Three ground-breaking projects were launched by 1Cooperative Insurance System of the Philippines (1CISP) which are set to redefine and disrupt the way cooperatives do business.

1CISP, the largest cooperative insurance organization in the country, launched Coop Kicks, a young leaders’ pitch fest; the 1Koop Leaders Academy, a nationwide training program for young cooperative professionals.; and the 1KoopMart, the country’s very first cooperative convenience store chain.

Coop Kicks is the first-ever cooperative pitchfest in which young innovators and aspiring entrepreneurs will be given a chance to pitch their ideas on cooperative ventures. Winners of the pitch fest will be coached and trained by Ateneo Techno Hub and co-supervised by the Model Cooperative Network (MCN).

Aside from participating in an entrepreneurship and technology boot camp, the winners will also receive a financial grant for their projects from sponsoring cooperatives and get ready access to the marketplace through NCCC’s chain of malls and department stores.

The 1Koop Leaders Academy, in turn,is the result of 1CISP’s partnership with Asia Select, Inc., one of the country’s leading human resource companies. The HR Academy is described as an upskilling training program for future cooperative leaders.

The program’s objectives are to train young minds and build strong foundations in business, tech up their knowledge and skills, and become better cooperative leaders. It will have expert HR and marketing professionals as trainers and special lecturers.

In 1KoopMart, 1CISP again partnered with retail giant NCCC to come up with the country’s first-ever cooperative sari-sari store chain.

“What will make 1KoopMart better than the leading convenience stores in the country is that it offers so much more,” stressed 1CISP president Roy S. Miclat during a press briefing in Davao City. “Aside from the regular convenience store products, 1KoopMart will offer anything that cooperatives can produce as well as services by partner companies,” he added.

According toMiclat, 1KoopMart will provide cooperatives with a regular outlet for their products. Another unique thing about this 1KoopMart is that it will allow online orders with deliveries done by motorcycle-riding cooperative collectors. 1KoopMart stores will also act as financial intermediaries, offering bills payment, ATM services, ticket sales, food/parcel delivery, and more.

With the NCCC online sales catalog, the 1KoopMart stores will act as a mall extension for grocery and department store products. There is also a plan to set up a lay-away payment system through cooperatives for appliances and gadgets, and when customers have completed the payments, they can get the products in the stores.

In essence, 1KoopMart is a bank, a grocery, department store, appliance and gadget store, and clothing store in one. Although still in the design development stage, the first 1KoopMart stores are expected to be constructed next year.

“Our aim for 2018 and beyond is to elevate cooperatives and make them known for what they really are – an important pillar in national development,” noted Miclat. “The launch of these three projects is only the beginning of more things to come for 1CISP and its partner cooperatives,” he revealed.

1CISP is the leading insurance cooperative in the Philippines and the go-to organization for the protection needs of its cooperative members. 1CISP has been in operation for 44 years and has grown to having over 2,000 cooperative members and insuring around 700,000 individuals annually.