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Mango shake madness drives Dapitan into frenzy

  • Writer: NEO
    NEO
  • Feb 21, 2023
  • 4 min read

Updated: Mar 10, 2023

By Paulina Icban


Mango shake madness unfolded in Asturias Street, Manila, after K&K Fruit Shake opened its doors to customers on Jan. 16. After gaining online clout, intrigued people scrambled on their feet to get their hands on the famed mango shake.


Hindi namin inexpect na pipilahan talaga ng mga tao for one to two hours,” Leslie Cruz, 32, said in an interview on Feb. 15.


Social media proved to be a powerful platform because on TikTok, a post by user @prinxessmargo featuring the mango shake hit a staggering 100,000 views and almost 9,000 likes.


On Twitter, a tweet by user @bluebeyrries achieved almost half a million views with thousands of likes and retweets.



Cruz can’t get over the overwhelming number of people stopping by saying it was something unexpected, especially after the pandemic inflicted significant damage, causing them to lose their family business for three years.


Hesitant pa kami noon kasi ang alam namin, kapag inoobserve namin, hindi kasi ganoon kadami yung students; siyempre mangangapital ka, maglalabas ka talaga [ng pera],” she said, the thought of being hopeless during those times rushing back in her mind.


Reopening on Jan. 16, the daily revenue only amounted to an estimated 3,000 pesos, making them scoff in disbelief as it was relatively smaller than the capital they spent on the ingredients.


Yet the next day, after a student posted that TikTok video, she and her family were surprised at the magnitude of customers wanting to get their hands on the mango shake.


As if in a snap of a finger, their business took a hundred-and-eighty-degree turn for the better.


In a blink of an eye, their daily revenue grew tenfold, soaring to around 30,000 pesos. Although Cruz said it was not really that much, garnering such a sum of money did not only fill their pockets but their hearts as well because they had never experienced holding that much money before.


Subukan natin kasi ganoon naman talaga yung negosyo, kung malugi or kumita eh ganoon talaga, at least nagtry tayo na iopen siya ulit,” she said, hopeful yet the impact of losing a business palpable in her tone.



Closure


With the business’ closure for almost three years, Cruz’s mother, Myrna Cruz, 61, recounted experiencing anxiety after losing their primary source of income.


March ng 2020 nung nagstart na magka-pandemic, one week nag-open pa kami pero wala na kasi talagang class, so after noon nagsara na rin kami. Nung nagstart yung lockdown, hindi na kami nag-open,” Cruz detailed.


It was inevitable, she added. After gaining zero profits for a week straight, sustaining expenses, including the human resources they hired at that time, was challenging. Unfortunately, they had to let go of the people that have already been a part of their business for years, people they considered family.


Three of their stalls in Asturias Street, Antonio Street, and Rosarito Street had been closed for business.


At the height of the pandemic, as their savings continue to dwindle, they knew better than to sit back and wallow in their loss; with another step forward albeit uncertain, they opened K&K online shop on Facebook. They sold fruit jellies in a jar with flavors including mango, melon, buko pandan, avocado, etc.


Cruz said her sister also resorted to selling these products in her workplace. Eventually, she was able to find resellers.


Nung pandemic through online lang kase siyempre kailangan may source of income ka pa rin kaya we have to think kung paano pa rin kikita,” she said.


In November of 2022, as restrictions laxed and classes gradually resumed, she made a firm decision to try and reopen the business and sell dimsum products, such as siomai,


Owing to friendship, the owner of a neighboring restaurant Lovelite who happens to be a long-time friend of her mother, initiated to provide a spot for them to situate a table on the side.


Two months later, she decided to sell fruit shakes again.


Formerly priced at 55 pesos, she expressed regret in raising the price to 75 pesos, but said that it had to be done, noting how inflation affected the costs of ingredients needed.


Tapos nakakita kami ng suki at TinikTok nila, doon talaga siya nagstart na humaba yung pila kasi nalaman nila na open na ulit,” she said.


She remembered telling herself the moment her eyes saw the long queue along the street that the massive amount of people was just due to temporary hype. Yet one month in, people lining up to try their famed mango shake remained consistent in numbers.


Some even reached out to her through messages asking if they are open on Sundays, knocking on their doorstep before 9:00 AM, and inquiring if they will soon open because the customer is having difficulty queuing during the afternoons.


Kahit yung mga taga ibang school, pumupunta sila sa tindahan namin kaya hindi ko talaga inexpect na ganito kalaki yung [impact] ng TikTok and yung pagflex ng mga Gen Z online,” she said.


As customers fawn over and flock to their stalls, Cruz and her family continue to marvel at the seemingly unceasing mango shake madness in Dapitan.



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