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It's not because we dilly-dally, but shopping for a gift for our fathers is one tough challenge!  The usual thing to do is to treat him out for lunch or dinner, or give him a shirt from his favorite store. But don’t you wish you can give him something more?

Here comes 4hermanas, an online store that’s known for its funny, quirky but useable knickknacks. It’s a shop put up by four sisters, Zerl, Kim, Michelle and Jenny Chan. A very young company that started selling in mid-2008 via direct contacts and online, it has expanded its merchandise from totes and audio accessories to a multitude of novelty items that include home, living and desk accessories. 

“We source from UK, USA, Japan, and, soon, Hong Kong and Thailand. Our products have to meet two simple criteria—they have to have a creative, original or innovative design, and they have to be practical and useful. These are everyday products with a twist, injecting humor into mundane living,” say the sisters.

The Chan sisters have dreams of putting up a brick-and-mortar operation. “Whenever we travel, we always visit cute gift shops and interesting novelty boutiques. We end up spending hours on end in those stores, amazed at the innovative designs.  We always wonder why there aren’t more similar stores in Manila with original, quirky items.  We would always bring up the idea of putting up our own store, but since we all hold corporate jobs (except for our youngest sister), it was more of a dream. Then early last year, we thought, why should that stop us?  We can start it as a small hobby and see how it grows from there,” shares the eldest, Zerl.

Orders have been continuously coming in, and this has made them even more confident about pursuing their dream. And while they’re in search of a retail space, gift hunters can log on to http://4hermanas.multiply.com to check out what has given these enterprising siblings a cult following.