blog, you may find points where you may not agree. Some of my posts may be biased. Please bear with me, and feel free to post your comments. Just don't flame me. :D

I live in Central Metro Manila, in the now-city of San Juan. I live literally in between a slum (or squatter's area) and two mansions. That makes me middle class.

I am a graduating student (March 2008) at the University of the Philippines Asian Institute of Tourism. That is in Diliman, Quezon City, around 15 kilometers north from where I am. My girlfriend studies there as well, and is also a graduating student. She lives in Makati, just across the Pasig River, approximately 6 kilometers south.

If you are good with roads, you will find out that I pass EDSA, Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon Avenue, C-5, Shaw Blvd., Ortigas Avenue, and Boni Avenue frequently.

Metro Explorer is now open! Feel free to send me an email for comments and suggestions on existing posts, or just about anything you want me to post.