Packworks launches sari-sari store analytics tool

PHILIPPINE startup Packworks has launched a digital platform that seeks to look at the behavior and spending habits of consumers buying in mom-and-pop stores, commonly known as sari-sari stores.

Packworks said in a statement that it officially introduced the platform Sari IQ at the virtual IMMAP DigiCon Valley 2022 on Tuesday. 

According to the startup, the Sari IQ platform is a business intelligence tool that will provide real-time and historical information on consumer spending and can also be configured to analyze product types sold in sari-sari stores. 

“(The platform) gives retailers and multinational brands complete visibility into sari-sari stores’ operations, allowing them to extend their slow-moving products and services to a wider pool of customers,” Packworks said. 

“Analysis through the platform also helps them come up with data-driven decisions to increase sales of sari-sari store owners by understanding and predicting consumer demand within their area,” it added.

The Sari IQ platform monitors information from Packworks’ network consisting of almost 200,000 sari-sari stores across the country that use its app called Super Sari Store.

“Sari IQ is the trusted, go-to partner for sari-sari stores that empowers businesses to be on top of their brand’s performance and make data-driven decisions every day,” Packworks Chief Data Officer Andres Montiel said.

Previously, Packworks said Filipinos tend to value hygiene products more than food products in disaster situations following data showed by Sari IQ that analyzed consumer spending in sari-sari stores situated in areas affected by natural calamities.

Mr. Montiel said the platform can be used to examine changes in the buying patterns of consumers depending on the available supplies and access to supply replenishment of affected sari-sari stores, citing the recent Super Typhoon Karding that hit the country last month.

“The data that Sari IQ [generates] can be used as reference in building inference for marketing strategy, demand planning, and product seasonality,” Mr. Montiel said. 

Packworks, which started in 2018, is a startup that offers a business-to-business platform for sari-sari store owners.

In August, the company raised $2 million from seed round for its mobile enterprise resource platform for sari-sari stores. Packworks aims to expand its store network to 220,000 stores by the end of 2022. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave