Fitness First Partners with ABS-CBN for The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition

The world’s largest health club, Fitness First, true to its “Real People, Real Results” motto, partnered with ABS-CBN to support its hit reality program The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition  whose contenders are seeking to change their lives through improved health and fitness.

To this end, Fitness First set up a satellite gym, with its world-class standard equipment, within The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition camp for the contestants, who have been following a rigorous training and nutrition plan to achieve their life-transforming weight-loss goals.

“Committed to a fitter Philippines, Fitness First partnered with The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition to continue to inspire Filipinos to first set then really go for that goal to change their lives through fitness,” said Fitness First Country Manager Mark Ellis. “The real-life success stories of Fitness First members and past Biggest Loser contestants have already shown us that nothing is impossible if you stick to a plan and push yourself a little bit more. This certainly aligns with our ‘Real People, Real Results’ motto for motivating Filipinos and making that connection between improved fitness and better performance in everything else in our lives.”

The satellite gym for the contestants abides by the same world class Fitness First standards. That consistency is how Fitness First strives to feel like ‘second home’ and to make every member feel that they count  even as it has grown to over 1.4 million members in over 540 clubs worldwide with over 50,000 members in the Philippines. Ellis said, “As The Biggest Loser contestants’ stories show, it is no longer just about helping people lose weight. It’s about changing lives. Working with them and Fitness First members to achieve whatever motivates them—that’s the business that we’re in.”

The Biggest Loser Pinoy Edition airs weekdays at ABS-CBN Primetime Bida. To learn more about Fitness First, visit  www.fitnessfirst.com.ph.

Franchise Asia 2011

Good news to all Filipinos!  The Philippines through the Philippine Franchise Association won the bid to host the twin international meetings of the Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation (APFC) and the World Franchise Council (WFC).  Franchise Asia 2011 is the biggest franchising event in Asia.  This 4-in-1 prestigious international event will be held from September 19 - 25, 2011 at the SMX Convention Center.  Attendees are National Franchise Associations delegates from 43 WFC member-countries.

• The International Franchise Conference (September 22-23, 2011)

The International Franchising Conference will feature international experts and speakers who will talk about franchising updates and opportunities across the globe. This event is a high-level education forum that will provide the best opportunity to learn from the best minds in franchising and designed to help stakeholders stay ahead in today’s demanding and ever-changing market. 

This year, the conference will be led by industry leaders such as Jollibee Foods Corporation chair and CEO Tony Tan Caktiong; Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corporation International senior vice president Jeff Welch; 7-Eleven International senior vice president Chris Tanco; and Mang Inasal founder and vice chairman Edgar Sia III, who make up the roster of powerhouse speakers.

• The International Franchise Expo (September 23-25, 2011)

Designed as the biggest one-stop shop event this side of Asia, the three-day International Franchise Expo will provide the platform for Asian brands to expand their markets internationally as well as for global brands to penetrate the ASEAN market.  Exhibit hours are 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM on Friday and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM on Sunday.  

• The Educational Sessions and Seminars (September 23-25, 2011)

A key component of Franchise Asia 2011, the Educational Sessions and Seminars aim to provide the proper learning venue for participants to understand where they fit best in a variety of franchise opportunities - franchisee, franchisor and international master franchisee. Seminar topics include Investing in a Franchise Wisely, Franchising Your Business Right, and International Franchise Opportunity.

• International Meetings:

·          Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation (APFC) September 19-20, 2011

The 13-member Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation, which meets annually, was created with the goal of cultivating bilateral cooperation among member-franchise country associations in the As-Pac rim with the hope of strengthening the sector in the region. The APFC meeting in Manila hopes to further develop and bolster this goal and take full advantage of the optimistic Asian economic outlook.
 
 

·         World Franchise Council (WFC) September 21-22, 2011

The World Franchise Council, composed of 43 National Franchise Associations around the world, will hold its bi-annual meeting in Manila. WFC is tireless in its efforts to promote franchising – with its many benefits, particularly its multiplier effect in terms of enterprise and job creation – as a tool for positive economic growth.  The meeting will set strategic directions to further strengthen the role of franchising in forging a robust global economy, as well as articulate policy guidelines that will foster the fair and ethical conduct of the franchising business, thus protecting the good name of franchising globally.

For full details on conference proper/agenda, log on to www.franchiseasia2011.com.ph 
Registration may also be done online.

“Kodak by Me”

Trigger-happy Filipinos are in for a summer treat as Kodak Philippines officially announced the launch of “Kodak by Me,” an on-line domestic travel photo competition housed in Kodak Philippines’ official Facebook page.

This project resulted from the continued revitalization of the local travel industry combined with Kodak’s philosophy of capturing and sharing priceless moments that jives with Filipinos’ love for photo taking. Kodak Philippines’ “Kodak by Me” campaign aims to give Filipinos a platform to place local tourism in a positive light through their photos showcasing the breathtaking sights and many adventures that only the Philippines can offer.  

In line with the launch of this travel photo competition, Kodak Philippines unveiled 3 new digital cameras and 1 pocket HD cam with instant online sharing capabilities: Kodak Easyshare Mini, EasyShare Touch, EasyShare Sport digital cameras and Kodak PlaySport HD pocket video camera that allow Filipinos to let the world see the country they love, through their eyes. These product introductions are a testimony to Kodak Philippines’ commitment to ongoing innovation that helps people stay connected and share life’s moments.

Starting this May, monthly domestic travel photo themes will be announced – from traveling-couples photos to underwater shots to barkada vacation videos, everyone can send in their photo and video entries and instantly be qualified to win the latest Kodak digital cameras–Kodak Easyshare Mini, EasyShare Touch, EasyShare Sport digital or Kodak PlaySport HD pocket video camera—twice every month! All they have to do is be a part of the Kodak Philippines community on Facebook and stay tuned for the announcements of the monthly themes.

Minor weekly themes will also be rolled-out where participants can win amazing prizes such as digital frames, printing coupons, memory storage, one-of-a-kind travel kits and accessories.

“We at Kodak Philippines are very excited to roll out the ‘Kodak by Me’ online domestic travel photo competition. This campaign couldn’t have come at a better time, especially with the resurgence of local tourism, and with so many Filipinos re-discovering not just their love of travel, but of country as well. Kodak wants to be a part of the Filipinos’ journey, as they discover the many things to love about the Philippines, and we want to enable them to share these breathtaking discoveries with the world,” said Angie Francisco, Business Development Manager of Kodak Philippines.

To learn more about Kodak’s newest offerings and to get a chance to join the Kodak By Me travel photo competition, join Kodak Philippines official Facebook page today.

OMG! I see purple!

Republiq Bar at Resorts World in Pasay City was in full swing party mode last June 21st as the 1st Yahoo OMG! Awards was held there.  As you look around the place, one would feast on the color purple as this is the carrier color of Yahoo! I so love how the purple throw pillows on the couches contrast with the white leather seats.  They also came up with a somewhat bluish-purple colored cocktail to match the event which they called Yahoo Drink (mixture of Blue Curacao, Absolut Vodka and some other stuff). Not to mention, most of the attendees, including me, were dressed in accordance to the purple theme.

Drinks were flowing, everybody smiling, photo ops with celebrities, everybody seemed to be in high spirits, a refreshing sight to see coming from a gloomy, rainy afternoon.  The party kicked off around 8:00PM and was hosted by JM Rodriguez and Andi Manzano, live music played throughout the night.  After party music was hosted by  DJ Chris Myk.

Winners were picked poll-based at http://ph.omg.yahoo.com/omgawards/

OMG! Celeb of the Year: Shalani Soledad	OMG! Major Impact:    Shamcey Supsup
Hottest actor: Piolo Pascual	Hottest Actress: Jennylyn Mercado
Funniest Comedian: Vice Ganda	Funniest Comedienne: Eugene Domingo
Breakthrough artist – male: Coco Martin	Breakthrough artist – female: Cristine Reyes
Awesome young actor: Albie Casino	Awesome young actress: Kathryn Bernardo
Favorite TV host – male: Luis Manzano	Favorite TV host – female: Toni Gonzaga
Amazing newcomer – male: Alden Richards	Amazing newcomer – female: Ritz Azul
Coolest singer – Male: Christian Bautista	Coolest singer – Female: Charice
Coolest band: Parokya ni Edgar	Designer of the Year: Joey Samson
Most Animated Personality:    Barbie Forteza	Most Watched Stunner Celebrity:   Marc Nelson
Most Healthy Award:    Marc Nelson	Touch By The Expert:    Alodia Gosengfiao
Clear Men Award:    Piolo Pascual	Clear Woman Award:    Sam Pinto

The Awards night was presented by Wi-Tribe and sponsored by Ponds, Sunsilk and Clear.  Drinks were sponsored by Pernod Ricard, which kept my friends and I, happy all night long.  To sum it up, I think this event was a huge success for everyone present that night.  More power to Yahoo! Philippines!

Thanks to Ryan of The Black Fedora Blog and also to Myke of mixofeverything for some of the photos seen here. Special mention to my Juan Manila for being our photographer for the night. :) 

Yahoo! Philippines rolls out the purple carpet for the inaugural OMG! Awards

Press Release:

June 16, 2011, MANILA – Yahoo! the premiere digital media company announced the launch of OMG! Awards – the first of its kind purple carpet event that will recognize the most-searched celebrities on its newest and leading entertainment property in the Philippines. The Awards combine Yahoo! Search and rich news content from Yahoo!’s celebrity and entertainment news site, OMG! to recognize the top trending web celebs, those who have propelled to stardom in cyberspace and used the power of the Internet to reach their fans

The awards ceremony which will take place on June 21 comprises 72 nominees in 18 categories; the winners of which will be selected through popular search queries and polling methods.

The categories for the most-searched award include OMG! Celebrity of the Year and OMG! Major Impact, while the winners for Hottest Actor/Actress, Funniest Comedian/Comedienne, Breakthrough Artist Male/Female, Awesome Young Actor/Actress, Favorite TV Host Male/Female, Amazing Newcomer Male/Female, Coolest Singer Male/Female, Coolest Band categories and Designer of the Year will be selected through popular polls. The poll site is located at http://ph.omg.yahoo.com/omgawards/

Hosted by JM Rodriguez and Andi Manzano, Yahoo OMG! Awards will feature acts by top local performers including Someday Dream, Johnhoy Danao and Up Dharma Down, and appearances by popular Filipino celebrities. Noted fashion designers Joey Samson, Jun Escario and Kate Torralba will present a purple themed fashion show while “Cosplay Queen” Alodia Gosengfiao will live blog from the event scene. An after hour party will be hosted by DJ Chris Myk.

Erwin Lemuel Oliva, Country Editor, Philippines, stated, “To determine the winners in each category, our editors will do a thorough trend analysis by assessing the percentage increase in the online searches to identify the most-searched Filipino celebrities. From this short-list, readers will be asked to vote for their favorite.” 

The Awards show will be presented by Wi-Tribe and sponsored by Ponds, Sunsilk and Clear. In a true celebrity style, OMG! icons will be escorted in luxury cars provided by Jaguar and Land Rover while Pernod Ricard, producer and distributor of premium wines and spirits will be the official beverage sponsor.

“OMG! Awards is a direct response to the increasing popularity of Yahoo!’s entertainment site which was launched in March this year and has quickly grown to become the number one property in the Philippines. http://ph.omg.yahoo.com/ consists of the latest news on the local and global entertainment scene receives 682,000 unique visitors per month,” stated Oliva.

Updates from the OMG! Awards event will be posted on Yahoo! Philippines’ Facebook Page on http://www.facebook.com/yahoophilippines while Tweets from the purple carpet can be followed on http://twitter.com/yahooph. A Flickr page has also been set up for Filipinos to share photos with their favorite celebrities on http://www.flickr.com/groups/omgphilippines/.

Cereals and More!

Cerealicous is usually flocked by kids and teenagers, in short, the young ones.  But now, mommies and daddies (who were young once) can enjoy full meals too while kids have fun with their cup of Cerealicious Blockbuster cup at the New Cerealicious Cafe!

The people behind the Cerealicious trend came up with the concept last year, wanting to be more than just a dessert bar which not only caters to kids but to everyone, therefore, Cerealicious Cafe came to. 
By expanding their menu, the cafe offers yummy and nutritious meals that are affordable.

In line with the expansion of the menu comes the Pasta dishes and Entree. Most of the goodies in the full meal menu are infused or made with cereals, making it yummy and still healthy.  The Cerealicous Chicken Pesto, for example, is served with their homemade pesto mix with cornflakes crusted chicken fillet.

I just love their Bubba Shrimps because the serving of shrimps were of the right size and enough crust that doesn't drown the taste of the shrimp itself served with paprika sauce, spicy!  Oh yeah, the breading is also made out of corn flakes.

 
The Creamy Chicken Casserole, I think, would appeal to kids with the colors of the veggies (corn, peas and carrots), smothered in creamy sauce and topped with rice crispies.

Another item on the menu that would surely be a winner with the kids is the Oatrageous Burger Steak, yes, it is spelled correctly, oatrageous.  Using oats as a binder gives you tender, yummy, healthy burger.

Are you a heavy eater?  Go for the Cerealicious Chicken Cordon Bleu, big serving, heavy meal. 

Offerings of soups, salads, sandwiches and bites (pica-pica) are also available.  The cafe still holds their carrier product, Blockbuster Cereals so you need not go to a dessert bar to have your dessert after your meal.   Scrumptious meals with heavenly good desserts, what more could one ask for?


To date, there are 4 Cerealicous Cafe open to serve your cravings:  BF Las Pinas, Katipunan Ave, University Mall Taft and SM Megamall.

See you there! :)

Photos by Jeman Villanueva - Orange Magazine TV