Enabling Global Trade for SMEs: How ZendEase Opens Doors for Filipino Entrepreneurs Through Logistics Innovation

How Mel Nava of ZendEase by 1Export built a company dedicated to empowering local SMEs in global marketplaces When a small Pangasinan-based company selling bottled bangus approached ZendEase, it knew little about exporting. Yet through ZendEase, the company called Elisha Bay, soon found itself exporting to the US and scaling up the business to become a valuable source of employment in the Dagupan community. In essence, this is what co-founder and CEO Mel Nava does with her startup ZendEase. “I want you to go global,” she says. “Our mission from the very beginning has always been helping businesses go global.” This is a bold statement in an import-dependent country like the Philippines. Where other Asian countries have developed through export-based economic strategies, the Philippines maintains a large trade deficit, importing everything from cars and mobile phones to food staples like rice and onions. Despite this, in a counterintuitive twist, exports..