Oliver Segovia felt that there was something missing in the local e-commerce scene. “We felt that shoppers deserved a highly curated and inspired shopping experience. We couldn’t find the kind of easy and attractive online shopping experience that we wanted. Most of the online shops out there felt like the Internet equivalents of tiangges—cluttered websites, bad design, uninteresting typography and so-so brands.”
He decided to fill the void by establishing AVA (www.ava.ph), an online shopping site that offers unique products from premium hard-to-find brands. Oliver, now AVA’s CEO, said, “Our team’s mission is to make life beautiful, every day, through a careful selection of exclusive, coveted brands.”
Ava’s best-sellers in the past months have been shoes and bags. “We’ve been surprised that design objects—art, accessories and novelty items—have also sold well,” said Oliver.
“The site is great for design-loving people who cannot find what they’re looking for in the malls and enjoy being able to sit back and let their fingers do the shopping,” said Katrina Holigores, AVA’s VP for marketing and brand relations.
On Sunday, Aug. 26, the site will let shoppers enjoy the AVA experience on-ground with their Private Designer Sale at The Rockwell Tent Extension. “For one day only, we will offer clothes and accessories from some of the country’s best couture designers including Dennis Lustico, James Reyes, Ivar Aseron, Joey Samson, Tippi Ocampo, Amina Aranaz and Louis Claparols with discounts up to 70 percent. Design and home stores such as Cura-V and a11 will be showing exquisite pieces as well,” said Katrina.
Oliver believes the future is bright for e-commerce in the Philippines. “We believe e-commerce will change the face of local retail. Kleiner Perkins, the venture capital firm behind Google, named the Philippines as one of the fastest growing Internet markets in the world. This is truly amazing news for the local Internet industry.”
Register at the Designer Sale page (www.ava.ph/designersale) to get in for free. Those who do not register will be charged an entrance fee. Check out ava.ph and the site’s e-zine at www.ava.ph/avazine.