If you are thinking of establishing a food business or if you want to improve your present food venture, then the Manila Food and Beverage Expo is an event you should not miss. The event is from June 20 to 24, 10am to 8pm at the World Trade Center.

A full line up of activities are in store. Several helpful seminars should not be missed. These include:

June 21

• How to learn food carving
• Successful stories in the food industry
• Global franchise marking: buying the right franchise

June 22

• Franchie advantage
• Fruit preservative
• How to start a catering business

June 23

• Restaurant accounting and controls
• Food shelf life

All seminars are FREE. Several competitions and cooking demonstrations are also ongoing throughout the expo.

Be part of the Philippine business boom! Attend the biggest business and selling event of the year, the Fil-Negosyo Expo Expo 2007.

The event will run from June 22 to July 2007 at the Megatrade Hall 2, 5th level, Megamall. There will be free seminars on enterpreneurship, leadership, finance, customer service, marketing and various business opportunities.

Collocated within the event are the following:

• Transpo Negosyo
• Franchising, dealership and direct selling
• Health and fitness exhibit
• Home and novelties exhibit
• Business financing exhibit
• Ad and tecnobiz
• Food and beverage show
• Young entepreneur congress

Attendance to the Fil Negosyo is free.

In my previous post, I discussed how to get a 7-11 franchise. This time around, lets take a look at its competitor, Ministop.

The investment required for a Ministop franchise ranges from Php 1.3M to Php 2.8M depending on the business package. The company chooses the location and the franchisee, called Business Partner, is tasked to operate the store.

The Ministop contract is rather long, 10 years, which I believe is advantageous to the investor. Return on investment is typically 3 to 4 years so you’ll only start earning on your fifth year.

One advantage of the Ministop franchise is that you get to choose among their existing store locations. Of course, the company reserves the right which branch they will award to you.

Just a word of advice, I have seen several Ministop convenience store close after one year. Getting a franchise is not a guarantee of succeess.

If you love retail, then a convenience store business like 7-11 maybe for you. First, you’ll need Php 3 to 7 million as an investment. This include operational rights to a store, equipment, facilities, and initial inventory.

You need not have a location. You can choose among the existing stores that are available for franchise. 7-11 will provide the required training program which is approximately 6 weeks.

Interested? Email 7-11 franchising for more information. Or visit the 7-11 website