Wesleyan University-Philippines

Graduate School

Mabini Extension, Cabanatuan City

“Thrift Clothes Business: The Impact of “Ukay-ukay” in the Online

World”

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree

Master in Business Administration

Submitted By:

Beatriz Noreen B. De Vera

1st semester

2021-2022

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The researcher would like to express her gratitude and

appreciation to the people who became instrumental in the
completion of this research work.

First, to the almighty God, who guided and blessed the

researcher with strength and knowledge to finish this study in
spite of the pressure and stress.

To the beloved parents of the researcher who supported the

researcher emotionally and financially from the start up to the
finish of this study.

THE RESEARCHER

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 DEDICATION

I humbly dedicate this work to my beloved parents, brother,

and loved ones for their invaluable sacrifices in financial,

spiritual, and moral support that helped me finish this study.

BEATRIZ NOREEN B. DE VERA

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… i

Acknowledgement …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………ii

Dedication…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….iii

Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. iv

CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………2

Scope and Delimitations ………………………………………………………………………………………………….3

Significance of the Study………………………………………………………………………………………………….4

Definition of Terms …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4

CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURES AND STUDIES

Related Literatures …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5

Related Studies…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….9

Bibliography……………………………………………….……………………………………………………………………………..13

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Background of the Study

The clothing industry has been a huge part of the economy

since it was introduced. Clothing is a necessity; that is why

this industry is very booming in the business world. Clothing

businesses never go out of style and will probably never fade out

because people tend to invest in fashion nowadays. Though there

are many big brands known for their quality, style, and

extravagant pricing, some people prefer to buy inexpensive but

quality clothes. Thus, the trend of thrift clothes came into the

picture.

Thrift clothes, or more popularly known by Filipinos as

"Ukay-ukay," are widely patronized by the people in the

Philippines. Filipinos are known to be practical and resourceful,

so they tend to go for inexpensive clothing. Ukay-ukay are

secondhand items that are sold at a lower price. Ukay-ukay shops

are seen all over the country, and people are always attracted to

visit this kind of shop. Since the industry of Ukay-ukay started,

it became a hit to the people. Most entrepreneurs also ventured

because it only needs low capital but gains a high profit. All it

takes is the talent and skills of a business owner to sell it.

Thinking of selling secondhand clothes can be challenging,

but ukay-ukay sellers thought of an innovative way to promote and

sell thrift clothes. The "Ukay-ukay" business industry is now

seen through mobile or computer screens and is now sold through

the internet. Thrift clothes shops are now accessible online

through social media like Facebook, Instagram, and Online

shopping websites and applications. Since this online innovation

started, the impact of the thrift clothes business grew more

prominent. The Online Ukay-ukay business industry, though

sometimes experience struggles, benefited the people behind it

and the economy itself.

Significance of the Study

Online thrift clothes or the "Ukay-ukay" business industry

are becoming more and more popular to the people and make it one

of the most profitable types of small business. Evaluation of

this business' impacts will give the following knowledge on how

the sellers and the buyers maintain the business.

The researcher. This study will help the researcher evaluate and

analyze the business and figure out her findings and conclusions

about the study. This will also allow the researcher to apply her

knowledge about the different aspects of the business.

Future researchers. This study will serve as a reference to other

future researchers.
Government. This study will provide the government with an idea

of how this kind of business can benefit the social condition of

the community and the nation as well.

Scope and Delimitation.

This study is entitled "Thrift Clothes Business: The Impact

of "Ukay-ukay" in the Online World." This study is limited to the

evaluation of the impact or effects of the business. It covers

the five aspects of business management: marketing, management,

technical, financial, and socio-economic aspects.

Definition of Terms

Ukay-ukay. These are secondhand clothes that are sold at a lower

price.

Thrift Shops. It is a store selling secondhand clothes and other

household goods.

Social Media. These are websites and applications that enable

users to create and share content or participate in social

networking.
 CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter presents a review of related literature in

which the researchers considered relevant to the study.

Local Literature

Ukay-ukay business: Is it still Feasible?

(2014)

The ukay-ukay has successfully carved its niche in the

country's local clothing industry. Inside these secondhand

clothes stores, shoppers are forced to dig or sift through

endless racks of clothes for a good find. This manner of search

is called halukay in Filipino, from where the name ukay-ukay

comes.

Since ukay-ukay stores already have the edge over branded

and designer clothes stores due to price, there is almost no need

to market the store. However, ukay-ukay entrepreneurs also have

to accept that Filipinos have already attached certain beliefs

surrounding the ukay-ukay, like health and quality issues. There

are simply Filipinos into ukay-ukay wares and Filipinos who will

not even attempt to step into a store.

As for customers, the ukay-ukay is here to last unless calls

for stricter policies are put in place. There is a law that says

it is illegal to import secondhand goods in the Philippines.

However, no law covers businesses trading secondhand goods, which

some Filipinos still believe is a practical choice.

Local Studies.

The Economics of Secondhand Retail Trade: An Analysis of the

Market for Ukay-ukay
(2005)

Ukay-ukay is a very affordable source of fashionable yet

durable clothing material for those with relatively low incomes.

Some people would resort to buying ukay-ukay items because the

latter are relatively homogenous. The brand new garments and

accessories may be bought in relatively high-class stores and

shopping malls. Philippine-made textiles and garments are 30

percent more expensive than their counterparts in the market,

partly due to the inefficient local production and technology

processes and their relatively low productivity (Go 2002). The

textile and garments industry still needs adequate provisions for

the training of as well as incentives for workers, technological

efficiency, development in market production, and creation of

regulating bodies. It will be more challenging for these local

firms to compete against the ukay-ukay sellers. To protect the

local garments, textiles, and clothing industries, President

Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo banned the entry and sale of ukay-ukay

items in the market. This created discontent among their patrons,

who look at ukay-ukay goods as the most affordable in the market

(Philippine Star 2002). This also entailed some implementation

costs on the side of the government. While authorities have every

legal right to confiscate and even burn such items, ukay-ukay

stall owners managed to remain unscathed by relocating outside

Metro Manila—to locations not usually monitored by the Department

of Trade and Industry.

Foreign Literature.

Fashioning A Culture through Baguio City's Ukay-Ukay

(2007)

The ukay-ukay has democratized fashion in Baguio City. If

they lived elsewhere, the locals would not be able to afford to

keep up with fashion trends. However, because the secondhand

industry has made available items to residents at low prices,

they can keep up with the world. In the Baguio landscape, the

blur between the branded and the not so good has been erased;

territorial lines between signature and generic are now defined.

Retailers of branded items have become connoisseurs of a sort,

selling only the best goods that appeal to buyers, choosing

locations in the city's more upscale areas. Their counterparts in

the generic trade will forever be relegated to the backstreet

areas, catering to the less discriminating

wag crowd. This reflects the geographical mapping of Philippine

urban shopping spaces, especially in Metro Manila, wherein

upscale and lower-priced stores have been designated specific

areas (e.g., the Fort, Makati or Ortigas catering to the well-

heeled crowd, and Quiapo or Divisoria for the ordinary buyers).

The ukay-ukay thrives because the Philippines is a country where

so much importance is placed on social rank and its physical and

behavioral manifestations. The ukay-ukay's affordability allows

people to live what they used to fantasize. The cliché goes:

"Clothes make the man." The dress is a form of social expression

used by individuals to show the world their identity. Moreover,

the use of language unique to the trade has also upped the

seller's social status and delineated knowledgeable shoppers from

the rest. It has become a sort of a leveler, opening doors to

sellers and buyers who were once considered

not having the "class" the more privileged were born. One may

argue that the ukay-ukay is a tool through which colonialism is

perpetuated, where the west and the more affluent dictate trends.

Through the ukay-ukay, the status that the west proffers seems
attainable and affordable obsession. The identity and the symbols

of status sold by the west are present in ukay-ukay items such as

pashminas, coats with fake fur collars, and knee-high boots.

These are constructs that appeal to the ukay-ukay patron, even if

these border on the bizarre in a tropical country that

experiences temperature highs of up to 36 to 39 degrees. However,

what is ironic is that these same symbols have become open to

everyone, obscuring the distinction between those who can and

those who cannot afford them. Imagine a household helper with a

monthly wage of 2500 pesos (roughly USD 50) toting the same Prada

bag once on a Hong Kong waiting list. Then, fashion no longer

functions as a tool of distinction but has transformed into a

homogenizing instrument. Once deemed a small business venture

limited to the low-income residents of Baguio City, ukay-ukay has

become a cultural force that drives popular taste, buying

behavior, and social symbols from Metro Manila to the Cordillera.

It is both individual and part of the larger culture owned by the

entire society.

Foreign Studies.

The Impact of the Importation of Second-hand Clothing in the

Philippines

(2019)

In the present, the ukay-ukay industry has grown and

developed, from "generic street piles in the market area" to

"more upscale 'selections'" in business districts, and even to

online stores on the internet such as eBay. Interestingly, Isla

points out that ukay-ukay sites in the Philippines are

"geographically located according to class: flea or public

markets carrying poorer quality items for lower classes and

upscale boutiques in business districts carrying branded and

vintage items for higher classes." An ukay-ukay seller we spoke

with attests to this geographic differentiation of ukay-ukay. He

adds that different parts of the metro have a known

specialization. Some areas might be known for a particular style

based on the clothing source or the type of items they carry. For

instance, his store only sells shorts and blouses, but they also

offer pants sometime around December, presumably because the

colder weather would necessitate consumers to buy warmer

clothing. In contrast, in Upper Barangka in Mandaluyong City,

another ukay-ukay group sells Korean-style clothing,

"specialization" instead of current fashion trends rather than

practicality. As earlier mentioned, the online migration of

retail has affected the ukay-ukay industry as well. An ukay-ukay

vendor from Bambang, Manila, remarks that business is being done

more and more through the internet because it is much faster and,

sometimes, more profitable. It provides a broader reach to

sellers and requires lower capital. For instance, a quick search

would reveal the website Ukay Ukay Online

(http://ukayukayonline.com). This Cebu-based online ukay-ukay

supplier provides an easy and convenient way for anyone in the

country to start their ukay-ukay stores. Another permutation of

online ukay-ukay manifests in Instagram-based online stores that

sell "curated" ukay-ukay finds, often charged a much higher

price. These stores acquire their inventory in different ways:

some source their items by going through different metro stores,

while some purchase cheap, trendy clothes in bulk abroad (i.e.,

Thailand and Vietnam). Aside from its platform, the market of

ukay-ukay has likewise slightly changed. Isla notes that most of

the ukay ukay's market still "belong to lower income groups," as

affordability remains the primary motivation for consumption.

However, higher-income groups have also begun to patronize ukay

ukay as well. As for those who import and sell ukay-ukay, the

now-defunct Anti Smuggling Intelligence and Information Center

(ASIIC) Chief Col. Carlos Holganza "revealed that the most

nefarious smugglers are not ordinary criminals but are instead

scheming lawyers and shrewd businessmen" (Philippine Senate,

2004). The ukay-ukay landscape has significantly transformed over

the years in terms of source, market, and platform, prompting us

to reexamine more closely how it, too, has changed the

Philippines.
Justification of the Study.

The researchers looked for any available materials to support

and establish the foundation of this study.

The study "Thrift Clothes Business: The Impact of "Ukay-

ukay" in the Online World" is the present researcher's original

work. No other study has been undertaken, and the project was

conceptualized using related local and foreign literature to

support the current project.

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https://pidswebs.pids.gov.ph/CDN/PUBLICATIONS/pidspjd05-

1ukay.pdf

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2019-0207/full/html

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