Kiss the rain Stefanie Cabal Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 16, 2009
ON A FATEFUL RAINY day in July 2007, Esel de Sagun’s younger sister came home from school drenched and exclaimed, “I need rain boots!” This prompted Esel and Em Somera, blockmates since their college days at UP, to form Brightcloud, Inc., the official distributor of Plueys in the Philippines.
They weren’t sure if the rain boots would click, but within three days of trial selling at Rockwell Bazaar in November 2007, the boots were sold out, with over 100 orders pending.
“In my own college experience, rain was an extreme hassle, especially when I had to walk from one building to another,” shared Esel, who believes that we should have rain gear options since our country is soaked in rain half if not most of the year. For Esel and Em, it is best to be (stylishly) equipped for a rainy day.
“We want to inspire girls to look forward to the rain. We want them to look forward to dressing up when they wake up to the sound of rain,” said Esel.
Last September, they launched ReadyForRain.com, the Philippines’ first one-stop rain shop. They plan to be Manila’s go-to resource for fashionable and functional wet weather wear. ReadyForRain.com caters to women, with its popular rain boots brand of Plueys; it also carries galoshes (rubber footwear worn over regular shoes), and Skimmers, or rain-proof colorful printed flats.
Recently, the rain gear tandem added My+Brolly to their portfolio, a hand-painted umbrella line. “The pieces are limited. Only 24 people can own each umbrella design in Manila,” they said. The best part of purchasing these lovely umbrellas is that P450 of the amount will go to the Wheelmobile project to help wheelchair users to be mobile around the metro through a modified van.
The creator of My+Brolly is husband and wife tandem Allan and Malou. Malou is a wheelchair user herself. “She has made painting her life’s work! Her wheelchair has an attached drawing table so that she can paint anywhere she goes,” said Em.
The umbrellas have a tongue-and-cheek design, with fun, quirky names like “How Kawaii,” with a sunny canopy featuring an adorable doll dancing among happy daisies, or “Mr Grumpy,” inspired by the opposing forces of a sky blue shade and grouchy black clouds. “Yummelon” will remind you of the vibrant days of summer, with its watermelon design.
Your rain-drenched days are over with Brightcloud’s stylish, colorful rain gear offerings, which will make you sing under the rain in no time.
For more information, visit info@readyforrain.com.
