Building a business for employees – BusinessWorld – 24 July 2006
Newsbarbers’ Dennis A. Gadil (ENTERPRISER)
BY IRIS CECILIA C. GONZALES, Senior Reporter
Tradition has it that we go to our friendly neighborhood barbershop, not only for a haircut but also to hear about the latest talk of the town, the community gossip or whatever news there is.
Dennis A. Gadil, a newspaper man, said this is a tradition he wanted to keep alive because he credits his narrative skills to his neighborhood barbershop in Paranaque, where he grew up.
Mr. Gadil has been working as a journalist for Malaya since 1993, covering mainly the legislative beats.
Because of this, Mr. Gadil, along with his fellow newsmen, thought of putting up Newsbarbers.
Mr. Gadil made sure, however, that his barbershop is no ordinary shop. More importantly, Newsbarbers is both a business and a venue to empower employees by teaching them not just about business but about investing.
Thus, its owners make it a point that its barbers will have the opportunity to become part owners through the money that they put in the company.
Mr. Gadil and former People’s Journal reporter Zaldy de Loyola opened the first branch at Ever Gotesco mall along Commonwealth Avenue in August 2002.
Now, barely four years since the launch of Newsbarbers, the group has three operating branches in Circle C mall in Congressional, SM Fairview and the one in Ever Gotesco. The group will open two more this year – one in SM Bacoor and another in SM Pasig.
The opportunity came when eight seasoned barbers defected from an existing shop because of poor labor practices. Mr. Gadil and his colleagues thought of helping the workers by providing a venue where they could practice their skills under a labor-friendly environment. Now, the group is proud of how Newsbarbers has turned out.
“It’s basically the same service but the major difference is how we run the business and how we treat the employees,” Mr. Gadil told BusinessWorld.
His employees have, in fact, become investment partners, an opportunity they never thought would happen. Buddy Gonzales, the shop’s head barber, is now part owner because his employers encouraged him to put up his money into the business. He has also been appointed area manager.
“We also have a trust fund for employees that they can tap for loans in case of emergency or whatever need arises,” Mr. Gadil said.
Former radio journalist Terence Grana said the group would continue to maintain good service to their clients and help empower employees. The utility men or the janitors – there are at least two in every shop – are also trained to become barbers so they can earn more.
The group is also planning to expand the business over the next two years by opening it for franchise. “Franchising is the direction. We are looking at five franchises in two years,” Mr. Gadil said.
This bunch of newsmen-enterprisers, however, are not resting on their laurels. They have vowed to uphold the service and continue to teach and train their employees how to satisfy the customer.
And living up to its name, Newsbarbers also makes sure that clients can catch the latest neighborhood chit-chat, as well as the latest political and economic developments.
The television sets in each shop are tuned in to the news at the scheduled timeslots so that clients can listen to what’s happening.
Running the business, though, is not without challenges. Mr. Gadil complained about the tedious registration process in putting up the business, as well as the various tax requirements.
Mr. Gadil said it is not easy to run a business, but he advises would-be enterprisers to study the market first and familiarize themselves with what they are getting into.
“One has to master the formula of the particular business that he wants to get into,” he pointed out. In the case of Newsbarbers, the group chose to put up their businesses in malls because malling has become a one-stop shop experience for families.
This is in contrast to stand-alone barbers shops in commercial districts like Tomas Morato. Based on Newsbarbers’ experience, he said, it is more practical to have the shop inside malls because families would want to be able to do everything they want when they go out. The mother can do the groceries or shop with the children, while the husband can go to the barbershop while waiting.
But not all malls are ideal, he said. When asked why Newsbarbers did not expand in the newly opened Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Mr. Gadil said it is not the kind of mall where families would go to do the groceries or have a haircut. “It’s a very leisure-type mall,” he said. He also advises entrepreneurs to invite other investors if they want to put up a capital-intensive business such as a barbershop. If one can’t do it alone, it would be good to seek the help of other people. Investment in a barbershop can go as high as P900,000 to P1 million.
BY IRIS CECILIA C. GONZALES, Senior Reporter
Tradition has it that we go to our friendly neighborhood barbershop, not only for a haircut but also to hear about the latest talk of the town, the community gossip or whatever news there is.
Dennis A. Gadil, a newspaper man, said this is a tradition he wanted to keep alive because he credits his narrative skills to his neighborhood barbershop in Paranaque, where he grew up.
Mr. Gadil has been working as a journalist for Malaya since 1993, covering mainly the legislative beats.
Because of this, Mr. Gadil, along with his fellow newsmen, thought of putting up Newsbarbers.
Mr. Gadil made sure, however, that his barbershop is no ordinary shop. More importantly, Newsbarbers is both a business and a venue to empower employees by teaching them not just about business but about investing.
Thus, its owners make it a point that its barbers will have the opportunity to become part owners through the money that they put in the company.
Mr. Gadil and former People’s Journal reporter Zaldy de Loyola opened the first branch at Ever Gotesco mall along Commonwealth Avenue in August 2002.
Now, barely four years since the launch of Newsbarbers, the group has three operating branches in Circle C mall in Congressional, SM Fairview and the one in Ever Gotesco. The group will open two more this year – one in SM Bacoor and another in SM Pasig.
The opportunity came when eight seasoned barbers defected from an existing shop because of poor labor practices. Mr. Gadil and his colleagues thought of helping the workers by providing a venue where they could practice their skills under a labor-friendly environment. Now, the group is proud of how Newsbarbers has turned out.
“It’s basically the same service but the major difference is how we run the business and how we treat the employees,” Mr. Gadil told BusinessWorld.
His employees have, in fact, become investment partners, an opportunity they never thought would happen. Buddy Gonzales, the shop’s head barber, is now part owner because his employers encouraged him to put up his money into the business. He has also been appointed area manager.
“We also have a trust fund for employees that they can tap for loans in case of emergency or whatever need arises,” Mr. Gadil said.
Former radio journalist Terence Grana said the group would continue to maintain good service to their clients and help empower employees. The utility men or the janitors – there are at least two in every shop – are also trained to become barbers so they can earn more.
The group is also planning to expand the business over the next two years by opening it for franchise. “Franchising is the direction. We are looking at five franchises in two years,” Mr. Gadil said.
This bunch of newsmen-enterprisers, however, are not resting on their laurels. They have vowed to uphold the service and continue to teach and train their employees how to satisfy the customer.
And living up to its name, Newsbarbers also makes sure that clients can catch the latest neighborhood chit-chat, as well as the latest political and economic developments.
The television sets in each shop are tuned in to the news at the scheduled timeslots so that clients can listen to what’s happening.
Running the business, though, is not without challenges. Mr. Gadil complained about the tedious registration process in putting up the business, as well as the various tax requirements.
Mr. Gadil said it is not easy to run a business, but he advises would-be enterprisers to study the market first and familiarize themselves with what they are getting into.
“One has to master the formula of the particular business that he wants to get into,” he pointed out. In the case of Newsbarbers, the group chose to put up their businesses in malls because malling has become a one-stop shop experience for families.
This is in contrast to stand-alone barbers shops in commercial districts like Tomas Morato. Based on Newsbarbers’ experience, he said, it is more practical to have the shop inside malls because families would want to be able to do everything they want when they go out. The mother can do the groceries or shop with the children, while the husband can go to the barbershop while waiting.
But not all malls are ideal, he said. When asked why Newsbarbers did not expand in the newly opened Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Mr. Gadil said it is not the kind of mall where families would go to do the groceries or have a haircut. “It’s a very leisure-type mall,” he said. He also advises entrepreneurs to invite other investors if they want to put up a capital-intensive business such as a barbershop. If one can’t do it alone, it would be good to seek the help of other people. Investment in a barbershop can go as high as P900,000 to P1 million.
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