MANILA -- Fans of everything Korea rejoice because No Brand is here! The popular Korean retail shop officially opened its first branch in the Philippines.

Located on the second floor of Robinsons Galleria mall at Ortigas Center in Quezon City, the specialty store brings in their “brandless” products into the Philippines.

Famous for its no-frills packaging, No Brand is a consumer-centric shop that offers products without a brand.

“No Brand comes from Korea but the products are manufactured from other areas. They source from other countries. They look for the best manufacturers to develop the products. That's what they want to offer the customers, the best products,” explained No Brand Philippines marketing manager Angela Totanes.

No Brand is under E-Mart, one of Korea's biggest retailers and was launched in 2015. It now has more than 250 stores in South Korea. Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. (RRHI) is the franchise holder and operator of No Brand here in the country.

“That's their philosophy, you're not paying for the brand but paying for the product. The customer takes centerstage because they want to address your needs or your wants without the usual marketing and branding strategies. No-frills packaging, less marketing expense, that's why the prices are very competitive and reasonably priced,” Totanes said.

The price range of the products are between P50 and P1,000.

“No Brand” is essentially the brand of the products at the store. But the products come from all over the world like the chocolates are from France, potato chips are from Malaysia, cookies are from Indonesia, and sodas are from Canada, just to name a few.

A large portion of the products are manufactured in Korea like fresh juices, instant ramen, and frozen food items.

According to No Brand Philippines merchandising director Daisy Lyn Sy, the Philippine branch doesn't carry every product the store carries in Korea. They had to remove some products like fresh items and other perishable products.

“Products with short shelf life as short as seven days like the banana milk, strawberry milk so unfortunately we couldn't bring them in. We concentrated mostly on products that has a shelf life of more than six months,” Sy explained.

Some of the popular products are the chocolate chip and butter cookies that come in a small bucket. Other snack items are also bestsellers including potato chips, that come in different flavors: original, sour cream and onion, and seaweed and wasabi. There's also purple sweet potato chips.

The shop also has their own instant milk tea, chocolate hazelnut spread, and soda in can. For non-food items, the wet tissues or wet wipes are bestsellers and also 1.5-liter shampoo, and other skin care products.

There are also a few kitchen products like food containers, zipper plastic bags, and cooking utensils. They also sell a few school and office supplies like notebooks and other stationery items. Some household items are also on the shelves like stick-on hooks, hangers, and small trash bins.

There are also specialty frozen food items, cakes, and ice cream available here. Ready-to-heat food items are popular in Korea especially among students and young professionals who are living alone and have no time to cook.

“For single people living on their own it's a hassle for them to cook. What they do is they buy from the supermarket ready-to-heat foods. Some are microwavable and some are ready to fry. That's what they do, they don't really cook they just buy ready-to-heat food. Even the rice, they have the microwavable,” she said.

No Brand Philippines also has a selection of branded products and also local products like polvoron, pickled mangoes, and dips, in-demand products with Korean customers.

“We also have a small selection that are branded but not normally available in other stores. We're anticipating Korean customers that's why we included Filipino items,” Sy said.

No Brand Philippines is set to open its second branch next month at Robinsons Galleria South in San Pedro, Laguna then at Robinsons Magnolia in April 2020. They are also in talks with other mall operators for the other branches.