Makati or BGC: Which Location is Better for Startups?
Makati and BGC are popular business locations in the Philippines, particularly in Metro Manila. Both places have their own different offerings in terms of land area, food, traffic, internet connection, and infrastructure. But which one is really the best choice: Makati or BGC?
If you are a person planning to start your own business and you’re confronted with choosing only one from the two locations, which one are you going to choose: Makati or BGC? To answer this, you need to equip yourself with the right information for you to arrive at the right decision. Let’s discuss the two business locations and what exactly they offer to us.
These are the Benefits of Makati
Accessible Public Transportation
Makati is accessible for both LRT 1 and MRT 2 Line. If you alight from Ayala Station of the MRT 2, you can already walk to the business district of Makati. If you take LRT 1, however, alighting at G. Puyat station and taking a bus going to Ayala would be your best option.
Bus commuters can alight to the different bus stations Magallanes, Greenbelt, and Makati Avenue to reach the business centre of Makati.
Since the buildings in the business district of Makati are near to each other, transferring from one building to another nearby building would not be difficult as you can walk.
BGC also offers some public transportation as well, but they are not as abundant as in Makati.
Accessible for Cheaper Food for Employees and Clients
Employees need to feed themselves as part of their work. It’s a basic necessity. Makati offers more food carts on the go where people can buy cheap home-cooked foods. When you go out of the business district of Makati, there are even cheaper restaurants.
BGC has some budget-friendly food stores, but they are not as abundant as Makati can offer.
Developed Infrastructure
The business district of Makati has been around even before the year 2000. The city has already established a lot of infrastructures, particularly tall buildings. Some of these include The Makati Skyline, The Ayala Museum, The Don Bosco Church, The Ayala Triangle, The Makati Poblacion Skyline, and The Ayala Triangle Gardens. Since the business district of Makati has fewer vacant lot already to construct more buildings, constructions of new buildings are limited in the area. To cope up with this, they simply refurbish the old buildings or find an area of construction outside the business district area of Makati.
Better Internet Connection
The three big internet providers in the country are the PLDT, Globe, and Smart. All of them provide a mobile connection, and they are all good. However, when it comes to DSL and Fibre-optics, it’s only PLDT and Globe who are the providers of the service. The telephone landlines and mobile data of Globe have a good connection. However, when it comes to DSL and Fibre-optics, they only have an average speed of 8 Mbps not like the PLDT where the average speed for DSL is ranging from 5-10 Mbps while their Fibre-optics is from 8-20 Mbps. Fortunately, all the services of PLDT, Globe, and Smart are available in Makati.
BGC Could Be the Best Choice if You Want Your Business Location to Have…
Ease of Starting a Business
It’s easier to start a business in BGC compared to Makati in terms of securing and processing papers related to the construction and operation of the business. The World Bank ranked Taguig City, where BGC is in, as Rank 3 in the country when it comes to the Ease of Starting a Business, 2nd in terms of Dealing with Construction Permits, and last but not least 6th in terms of Ease of Registering a Property. This ranking was done in 2011.
World Class PEZA-Certified Buildings
The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry, organized to promote investments in the country by providing incentives to business investors some incentives like tax holidays in specific accredited economic zones. When you house your business in BGC, especially in those PEZA-Certified ones, not only you get to have a world-class building but some tax holidays as well. It’s like hitting two birds in one stone.
Better Internet Connection
Just like we have previously discussed, the availability of a good internet connection is not just available in Makati but BGC as well. We want to point this out as an Internet Connection is crucial in the operation of a business. What is being offered in Makati is also being offered to BGC.
Conclusion
Should you choose Makati or BGC? The answer depends on your preference. If you prefer more transportation accessibility and cheaper food, go for Makati. However, if you prefer world-class PEZA-accredited building and ease of starting a business, go for BGC.
Do you need further assistance in choosing between Makati and BGC? We at 3E Accounting would like to help. We are among the most popular Business setup specialists in the Philippines. Contact Us to know more about our services.