The province of Bohol is prominent as a haven of natural beauty, mouth-watering dishes, breathtaking tourist attractions, and locals known for hospitality and warmth to tourists. Recognized as the Jewel of the Philippines, cradling some of the country’s most precious wonders, this province boasts a thriving tourism industry which was then heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the industry paves for recovery, Ocean Suites Bohol Boutique Hotel is winning the hearts of local and foreign travelers, accommodating their various travel and lodging needs. This hotel lives up to its core of delivering genuine experiences to its guests, offering top-notch amenities, services, food, and travel experiences like no other.

“We are not treating our guests as guest lang talaga. But we treat them as our family,” said Geann Competente, Assistant General Manager at Ocean Suites Bohol.

“We want our guests to enjoy and relax, so that while they’re staying here in Ocean Suites, they would feel the warm welcome here. Lahat ng mga staff dito, they are all friendly. So, I’m sure you will be satisfied when you’re staying here in Ocean Suites,” Geann added.

All about location

Located on a cliffside property in Bool District, Tagbilaran, Ocean Suites features a panoramic view of the sea which allows tourists to laze around while admiring the majestic scenery. It has cozy, spacious rooms, a delightful café and restaurant, and a stunning infinity pool that makes a perfect relaxing spot. 

It is also strategically located nearby some famous tourist destinations in Tagbilaran, including the historical Blood Compact Shrine where Spanish navigator Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Rajah Sikatuna sealed the first treaty of friendship in 1565.

“Ocean Suites has a very nice location kaya patuloy kaming binabalikan ng mga turista. Nasa sentro rin kami ng Tagbilaran kaya ideal kami sa mga turista dahil malapit kami sa tourist spots. Our guests can also enjoy the breathtaking scenery from the infinity pool because our location is very interesting and amazing,” Competente shared.

Despite its difficulties during the onset of the pandemic and the aftermath of typhoon Odette last year, the business remains relentless in its resolve to maintain the brand of service quality it is known for.

From the amenities, food, activities, and hospitality of the staff, Ocean Suites offers superior services which are suited to cater to the varying needs of travelers. Whether for leisure travelers who would like a chill, relaxing stay; business travelers who need to attend meetings and functions or for guests craving for an adventure, the hotel provides fantastic avenues to satiate all kinds of wanderlust.

Digital life

As part of the warm hospitality it offers, Ocean Suites also strives to enrich the hotel experience of guests as it tapped an internet service provider that can best support the always-on, digital lifestyle of today’s travelers. 

Providing complimentary high-speed internet for guests, Ocean Suites partnered with Converge ICT Solutions to enable a robust digital foundation that could serve the connectivity requirements of its guests, as well as the operations of the business.

“We started to partner with Converge because we know that they have the speed and reliability that is mostly needed by our guests. Mabilis ‘yung internet connection nila,” Competente noted. 

She also shared the importance of internet connectivity as it is the first thing guests would ask for the moment they stepped inside their rooms. As people nowadays become more digitally active, she said that a reliable and high-speed connection is essential to seamlessly visit sites, watch videos, share experiences, browse social media accounts, and connect to families and friends even if they are on the different side of the globe. 

“Natulungan ng Converge yung mga guest namin whether they need to go online for their business or meetings; they provide a fast and reliable connection. Our guests are now more confident to stay with us because of our wifi connection,” Competente noted. 

As the tourism industry gears for recovery amid loosening restrictions, Ocean Suites is optimistic that more tourists will visit the hotel soon. And as their operation continues, Converge will be its partner in enabling fast and reliable internet connection to help guests reach their friends and families wherever they are in the world. 

Visit the Ocean Suites Bohol Boutique Hotel to see the amenities of the hotel and the value for money deals it has to offer. . 

To know more about Converge, visit convergeict.com.

Laundromats in the Philippines have continued to thrive over the years as Filipinos have been given the option to make laundry less of a burden with the continuous innovations in the industry. More Filipinos are outsourcing their chores to buy themselves more time for the things that matter: time for friends, family, hobbies, side hustles, and selfcare. Since the huge growth they have experienced in the last year, WeClean has managed to process more than 1,200 daily orders across all of their branches.

Fully integrated laundry service provider WeClean has doubled down on its business expansion strategy over the past two years. The company is on track in its plans to become one of the top-of-mind laundromat brands in the country.

WeClean Head of Strategy Alejandro Gonzalez Sacramento, from his bird’s eye view, shares five ways the company is helping change and drive the local laundry industry.

• Quality Laundry Services through Top of the Line Equipment

WeClean is not your ordinary laundry shop. All their shops are decked with top notch washing machines, detergents, and fabric softeners that are able to produce the freshest, cleanest, most fragrant laundry for its customers consistently, and efficiently. WeClean also offers dry cleaning services that have been considered a top choice for many of their customers. They are likewise able to provide quick pickup and delivery services customers continue to recognize.

This has motivated WeClean to beef up operations and install digital point-of-sale machines to better manage inventory and supplies, including an upcoming and soon-to-be launched mobile app that can help more customers with their laundry needs.

• Standardization of Laundry Services

With over 63 branches across the metro, WeClean standardizes its offering of free pick-up and delivery services for their customers’ laundry needs. Have clothes, linen, towels, or household items (rags, tablecloth, runners, flags/banners, and placemats) picked up, washed, and delivered right to your doorstep within 24 to 48 hours. They also offer pickup and delivery within the same day for regular clothes and household items.

WeClean’s brand is a guarantee that no matter which branch customers reach out to, they will be taken care of by properly trained employees and high quality equipment.

Busy professionals with erratic schedules and heavy workloads, students with piling deadlines, and housewives and entrepreneurs too busy to deal with laundry can save time and stay safe within the comforts of their homes with WeClean.  From washing, drying, folding to steam and dry cleaning, WeClean is ready to take on whatever their customers need.

• Two-Fold Expansion Strategy

For the company to reach its target goal of opening and operating 500 successful branches by 2025, they are implementing a two-fold expansion strategy. First is in identifying strategically located existing brick and mortar businesses whose owners are looking for a change.

WeClean then evaluates, closes the deal, and purchases small players and turns them into WeClean branches that are operated under the company. The other approach the executives implement is looking for strategic lots, spaces, and locations where they know that there is a demand for their laundromat services. They spot residential areas with high traffic and within distance from high-rise condominiums where people cannot afford to have washing machines at home.

These two expansion strategies have helped them be on track at opening one store after another since its launch in 2017. 

• Job Security

With its aggressive expansion and business plan intact, WeClean executives have made it their priority to provide stable jobs in all their branches across the metro.

They have already started implementing standardization of their internal processes including payrolls, cash collection reporting, task distribution, among others. To date, WeClean supports 135 employees across 63 of their branches in the country.

• Client-centric Feedback

WeClean prides itself not just on its capabilities to run seamless laundry services across its branches in the country but also in the company’s ability to listen to customers’ feedback.

“We make it a priority to listen to what our customers need, what is important for them, and what they would like to see at WeClean so we can make their overall experience a memorable one,” shares Sacramento.

WeClean’s exponential growth is a reflection of its consistent and trustworthy services that become a dependable life partner for all its customers. As WeClean continuously grows, they are also making sure that the people they help receive quality service with their keen attention to detail and commitment to improving their operations.

To learn more about WeClean Philippines, visit weclean.ph.com or their Facebook  page for updates and announcements.

Creating job opportunities while providing quality laundry services is what fully integrated laundry service provider WeClean has always committed to since its establishment in 2017.

“We’ve always set out to help not only consumers but also provide the necessary employment to Filipinos within the local community. Our aim by 2025 is to have 500 operating and successful branches across the Philippines and in nearby Southeast Asian countries that will help us hire and offer jobs to roughly over 1,200 employees,” shares Alejandro Gonzalez Sacramento, WeClean Head of Operations.

To date, WeClean has opened and is operating over 64 branches in the metro with 130 employees ensuring that quality laundry services are offered to their growing customer base. “We are hiring aggressively right now as we continue opening branches and extending our operating hours from 6am to 10pm and we are already open 24 hours in our branch in Ocampo. We are eyeing to be able to hire more people in the next few months so that we are able to open another four to six branches,” Gonzalez mentions.

The company is also targeting to acquire more laundry shops to bring the total number of operating branches to 100 before the year ends, so it is vital for WeClean to find the right people and hire more branch personnel.

Hiring Process

WeClean believes in the adage where happy workers bring satisfied customers. They offer competitive wages and ensure all mandatory benefits set by the government are implemented and strictly followed to ensure that their staff and employees are happy and proud of working at WeClean. “We make sure our employees are happy and receive not only their basic pay but also on holidays and overtime. They are also given SSS, PAG-IBIG, and PhilHealth benefits,” shares Gonzalez.

In the last two weeks, WeClean has recently hired 15 more attendants, placing their current count of employees to 145. They have job postings on social media and are likewise working with some HR agencies to ensure they get the right personnel for their branches.

They hire both undergraduates and college graduates with experience working in the laundry business or service industry. WeClean is also on the lookout for customer-oriented individuals who can not only greatly appeal and deal with customers on a daily basis but also tech-savvy individuals who are able to learn new things as the company is digitizing their branches with POS machines.

“We are very much open in considering employees for our various roles across our 64 branches in the country. We train our personnel with our equipment, our services, and in running the businesses as well,” highlights Gonzalez.

Strengthening Accessibility

In its aim to further digitize and make laundry services more accessible to those in the metro, WeClean finalized its partnership with Grab and is the first laundry business to be available in the Grab app.

“We continue to innovate and ensure that we are where our customers are – online. We are hoping to help more Filipinos in their laundry chores so they can focus on what is more important to them like spending time with the family,” muses Gonzalez.

The WeClean app is also in its final stages before it is publicly made available in the country. To learn more about WeClean Philippines, visit weclean.ph.com or their Facebook  page for updates and announcements.