Pinoys thriving in businesses in Czech Republic

PRAGUE—Even with a relatively small population in the Czech Republic, Filipinos are seen to thrive in different business ventures in the country, especially in Prague.

Being a massage therapist is not new to 43-year-old Anna Jocelyn Yamson. It was her sister who advised her to undergo relevant training with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) if she wanted to work abroad.

She now owns a home service massage spa that also provides part-time employment for her kababayans in Prague.

“Sa Pinas pa lang po ito na ang work ko, from manager naging owner po ako ng home service massage. Kaya ito ang napili ko kasi may idea na ko at wala pa ako narinig na nag-home service kaya talagang nag-boom ang business ko lalo na sa mga foreigners na ayaw mag-deal sa Czech and want English speakers,” Yamson told GMA News Online.

(This has been my work even back in the Philippines. From being a manager, I became an owner of a home service massage. That’s why I chose this business because I already had an idea and I didn’t hear of anyone offering home services here, so my business boomed. It’s appealing to foreigners who want English speakers instead of Czechs.)

According to the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Filipino population in the Czech Republic is “still relatively small” compared to those in the Americas of the Middle East. However, the Pinoy community there has been “growing at a constant pace.”

From less than 1,000 in 2018, the community has grown to more than 5,600 as of April 2023, the DFA said.

Yamson recalled that it was in 2013 when she came to the Czech Republic to earn a living. Her first years abroad were not a walk in the park since she had to nurse the feeling of homesickness.

“Very challenging as it’s my first time to work abroad, and far from my four children. Homesick [has] really gotten me a lot of times. I don’t know the place, people, language,” Yamson said, adding that her first employer held her passport and other documents.

Her first work at the massage spa did not prosper because, according to her, it had to halt operations amid high rental fees.

When she was starting, Yamson said she already had a number of foreign clients and that she could not afford to lose them, prompting her to try her luck and start her own spa business.

“I have a lot of foreign clients that asked me to do home service even [though] the time that I only have is during my day off. Until the shop where I used to work [closed] due to higher rental fees,” she said.

“So I grabbed this opportunity and asked the NGO for advice on what to do and how can I obtain my own visa. They recommended me to get the Trade License and apply for Business Visa which I did by myself, tried my best to speak in Czech cause no one speaks English [in] government offices. I am already starting to do my business while waiting for the process,” Yamson said.

At present, when she gets more clients than she can handle, she employs fellow Filipinos so that they could have part-time jobs.

“When I got busy, more bookings na, I tried to ask Filipinos na massage therapists for part-time jobs so I can cater to couples’ massage. And as you know we are hard workers, gusto may second job (we want second jobs),” Yamson said.

“During the pandemic, nag-close ang mga massage salon. Ang home service tuloy pa din kasi one-on-one session ito kaya pinayagan kami ng government. So everyday, iba-ibang friend na Pinay ang kasama ko,” she added.

(During the pandemic, massage salons here were closed. But home service continued because the sessions are one-on-one and the government gave its consent for our operations. So everyday, at that time, I had different Pinay friends working with me.)

She stressed that a Trade License is required so that one can avail of part-time employment. Yamson said that she often advises her kababayans to secure the license so that they could legally double their earnings.

‘Super saya’

Yamson’s heart is full as she has been able to help her kababayans get another source of income in order to provide for their families’ needs.

“Super saya kasi nakikita mo na na-meet nila ‘yung needs lalo na for family ‘yun kaya nagpapakahirap sila at halos di na mag-off. Kasi nga during their day-off pina-part time nila,” she said.

(I’m super happy to see that my fellow Filipinos here are able to meet the needs of their families. That’s why they work very hard and hardly take days off because they do part-time work for the massage home service.)

On a daily basis, Yamson said her home service massage spa earns P10,000 to P20,000.

She pays Filipino part-timers at least P3,000 and they get an additional P600 per hour whenever they extend working hours.

Yamson said that even locals in Prague are fond of having massages.

“We are like doctors for them. (We advise them that) they need to do it often once a week. Susundin nila (They comply),” she said.

Pinoy shop in Prague

Meanwhile, 35-year-old Crisjel Kuklovský is the owner of a Filipino shop in Prague. Initially, she was just collecting orders from friends in the community, but was later able to put up a shop.

She said the increasing number of Filipinos in the area, as well as the scarcity of Philippine products, inspired her to open a shop that will cater to the needs of her kababayans.

“Pinoy Store is located at Heydukova 2 Prague 8. We have over 1,000 products and we are the biggest Filipino store in the Czech Republic. We also have an online shop with Czech and English language. We offer free shipping service around Czech Republic and neighboring [countries] in Europe,” she told GMA News Online.

Kuklovský said that despite the language and cultural differences, she is currently having more foreign customers who have been using Filipino products.

“Natuto na silang bumili ng mga sauce natin, bihon, pansit, and banana ketchup. Pati din po sinigang,” she said.

(Foreign customers have learned to buy our sauces, bihon rice vermicelli, pansit, and banana ketchup. Even our sour soup, sinigang.) — VDV, GMA Integrated News