Rising from the fall 

With his vision for SCMPCI, together with the respect he earned from his colleagues as the driving force, he never stopped searching for an alternative source of income to sustain their basic needs and pay the remaining debt. The opportunity came when Dr. Purita Balean of DOST-V invited him to join the meeting of handicraft manufacturers in Bicol. There, he saw the economic opportunity for fellow Bicolanos through handloom weaving. It signalled the start of a new horizon for SCMPI-handicraft. When the DOST V project titled “Upgrading of Handweaving Technologies in Bicol” was implemented in 1998, he signified his interest and enlisted SCMPI as one of the beneficiaries. Under the project, 12 units of jack-type handlooms designed by PTRI and fabricated by the Cottage Industry Technology Center (CITC) were provided to SCMPI.

Since 1998 when they shifted to handicraft making, better things have come their way. Handicraft exporters recognized the cooperative as one of the best manufacturers of bags and rollers of handwoven fabric. The technical intervention of PTRI on dyeing of indigenous fibers and handloom weaving utilizing the 12 units of jack-type looms, enabled them to produce 61 coded designs which were featured during the National Science and Technology Week (NSTW) and Regional Science and Technology Week (RSTW) in 1999. Their products were bought and accepted by private entrepreneurs such as the Larone Crafts, Inc., Brillo Handicraft, Inc., MKJ, Inc., and Neilino Silk, Inc. to fill up their export requirements. Evidently, the cooperative produced quality products acceptable to the global market. SCMPI was also able to increase productivity and minimize rejects.  Gross sales generated in 1999 reached P173,789.24 and the loan slowly got paid. Fifty-five handloom weavers and bag makers benefited from the project. Manong Jun would never regret his quick decision to shift to handicraft. “DOST-V was very instrumental in our desire to rebuild a new SCMPCI. I know this was the right opportunity,” he said.