page_title: Sari-sari store
section_title: Social value
hierarchical_section_title: Sari-sari store / Social value
caption_attribution_description: English: Alburquerque, Bohol, the Philippines
context_page_description: A sari-sari store, or neighborhood sundry store, is a convenience store found in the Philippines. The word sari-sari is Tagalog meaning "variety" or "sundry". Such stores occupy an important economic and social location in a Filipino community and are ubiquitous in neighborhoods and along streets. Sari-sari stores tend to be family-run and privately owned operating within the shopkeeper's residence. Commodities are displayed in a large screen-covered or metal-barred window in front of the shop. Candies in recycled jars, canned goods and cigarettes are displayed while cooking oil, salt and sugar are stored at the back of the shop. Prepaid mobile phone credits are provided. The sari-sari store operates with a small revolving fund, and it generally does not offer perishable goods requiring refrigeration. The few that do have refrigerators to store soft drinks, beers, and bottled water.
context_section_description: The Magna Kultura Foundation notes that the sari-sari store is part of Philippine culture, and it has become an integral part of every Filipino’s life. It is a constant feature of residential neighborhoods in the Philippines, both in rural and urban areas, proliferating even in the poorest communities. About ninety-three percent (93%) of all sari-sari stores nationwide are located in residential communities. The neighborhood sari-sari store (variety or general) is part and parcel of daily life for the average Filipino. Any essential household good that might be missing from one’s pantry –-- from basic food items like sugar, coffee, and cooking condiments, to other necessities like soap or shampoo –-- is most conveniently purchased from the nearby sari-sari store at economically sized quantities that are affordable to common citizens.
  
  The sari-sari store offers a place where people can meet. The benches provided in front of the store are usually full of men and women. Some men will spend time drinking while women discuss the latest local news. Youths also use the place to hang out. Children also rest there in the afternoon after playing and buy soft drinks and snacks.
caption: Sari-sari stores in Alburquerque, Bohol.
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