And with its continuing partnership with Silicon Valley, Canon has opened its second concept store and showroom at the SM North Edsa Cyberzone last December 15, and Technews was there to witness this special event.

Present in the opening were Kazuto Ogawa, president and CEO of Canon Singapore (South and Southeast Asia Region), Ramon Arteficio, president and CEO of Canon Marketing (Philippines), Inc., Joel Pe, managing director of Silicon Valley, and other representatives from Canon Marketing (Philippines), Inc.

The showroom unveiled Canon’s new line of digital photography and printing products, that includes the All-In-One (AIO) printers, the Selphy, the new EOS and IXUS camera series, and their slimmest and smallest DVD camcorder, the DC10 and DC20. The concept store boasts a wide range of specialized Canon products that suits every customer’s needs, based on their specific requirements for digital photography and printing.

After having a toast of red wine, all of the guests were treated for “brunch” (breakfast and lunch) at the Mangan Restaurant that is also located inside the Cyberzone. While we were waiting for the food to be served, this writer, and several media peeps, had a candid chat with Mr. Ogawa, Mr. Pe, and Mr. Arteficio.

“This is Canon’s second concept store, and we are happy that Canon and Silicon Valley have made it into a reality. We have a good working relationship with Silicon Valley. Canon makes it to a point to be the leading total solutions provider to all of our customers, and making value addition a must for all Canon users. This concept store will showcase Canon latest products in mobile digital printing for SOHO’s and SME’s, and making digital photography and print at home at ease,” Kazuto Ogawa said.

“Canon has always been one of Silicon Valley’s major supporters, especially in terms of marketing and technical support. We conceptualized this showroom in order for us to sell Canon products and services in a somewhat unconventional way. With this concept store, we have not focused on the profit per se, but more on educating the customers on specialized features of Canon products and providing total solutions for their digital needs. The first concept store was established in Glorietta and it has been doing well that is way beyond our expectations. The people in our concept stores are well-trained exclusively for Canon products. And with this success, Canon and Silicon Valley has plans to establish additional concept stores in Alabang, Ortigas, and hopefully in Cebu,” Joel Pe said.

“As the year 2005 comes to a close, Canon Marketing Philippines has earned Php 2 billion in terms of marketing sales. That’s why we are all happy about the continuous successes in making Canon one of the leading total solutions provider in the Philippines. We certainly hope that this momentum of growth will continue in 2006 and we look forward to everyone support and trust in our products and services,” Ramon Arteficio said.

Technews congratulates Canon Marketing Philippines and Silicon Valley for their success in the grand opening of the second concept store in SM North Edsa Cyberzone. We wish you both more success.