Primed for Success_vol 2_2013

PrimedforSuccess Vol. 2, 2013

BAHAMAS RIDGE FARMS

Contents

Who We Are ....................................................................... 4 Our Mission, Our Vision ..................................................... 5 Caribbean Export Development Agency Profile ................ 6 Chairperson’s Message ..................................................... 7 Foreword ........................................................................... 8

INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

Labour of Love ................................................................ 46

Ambassador’s Message..................................................... 9

AGRO-PROCESSING

MANUFACTURING

Brass into Gold ................................................................ 49

An Unstoppable Dream ................................................... 10

Make Women More Beautiful .......................................... 52

No Lemons Here ............................................................. 13

Blue Skies-Golden Brew ................................................. 55

An Alternative Journey .................................................... 16

A Royal Sip? .................................................................... 58

A Taste of Honey ............................................................. 19 Farming Out the Demand ................................................ 22 Secrets of Shisado .......................................................... 25 The Sauce of Success ..................................................... 28 Turning Plants into Gold .................................................. 31 Move Over, Cola! ............................................................. 34

CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

Template for Success ...................................................... 37

FASHION & GARMENT

Taking the Plunge ............................................................ 40 No Clutter, No Gimmicks ................................................. 43

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

Harnessing the Heat ........................................................ 62

TOURISM

The Personal Touch ......................................................... 64 The Power of Pulsating Rhythm ...................................... 67

Overview of CEDA ........................................................... 70 Key CEDA Personnel ....................................................... 71 Caribbean Export Development Agency Beneficiaries.... 72

WhoWeAre

The Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) is the regional export development and trade and investment promotion organisation of the Forum of Caribbean States (CARIFORUM).

The CARIFORUM Member States are: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Guyana Haiti Jamaica St. Kitts & Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad and Tobago

Head Office: 1st Floor Baobab Tower Warrens St. Michael, BARBADOS BB22026 Tel: 1-246-436-0578 Fax: 1-246-436-9999 Email: info@carib-export.com Sub Regional Office: Av. Pedro Henríquez Ureña No. 150, Torre Diandy XIX, Piso 7, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Tel: 1-809-531-2259 Fax: 1-809-473-7532 Email: c.export@cotedel.net.do Website: www.carib-export.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/Caribbean.Export Twitter: www.twitter/CaribXport YouTube: www.youtube.com/TheCaribbeanExport

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OurVision

To optimise the Caribbean Region’s export potential through facilitating innovation and the creation of world class brands capable of successfully competing globally.

OurMission To increase the competitiveness of the Caribbean countries by providing export development and investment promotion services through effective programme execution and strategic partnerships.

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CaribbeanExport DevelopmentAgency Profile Headquartered in Barbados with a Sub-Regional Office in the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) is the only regional trade and investment promotion Agency in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group. Caribbean Export was established in 1996 as the trade and promotion agency for 15 Member States.

The Agency works closely with the CARIFORUM Directorate, relevant government ministries across the Caribbean, as well as with other public-private sector agencies that have responsibilities to develop and promote business, trade and investment.

Our priority sectors are agro-processing, alternative energy, creative industries, handicraft, health and wellness, manufacturing, professional services, and tourism.

Through its four-pillar approach of competitiveness and

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innovation, trade and export development, investment promotion and institutional capacity building, Caribbean Export not only supports regional development, but also facilitates the creation of a conducive commercial environment for regional businesses and enterprises in the competitive global economy.

Our efforts in these areas extend outside of CARIFORUM, reaching out to those countries that make up the French Caribbean Outermost Regions (FCORs), as well as those that comprise the English and Dutch Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs).

Our Board of Directors is appointed by the CARIFORUM states and is accountable to the CARIFORUM Council of Ministers. Our operations are financed through annual contributions from Member States, donor funds and revenue generated through our services.

Chairman’sMessage

As the Chair of the Board of Directors of Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export), I would like to extend gratitude to the European Union (EU) for funding the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) enabling Caribbean Export to execute the Regional Private Sector Development Programme (RPSDP).

The Management and Staff of Caribbean Export continue to work extremely hard to effectively implement a range of work programme activities that serve to build the capacity of CARIFORUM private sector firms involved in Agriculture, Agro-processing, Apiculture, Professional Services, Creative Industries, Information Communication Technology, Manufacturing, and Heath and Wellness.

Recognising the many challenges that CARIFORUM private sector firms face, Caribbean Export aims to provide assistance through work programme activities designed specifically to meet the needs of the private sector so that they become more competitive, can access new markets, increase production output, increase productivity, attain quality standard certifications and gain greater exposure across the region and internationally.

The growth of the private sector has never been more critical to the economic development within the fifteen (15) CARIFORUM Member States given the current world economy. Furthermore, under the 10th EDF, Caribbean Export has worked extensively to increase CARIFORUM private sector firms’ awareness of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and provides technical assistance to access European markets amongst other interventions.

On behalf of the Board of Directors I thank the EU, CARICOM Secretariat, CARIFORUM Directorate, Business Support Organisations and other relevant stakeholders who have partnered with Caribbean Export to further augment the competitiveness of firms in the region.

I am confident that you will enjoy reading our second edition of Primed for Success and may it inspire you to join others in creating internationally recognized Caribbean brands.

Ambassador Colin Murdoch Chair, Board of Directors Caribbean Export Development Agency

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Foreword

Increasing the competitiveness of Caribbean countries is at the core of our mission at Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export). We believe that through the facilitation of innovation and the creation of world-class brands that compete globally, the Caribbean will realize the true value of its export potential.

It is with this in mind that we continue to strive for excellence in the delivery of work programme activities that serve to help businesses and entrepreneurs overcome the recognized constraints of the current global economic climate. Our team of technical advisors and consultants operate across a number of industries providing advice, technical assistance and financial support to businesses, Governments and Business Support Organisations. Under the European Union’s (EU) 10th European Development Fund (EDF) we have been privileged to undertake a number of initiatives within the Forum of Caribbean States (CARIFORUM), which have contributed to the success of regional businesses and propelled them onto the international stage. These include our flagship funding programme the Direct Assistance Grant Scheme (DAGS), award winning re-branded event “Design Caribbean”, innovative business competition “Break Point”, and the recently concluded “London Engage” initiative. These activities have generated a number of success stories across the region, and we are pleased to share some of these with you. There are a host of opportunities for large and small businesses from the Caribbean to utilize the services offered

by Caribbean Export and to exploit the markets at both the regional and international levels. All of the businesses featured offer products or services to markets beyond their own, or are poised to do so. Successful Caribbean businesses cover a plethora of areas, including, agro-processing, manufacturing, creative industries, professional services, ICT, tourism, alternative energy and health and wellness. The variety of businesses is a clear indication of the flavour found in the Caribbean and what we as a region have to offer.

We hope you enjoy the success stories and that they inspire you to be innovative and contribute to taking Caribbean excellence to the world.

Pamela Coke Hamilton Executive Director Caribbean Export Development Agency

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Ambassador’sMessage

The European Union is pleased to continue our long and successful collaboration with Caribbean Export in enhancing the competitiveness of the private sector in the Region and by extension assist in the promotion of sustainable economic growth, poverty reduction and employment opportunities.

With our most recent intervention, the EU is providing direct support to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), recognised as the drivers and innovators in economies around the world. Particular priority is afforded to the export sectors, in order to: i) promote inventiveness; ii) increase the incorporation of technology; iii) enhance consumer safety; and, iv) improve operational efficiency. Attracting Foreign Direct Investment to allow for expansion and diversification of exports is a key goal, in recognition of the fact that regional resources alone will not suffice. The ultimate goal is to increase the productivity of Caribbean SMEs and by extension increase the share of high quality Caribbean products in the global market with positive results for the Caribbean region.

I congratulate and commend the companies and entrepreneurs featured in this publication for their vision, willingness to take risk, hard work and dedication to excellence which often has come at great personal sacrifice. There is no doubt that their stories will be an inspiration to other entrepreneurs and prospective entrepreneurs and that they will continue on to even greater success to the benefit of the region at large.

Our fervent support to Caribbean Export, our strong commitment to the successful implementation of the CARIFORUM-EC Economic Partnership Agreement and many other trade related interventions, highlight our strong commitment to the greater integration of the Caribbean into the global market. In this regard it is extremely encouraging to observe the Region as an “early mover�, documented by high level political declarations and basic research, in the necessary transformation to a green economy. The EU is equally committed to the achievement of this goal, and I personally look forward to increased engagement on this.

Mikael Barfod Head of Delegation, to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean European Union

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JAMAICA SOUTHSIDE DISTRIBUTORS

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JAMAICA JAMAICA SOUTHSIDE SOUTHSIDE DISTRIBUTORS DISTRIBUTORS

AnUnstoppableDream There’s no stopping Denese Palmer, once she puts her mind to something. In six years, this determined Jamaican has turned her dream into an award-winning industry that employs 48 people and provides downstream employment for local farmers and suppliers.

Palmer’s unstoppable dream revolves around food. Her company, Southside Distributors, started as “a small thing”, a micro-enterprise undertaken on the side while Palmer worked as general manager for another agro-processing company.

“They just did ackee and callaloo,” she recalls. “I wanted to introduce jerk seasoning, but they didn’t agree. I felt I could not fulfill my full potential.” Privately, she started bottling her jerk seasoning and bagging juices; after three years, with the income earned and a bank loan, she felt confident enough to quit her job and strike out on her own. With two employees, she rented a small shop, purchased a meat grinder, some pots and an industrial stove, and Southside Distributors was born. The day before she started, she recalls, they received an order for 30 cases of jerk seasoning – it felt, somehow, like a sign that she was moving in the right direction.

Her jerk seasoning soon found a home in one of the major hotels. By 2008, Southside had outgrown its humble space and moved into its own new building. After the move, Palmer decided to extend her production line to include canning -ackee and calalloo -- and diversified her operation to produce various juices, ketchup, mango nectar and pancake syrup.

Denese Palmer, Owner

“I remember the days when people would say, ‘Southside Who?’’, she says with a laugh. “Now we’re a household name, and that is something to be happy about.” She currently produces 15 branded products, and fields calls from prospective buyers as far away as China and Africa.

Southside’s exports have climbed steadily over the years; 2011 showed gains of 20 percent over the previous year.

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JAMAICA SOUTHSIDE DISTRIBUTORS

Palmer’s story is not unlike many other Caribbean entrepreneurs who, driven by a desire to do things differently, take the proverbial plunge to do it their way. Helping give life and added direction to these stories and promising prospects is a great part of what drives Caribbean Export.

In 2010, Palmer won the country’s Woman in Business Award; and in 2011 signed an agreement with the Jamaican government (JAMPRO), a valued partner of Caribbean Export, to receive development assistance, in return for a commitment to deliver increased exports within two years – an initiative aimed at generating wider economic growth.

In Sept. 2012, Southside was approved for a Caribbean Export Development Agency grant for EU 5000, which was spent on creating a website and on furthering staff development. “It assisted in training employees to be more aware of good manufacturing practices in their daily duties,” Palmer explains. As for the website, which was completed in December, “It has done a lot. A lot of people have been calling – prospective customers. We are able to refer people to the website, as well.”

The Caribbean Export grant also enabled the company to undertake trade show promotions in Trinidad and the United States; and some of the money went towards a GAP audit.

Palmer explains: “The GAP audit looked at where we were at the time, and where we needed to go in order to qualify for HACCP certification.”

HACCP is an international safety certification that will allow the company greater access to world markets; a consultant has recommended that Southside is now in a position to apply.

Palmer views Southside as more than just a business – it is “a community project”. Not only does her company provide employment for dozens of women, it also sponsors deserving students, and donates money to schools and libraries.

Southside also stimulates the local economy by buying its ingredients from local farmers.

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One might imagine that Denese Palmer would be ready to rest on her laurels and enjoy the success her company has achieved. One would be wrong. Her mind is constantly busy with plans for expansion. “I, personally, have a lot of expectations for Southside,” she declares. “It’s six years old, and we are looking for certification to export ackees to the U.S.” She plans to add a second shift to her production line, and to increase profit margins by gradually eliminating the middlemen in her distribution chain.

It is this kind of focus and drive exhibited by Palmer and other like-minded entrepreneurs that led Caribbean Export to develop the special programme called Break Point, aimed at helping regional businesses gain access to additional funding opportunities and distribution by putting them through a prepping process.

In explaining the initiative, Christopher McNair of Caribbean Export said, “There is no way we can realize the true potential of the Caribbean Region and fulfill our mandate if we continue to do things the way we have always done. Break Point for us is a new way of engaging serious companies with the DNA of world-class brands to put them through the paces to make them attractive to other external funding sources and potential partnerships.”

The first installment of Break Point staged in the region also saw Southside Distributors participating.

Making it to the second stage, Palmer was able to benefit from invaluable insight into her company and the areas she needed to work on to drive the company’s attractiveness and growth.

There is no denying the huge potential Agro-Processing holds for the region. Our unique use of indigenous spices and flavours to create value-added products such as condiments and sauces will help to open up economic opportunities where none existed before. Denese Palmer and her Southside Distributors is but one of many helping to give life to this hidden potential.

BAHAMAS RIDGE FARMS

NoLemonsHere For this to happen however, the industry needs people like Rionda Godet who was able to turn her own farming disappointment into success by turning her tomatoes into sauce.

The founder of Ridge Farms in the Bahamas, Godet was already an established attorney-at-law, but in 2009 took a sabbatical from her profession and started the second largest hydroponic greenhouse in the Bahamas. Business was going nicely, as a gourmet store had contracted them to buy her plump, juicy all-natural tomatoes. But then a larger supplier came along and undercut her prices. The customer was very sorry, but if she couldn’t match the price, well…

Godet was so mad she decided she would rather give the produce away, but fortunately not all. And what she kept, she decided to transform into tomato sauce and sell it under a set of imaginative and humorous labels.

First came “Da’ Same Ol’ Ting”, followed by “Da’ Sauce”, and finally “Da’ Bomb!” (it’s really hot).

To her delight, the sauces were a hit. “You wouldn’t believe the feedback I got,” she says. “These sauces are still among my best sellers.”

Rionda Godet, Founder The Caribbean agricultural industry has moved beyond the traditional sugarcane and bananas to a fantastic assortment of produce and farming methods and now into in burgeoning agro-processing industry. This industry has the potential to completely reface the region’s agricultural sector and help it to reclaim its rightful place as a major economic earner for small island economies.

Success with the tomato sauces led to the creation of pepper sauce, which led to pepper jelly (virtually unknown in the Bahamas, says Godet), which led to all sorts of other condiments that now make up the Ridge Farms family of products.

Today, Ridge Farms produces almost 50 products under its “Calypso” brand although Godet points out that some are seasonal because of the ingredients used. “But we know what our customers’ favourites are, so we make sure we have a good supply,” she says.

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BAHAMAS RIDGE FARMS

Godet likes to use fun names for her products. They reflect not only the flavour of the condiments, but also the entrepreneurial energy behind Ridge Farms.

For example, a line of sauces using peppers and fruits such as mango, guava and pineapple all have names beginning with a “z”. There is the Calypso “Zing”, “Zang”, “Zulu”, “Zonga” and “Zomba”...you get the picture.

And there is also “Papa-Love”, made with papaya; “Yellow man” made from the habernero goat pepper and, of course, “Red Hot”, which is true to its name. All of her pepper jellies are preceded with the word “Zango”, which is a clear indicator that pepper is involved when you see that label on the bottle.

One of her pepper jellies, the Zango Nana Blue Blaze (a wonderful blend of black and blue berries, bananas and goat pepper) was featured in the August 17th edition of the Wall Street Journal as a gastronomic delight.

Because of Rodet’s success in introducing her wonderful varieties of pepper jellies, her products are now becoming more and more a part of the local culture with her customers tracking her down for more of the sweet, tangy, spicy hot flavourings.

As for the future, like most entrepreneurs, Godet wants Ridge Farms to become bigger and more successful, without sacrificing her commitment to home-grown, all natural products.

“I want Ridge Farms to be to the entire Bahamas what Grace Foods is to Jamaica,” she says. “I want to see our products on all the supermarket shelves, but I also want us to be about more than just condiments.”

In particular, Godet is excited by the potential to move into steel canning, vacuum-packaging or freezing vegetables in a way that will retain their fresh, home-grown character for Bahamian consumers. Such a capability, she believes, might encourage more local growth of these vegetables and cut down importation.

Godet’s story, vision and unique approach are some of the reasons why Caribbean Export is so passionate about its latest initiative- Break Point. “We need to give individuals and companies showing real innovation and passion for key sectors in the region the opportunity to realize the vision of export.” says David Gomez, Manager of Trade and Export

Development at Caribbean Export. “We appreciate that the path to export however, can be rocky and costly but know there are individuals and companies out there who are willing to invest in strong ideas and solid ventures. Marry that willingness with the opportunities of the EPA and we have a Break Point into EU markets!” contends Gomez.

Godet is also ready and willing to take her products to regional and international markets, but she knows that this takes money, experience, and an appreciation of international marketing. Fortunately, she has been getting all of these from the Caribbean Export Development Agency.

Along with other food producers, she has been to workshops in Barbados, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, as well as on study tours sponsored by Caribbean Export to Manchester, Hamburg and Paris. She has nothing but praise for the experiences provided by the Agency.

“The study tours were very beneficial because we were able to learn so much from each other in a non-competitive environment,” she says. Indeed, the camaraderie was such that several members of the group invited Godet to visit their operations for a first-hand look at how they do things.

But ramping up for any kind of serious exports means Ridge Farms must become more automated in production.

Currently, all production is done by hand – all prepping, mixing, cooking, bottling, capping, labelling and packaging – and this system can’t keep up with the volumes demanded by big customers.

Godet plans to use part of a grant from Caribbean Export to help solve this problem by acquiring equipment that can increase speed and productivity. She is also earmarking funds to develop a website, upgrade her labels, and have her products scientifically tested to determine their shelf life and nutritional value.

“The funds from Caribbean Export are going to help me increase productivity and improve my marketing, no question,” says Godet. “All of my experiences with the Agency’s programmes have been positive. They have certainly helped me to pursue my goals and I’m really excited about the future of Ridge Farms. I am so grateful that an organization like Caribbean Export is there to give entrepreneurs a hand up.”

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GRENADA BELZEB

AnAlternativeJourney Anyone growing up in the Caribbean will be well versed with stories of parents’ or grandparents’ use of “bush medicines,” “bush teas” or the famous “bush remedies” as cure-alls.

What might have been discarded as local practices is today a rapidly growing health and wellness industry with enormous economic prospects for those very same alternative medicines.

Much like the industry, Haitian born Marie Roberte Laurente’s journey has been alternative, beginning in computers and evolving to beauty products, her journey is linked to childhood experiences of the power of herbs.

Marie Roberte Laurente left Haiti with her family at the age of 12, taking with her the seeds of her future career. Her parents were entrepreneurs on the Caribbean island; their business took them out into the country areas, where young Marie Roberte often accompanied them. She was introduced to the age-old uses of local plants and herbs – for bush baths, medicines, and cosmetics. “Their beauty rituals stayed in my mind,” she says.

It would be many years before these memories drew her back into that world. Her family moved to New York, where she eventually studied Computer Science and Business, and worked in those fields for 20 years. “But natural things were always there in my life,” she adds, explaining that in her parents’ Seventh-Day Adventist household, there had always been a stress on healthy eating and alternative medicines. “It was part of my growing up, and it became part of me.”

Marie Roberte Laurente, Owner

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Still, it wasn’t until her third child was born, and she was on maternity leave, that she “got bored and started taking

courses in alternative medicine – herbalist and aromatherapy.”

Unknowingly, Marie Roberte was laying the groundwork for her future.

In 1993, her husband, also Haitian, decided he’d had enough of their hectic city lifestyle; he wanted to bring up their children in a different environment. The family returned to Haiti, where he opened a factory. “I had to find something to do,” explains Laurent. “I didn’t want to be a woman of leisure.”

Her long-time love of natural products suggested a possible direction. In 1999, after “a lot of research and training” -- and a divorce --she launched Belzèb (Haitian Creole for “beautiful herbs”), working out of her home to hand-create a selection of herbal teas and massage oils.

Belzèb was the first natural cosmetics brand to be launched in Haiti and it quickly became a success. By 2001, the company expanded from Laurente’s home kitchen into mass production; her product line would eventually include soaps, lotions, shower gels, insect repellents, and eventually a line of spa products – all based on herbs, plants and shrubs from the Caribbean.

Belzèb was now officially operating in what has been deemed, “The Emerging Trillion Dollar Market!” According to Global consulting firm, McKinsey & Company who released in 2012 the “Healthy, wealthy and (maybe) wise: The emerging trillion-dollar market for health and wellness, reads, “Everyday the number of North American adults using the internet to look for health options is growing and people are now more open to alternative medicine.” It is a market that the McKinsey report calculates to be close to “16.5 billion dollars.” For the Caribbean this is a critically important industry with its unique culture, history and use of medicinal plants in various remedies. This knowledge and advantage has also been made a focus of Caribbean Export’s visionary thrust to enhance the regional Health & Wellness Industry by enabling practitioners to improve standards and marketing, invest in R&D and better integrate products into mainstream industries such as beauty and spas.

For Laurente the potential and prospects for growth in this industry soon bore true. What began as a one- woman cottage industry operation soon grew into a fair-trade network. As Laurente’s products gained popularity, she realized she could not source the ingredients she needed in sufficient quantity.

So she went out into the country areas and created women’s groups, teaching them how to make cocoa butter, coconut oil, avocado oil, and castor oil, which she would then buy from them at a fair price. Ethical business relationships and a commitment to women’s empowerment are part of Belzèb’s founding principles. At least one of Laurent’s suppliers has expanded and now exports castor oil to Canada.

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GRENADA BELZEB

Soon the journey for Belzèb led to new horizons and in 2007 Laurente moved both herself and her company’s production line to Grenada. Friends on that island had invited her to join them in a business venture. Laurente credits Caribbean Export for her introduction and eventual move to Grenada.

Recounting, “…my moving to Grenada 5 years ago, can be credited to Caribbean Export. Because of them, I participated in the Caribbean Gift and Craft show in 2003 and that helped move my business to the next level.” She decided the move would only make economic sense if she could also open a spa; so in 2008 Moi Spa came into being, at first in a popular tourist hotel, and now in its own space.

Since coming to Grenada, Laurente says, “Business has expanded tremendously”; new opportunities have opened up for marketing her natural products to other islands and to hotel spas. The Belzèb line is currently manufactured in Grenada, but Laurente plans to re-locate that aspect of her business to Haiti, where she can source more of her raw materials -- particularly castor oil which, she says, Haitians use for “everything: massage, aches, fever, sprains, for the hair…it is a miracle oil.”

Laurente describes her road to business success as “a long journey”; but one that has brought her much satisfaction along the way. She excitedly recalls how what began as a hobby for her was soon made into a business with the right help. Since then she has been honoured by the Miami Haitian Chamber of Commerce; and nominated as Business Woman of the Year (2010) by the Grenada Chamber of Commerce.

In 2013, she will graduate from the Trinity School of Natural Health (Warsaw, U.S.A.) as a Doctor of Naturopathy.

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Her hard work has also been acknowledged by the Caribbean Export Development Agency, which apart from the “Caribbean Gift and Craft Show” which has now been rebranded to “Design Caribbean” has facilitated visits for her to various other trade shows and seminars across the Caribbean.

“Caribbean Export has made a tremendous contribution to the growing of my business,” Laurente declares. “Without them, I could not have afforded to go to a lot of these shows.

They have helped me broaden my horizons.”

Caribbean Export recognizes Belzèb’s role in helping to build the capacity for the region to compete in the global Health & Wellness Industry. An industry which according to global industry analysts, is expected to reach about $115 billion by 2015 based on the use of herbal and natural products that the public considers safer than medication. Belzèb has been the recipient of grant funding to help boost the company’s export capacity, upgrade labels and packaging, bringing them up to international standards, and to create brochures for marketing. Part of her funding also went to the improvement of the spa, which is patronized largely by foreign visitors who will often purchase Belzèb products after enjoying their spa treatments – an indirect form of export.

Laurente is deeply grateful for all Caribbean Export’s support during her “long journey”. “I am a small business,” she points out; “and to get this kind of help is really a blessing. They are the only ones in the Caribbean who are doing that; and they are doing a really good job.”

GUYANA GUYANA APICULTURAL SOCIETY

ATasteofhoney Guyana’s fledgling society of beekeepers plans to grow the industry and see its product flowing across the region Most people tend to avoid bees, fearing stings. Not so for members of the Guyana Apicultural Society (GAS), who can see beyond the stings to the delicious prize that awaits the skilled beekeeper.

“Our honey is beautiful,” enthuses Aubrey Robert, secretary of the organization. “We practice from a very natural environment, with many of our apiaries located within the forest.”

GAS president, Karl Persaud, underlines the point: “We are very proud to say that in Guyana, we have no bee diseases and bee pests,” he says. “In none of our colonies do we use pesticides or insecticides. That’s a gold star in our book.”

Aubrey Robert, Secretary

With such a desirable product, it is not surprising that the GAS is seeking to expand its export markets, first in the Caribbean region, and then, they hope, further afield. Currently, Persaud says, Guyana exports approximately 400 gallons of raw honey a year, to places like Suriname, Barbados, Grenada, St. Kitts and St Martin. A small amount is also exported to Canada; the aim is to increase that amount to ten tons by the end of 2013.

That is a big jump, considering that the GAS is a very young organization, about two and a half years old, with only 22 registered members. However, most are experienced beekeepers, and with the help of a recent Caribbean Export Development Agency grant of EU 30,000 - “The first time we are getting a grant from (anyone),” Robert points out - they

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GUYANA GUYANA APICULTURAL SOCIETY

expect to take several crucial steps toward attaining their goal.

The Agricultural Society’s foray into honey production is a trend which Caribbean Export wants to encourage.

Recognising that sustainability of traditional industries like agriculture requires radical and serious shifts in how they are viewed and supported, the Agency has been out front in trying to build the viability of value-added products which use agriculture as a foundation. “As a region we have to seriously look at how we support agricultural production.” says David Gomez, Manager of Trade and Export Development at the Agency. “Anyone who is looking at adding the value on the Caribbean side to what was traditionally exported as a raw material, for us is a priority. This is why agro-processing is a priority sector in our work programme.” He says.

The grant GAS received from Caribbean Export is earmarked for a number of uses, including sending GAS representatives on a study tour to Jamaica, one of the top honey exporters in the region. During this tour, GAS representatives will explore technological issues and learn how to tailor Guyana’s honey production to meet the standards of the European Union.

Staying close to its vision of building successful Caribbean brands, the Caribbean Export grant will also help in the rebranding of GAS’ current product along with bringing labels and packaging to international standards inclusive of full nutritional information, bar codes, and organic grading.

Improvements will also be made to the existing packaging facilities. In efforts to boost production, part of Caribbean Export’s intervention with GAS will be the support of a Matching Hives project: for every four GAS hives, Caribbean Export will sponsor one.

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“Our main objective,” says Robert, “is to prepare for regional export, and internet sales into the diaspora. We hope to see this by year-end.” They also hope to export other raw apicultural products, like pollen and wax.

The organization is not, for the moment, aiming at North American sales, because this can be costly. Instead, it hopes to expand sales in already-established regional markets.

Explains Persaud: “To go into new markets, you need to have more certification. We have been granted 100 percent organic certification; but we still need more.”

Lack of international certification is not, however, preventing the organization from achieving some of its other goals. Last year, GAS hosted the first honey show in the Caribbean: an exposition aimed at showcasing all the different types of honey available in Guyana, as well as numerous honey-based products, such as soaps, candles and beauty products.

“It was very, very successful,” says Persaud. “We plan to hold another show this year, around Easter.”

GAS’ other goals centre on education. The society wants to teach the public how to deal with Africanized bees, which can sometimes pose a danger. It also wants to work side-by side with local farmers to demonstrate the value of bees in crop pollination.

Most importantly, GAS hopes to act as a unifying agent for Guyana’s beekeepers, one that will strengthen the industry and attract young apiculturists to the industry. While export is the long-term goal, the organization knows that good business begins at home, says Persaud: “We are also trying to minimize the importation of honey into Guyana.”

GUYANA GUYANA APICULTURAL SOCIETY

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BELIZE ROYAL MAYAN SHRIMP FARMS LTD

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The Team at Royal Mayan Shrimp Farms Ltd

BELIZE ROYAL MAYAN SHRIMP FARMS LTD

FarmingOutTheDemand It can safely be argued that in order for the Caribbean region to fully achieve economic prosperity, greater emphasis must be placed on the newer and emerging industries. One such industry is unquestionably Agro-processing for which the region holds many advantages. One group has fully embraced this reality and has sought to develop its prospects with the creation of Royal Mayan Shrimp Farms out of Belize.

Supplying tasty crustaceans to markets on three continents, Mayan Shrimp Farms began in 1999 with an exploratory mission to investigate the possibility of farming shrimp in Belize. The Alvin and Irv Henderson led group from Cornell University’s MBA programme, were about to prove that Agroprocessing in the region can work.

Having visited the country and interviewed other shrimp farmers in the region, the partners came up with an ambitious business plan that would see them constructing their ponds and exporting their first crop within 12 months. The first phase of the operation entailed 100 acres of production ponds; subsequent collaboration with a local earth-moving firm led to “expansion of the vision”, and the development of 320 acres of ponds.

The company’s first exports – as projected --were to the U.S. in 2000. By 2003, they had developed new markets in Mexico and the Caribbean; and in 2006 began selling their product to the European market. Currently, Royal Mayan Shrimp Farms ships about three million pounds of shrimp annually, to nine different markets on three continents. About 85 per cent of its exports are sold Head-on/Shell-on (HO/SO); the rest are packed in Headless/Shell-on (HL/SO) format.

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BELIZE ROYAL MAYAN SHRIMP FARMS LTD

Royal Mayan’s success is demonstrated proof why Caribbean Export believes Agro-processing to be one of the sectors to drive regional economic growth. The industry has been made part of the agency’s priority sectors and various interventions continue to be staged to help more companies like Royal Mayan Shrimp Farms.

Despite Royal Mayan’s evident success, Sales Manager Karteek Tummala describes the venture as “very risky. These are live animals in a pond,” he elaborates. “So in a night we can lose a lot of money because of one little slip.”

To minimize these “little slips”, and indeed for the sake of the environment, Royal Mayan has built in numerous systems to ensure that its operations are sustainable. Its ponds are farmed on a semi-intensive basis, with stocking densities of 32 or 60 shrimp per square meter. Baby shrimp are placed in a “nursery” for three or four weeks, before being transferred to the main ponds; this ensures better survival rates.

Mayan approached its successful application. According to Tummala, “The assistance from Caribbean Export has enabled us to plan properly for this past year of production at the farm. We were able to better determine the direction of international demand and supply of shrimp as well as market prices and forecasts. With this we were able to plan exactly what to produce and which markets to target.”

The success of its first grant application has encouraged the company to consider repeating the process in the near future.

“We have plans to going after the bigger grant, to upgrade our ice machine,” says Tummala. “That’s a project we have in mind. It’s not cheap, so it’s been on hold. So we hope to apply to get the larger grant.”

All the ponds are fully aerated, resulting in a low rate of water exchange, less than three per cent per day. And effluent is filtered through three containment ponds, to lessen the farm’s impact on a nearby mangrove wetland and lagoon. In short, it is a carefully thought-out operation.

Royal Mayan applied in 2011 for one of Caribbean Export’s “accelerated” grants, which offersa smaller cash amount than the regular grant, but are approved more rapidly. The company was awarded EU 5,000, which was used to attend an important trade show in Brussels in 2012. Royal Mayan representatives had attended this particular trade show on several previous occasions; but, as Tummala points out, “Europe is not cheap.” The Caribbean Export grant was a welcome contribution towards defraying the costs.

Tummala assesses the impact of the grant as “very valuable, if intangible.” He explains: “We were able to meet with other stakeholders in the industry, and some of our customers from Europe. It helped us understand their projections, which then assisted us in planning our own production for the current year. Every market has its own quality specifications – size, quality, colour; and we produce according to who we’re selling to.”

Caribbean Export sees its grants programme more as a strategic tool for companies to leverage valuable funding to build extra export capacity or enhance export preparedness for newer companies. This was clearly evident in how Royal

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That’s the kind of project that has a good chance of being approved, according to Caribbean Export’s eligibility criteria.

As Caribbean Export’s Manager of Competitiveness and Innovation, Chris McNair explains, the organization awards grants to “companies that have an established capacity”, to “help them equip themselves for the export market.” It’s all part of the agency’s thrust towards building world-class brands.

McNair adds: “There are a number of issues that regional companies face in terms of being globally competitive; our grants are aimed at helping them overcome those barriers.”

As a company with a proven capacity for international export, Royal Mayan looks forward to future Caribbean Export support.

SURINAME GOM FOOD INDUSTRIES

SecretsofShisado

With some of the richest spices and exotic flavours in the world, the Caribbean Agro-processing is beginning to give life to age old traditions from the unique blends of the region.

It is the dedicated and innovative approaches of some of these processors that are driving the demand of Caribbean flavours and giving credence to this industry as a catalyst for economic growth.

Consider Gom Food Industries – Its manager, Kenneth van Gom, was employed in the airline industry, in a non-food capacity, when he recognized the prospects of authentic Caribbean flavours and gave in to his desire to become an entrepreneur.

It is this type of vision and foresight that Caribbean Export is helping to support and empower as it embarks on an eventful journey to help develop world-class brands which harness the authenticity of the region to deliver real value.

For Kenneth van Gom, his was a carefully considered decision. Gom’s mother possessed valuable family recipes for the range of sauces that now carry the Sishado brand name.

Kenneth van Gom, Manager

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Prior to entering the market, van Gom engaged in the necessary market research and testing. The development of the brand began in early 1996, and sampling, testing and refining of the recipes went on for two years before the business was registered in May 1998. His was a well thought out process grounded in the necessary research and development.

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SURINAME GOM FOOD INDUSTRIES

The Paramaribo based plant produces a line of six soyabased marinades and barbeque sauces. Understanding the value of what he produces, Kenneth van Gom would only give a hint of the secret recipe in the sauce: “Our products are based on traditional Surinamese recipes with some Indonesian influence, while maintaining the spicy Caribbean traditions and flavours.”

The brand name Sishado was formed from a combination of the first names of the first three grandchildren of the Gom family matriarch and recipe owner, Yvonne van Gom. Related by blood, the three are now also inextricably joined in the Sishado brand of sauces.

The name Sishado however, is not just a sentimental creation it reflects clear thoughts for the growth and future of the company. According to van Gom, it also suggests an “Asian exotic background, while being totally tropical too.”

Sishado brand of sauces and marinades are a domestic market leader in Suriname, with approximately 40% of the market share. Around 30% of the company’s production is exported, mainly to the Netherlands, but also to Aruba, Curacao, French Guyana and St. Maarten.

Requests for small shipments to Canada and the United States have been fielded through the company’s website, while the company is working on expanding its distribution to well known supermarket chains in Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom.

The company’s relationship with Caribbean Export Development Agency dates back to 2003. At that time, a Caribbean Export grant was approved for a multi-pronged project, which focused on market research and exploratory visits to Curacao, Aruba, the Netherlands, and Trinidad & Tobago. From this Gom Food Industries was able to work with scientists and food technologists at the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI) at the University of the West Indies. The highly technologically advanced laboratories of CARIRI helped the company to produce product formulations and taste tests. The product also went through a redesign of packaging, labels and promotional materials.

Caribbean Export further assisted the company to conduct a feasibility study on the relocation of its operations and the purchase of new equipment, which contributed to a boost

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in production from 180,000 litres in 2008 to 315,000 litres in 2010.

Gom Foods Industries continued to invest in its growth and competitiveness and again reached out to Caribbean Export in 2011 through the Agency’s Direct Assistant Grant Scheme to help in the implementation of ISO 22000. Today with the help of some government institutions, the company is currently in the process of achieving ISO and HACCP quality standard certification, which are benchmarks in the industry and would put the company in a much more marketable position for the further expansion of its export market.

Preparing for its anticipated growth, Gom Foods has just completed the rebuilding of its production facility and recently added two more products to its line and has begun increasing its marketing and promotion efforts, as well as its distribution capabilities.

With its eyes fixed on the future, management of the company sees itself in the next ten years operating from a completely new plant, having increased the production and sales by at least fivefold. It also wants to expand product lines and enter new markets in the European Union (EU), North America and the Greater Caribbean.

For Caribbean Export, this could not be better as part of the agency’s critical focus is on getting companies to make more use of the benefits provided by the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the European Union and CARICOM. Emphasizing this, manager of Trade and Export, David Gomez says, “The EU market can be for the region a very important and strategic growth area for our exports. It is one of the reasons why we are seeking to better help companies with market information through our Market Intelligence System.”

He continued, “Governments cannot spend the time and effort to negotiate all these bilateral agreements and then companies not even use them. It is in part why we are also so excited about our ‘Break Point’ initiative. We believe if we get more ‘hands on’ to better prepare companies they stand a more likely chance of succeeding in export markets.”

Gom Foods also shares the vision of new markets but feels as a Surinamese company it needs to also focus on growing its local Surinamese market. To this end, the company plans to farm some of its own produce to use in the production of its sauces and marinades.

SURINAME GOM FOOD INDUSTRIES

It also plans to collaborate with other producers locally as well as internationally to produce private labels using the Sishado brand.

“Our opportunities for growth [are good].” says van Gom, “…

People in the western world tend to try more ethnic and other ‘strange’ food products. We have possibilities to enter more EU markets as well as the North American markets.”

And already plans are afoot to capitalize on the opportunities in Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago and the Dominican Republic.

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ST. LUCIA BARON FOODS

TheSauceofSuccess The Caribbean region’s agricultural sector is going through a transformation. More and more companies are taking traditionally grown crops and turning them into value-added products, giving birth to a buoyant agro-processing sector.

On the Island of Saint Lucia, one such company, which is helping transform the face and fate of agriculture, is Baron Foods.

Like many of the other islands of the Caribbean, Saint Lucia grows the Scotch bonnet pepper and according to Wikipedia, Scotch bonnets rate between 100,000 – 350,000 Scoville units of heat. Compare this to the juicy jalapeno, which rates a mere 2,500 – 8,000 on the Scoville scale. It is this Scotch bonnet that Baron Foods is using to drive their growth by creating its best selling West Indian Hot Sauce.

The company has been in business for the past 21 years. It manufactures a variety of beverages, condiments, essences, salad dressings, sauces and spices and prides itself on the use of fresh, local produce.

According to Frankie Sami, Total Quality Manager at Baron Foods, there is a symbiotic relationship between the company and local agricultural producers.

Ronald Ramjattan, Chief Executive Officer

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“We depend heavily on the availability of several raw materials that are incorporated in numerous products, none more so than our flagship product, West Indian Hot Sauce,” he says.

“This uses all local peppers to create one of the Caribbean’s most piquant flavors.”

ST. LUCIA BARON FOODS

Demand for the products manufactured by Baron Foods has been increasing. The products are sold throughout the entire English-speaking Caribbean, the United States, the United Kingdom, and through Martinique into France and Germany.

Sami describes Baron Foods as “a local company with roots in Saint Lucia” that has grown into “a regional company with a full agro-processing plant in Grenada and solid investment in Trinidad and Tobago.”

In fact, Baron Foods is in the process of constructing a US$5 million plant in Chaguanas, Trinidad. Chief Executive Officer Ronald Ramjattan is quoted in an article in the Trinidad Guardian as saying that the plant should begin production by the first quarter of 2013.

The plant is expected to employ about 100 people, which speaks to the size and scope of the Trinidad operation. At present, Baron Foods employs 75 people, full time.

This move to Trinidad is a remarkable one in Caribbean business relations. Usually Trinidadian businesses are the ones striking out into the markets of the Eastern and wider Caribbean.

Baron Food’s success in the agro-processing sector is one Caribbean Export hopes to replicate several times over with other regional producers. The Agency has a long history of working with regional producers to help them get up to international standards and increase capacity. The agro processing sector has been designated as one of the priority areas for Caribbean Export and efforts are being made to ensure its real potential is realized.

Baron Foods has enjoyed a productive relationship with Caribbean Export. The food manufacturer first benefited from Caribbean Export assistance when the company was seeking HACCP certification. The company has gone on to achieve ISO 22000:2005 and FSSC 22000: 2010 quality standard.

Indeed, Baron Foods (Saint Lucia) is the first and only organization in the Caribbean that has achieved this prestigious standard, joining the likes of the global food giants such as Nestle and Heinz.

Baron Foods is effectively turning the tables around. The company is also training its eye on the potentially lucrative South and Latin American markets. “For now, focus is being placed on the Cuban and Dominican Republic markets,” says Sami.

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ST. LUCIA BARON FOODS

It has also won numerous awards over the years. At the 2012 Caribbean Business Awards, for example, the company copped the four most prestigious awards: Small to Medium Business of the Year, Award for Innovation, Manufacturing Excellence Award and Caribbean Entrepreneur of the Year, which went to the Managing Director Ronald Ramjattan.

Baron Foods values highly its support from the Caribbean Export. The company was on the lookout for opportunities to boost it to ‘greater heights’, and the agency facilitated those opportunities through numerous business incentives by way of grants, business expos and general support.

“Being the recipient of a grant from Caribbean Export has truly benefited the company,” says Sami. “Having successfully applied for a grant to support the purchasing of processing equipment has completely revolutionized the efficiency of our processing structure,” says Sami.

Caribbean Export has also sponsored training and trade missions that included executives of Baron Foods. Over the past two years Director Chris Persaud participated in a trade mission to Europe, namely France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

Officials of the company also formed part of the delegation to London during the 2012 Olympics and while on that trip they were able to hold meetings with major supermarket chains such as Tescos and Sainsbury’s. In September that same year Baron Foods was part of Expo Cibao 25th Anniversary in the Dominican Republic which has resulted in ongoing negotiations with the largest supermarket chain there to carry the Baron brand.

With the explosion of all things related to food, including TV shows, chefs, foodies, gourmets and gourmands, competition for products similar to those produced by Baron Foods is increasing. The would-be threats can be posed by single individuals all the way to established companies.

In the face of these challenges, Baron Foods remain focused and committed. “It is our objective within the next five years to have the Baron brand fortified as being a truly Caribbean brand,” says Sami.

“This goal is already being realized, as many Caribbean territories have adopted our brand as the premier food supplier, and we have created niche markets in these territories.”

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JAMAICA BIO-TECH

TurningPlantsIntoGold

In Jamaica, Dr Henry Lowe and his team at Bio-Tech R & D have their eyes fixed on the enormous global market for nutraceuticals.

A porridge made with sweet potato, yam and bananas as well as phytates; an energy sports drink made with kola nut extracts: Is this a joke? It’s no joke, and the man behind these energy-enhancing products is no “nut”.

Dr Henry Lowe is the Executive Chairman of the Bio-Tech R & D Institute Ltd, part of the Environmental Health Foundation Group of Companies in Jamaica. Trained as a medicinal chemist, he is an internationally acclaimed researcher in the field of nutraceuticals, particularly those derived from Jamaica’s indigenous plants.

In 2010, Dr Lowe gained worldwide recognition for his discovery showing that Jamaican Ball Moss contains properties that help to kill prostate cancer cells. He is an Adjunct Professor at three universities, and has been honoured by the United States of America House of Representatives and the New York State Senate for his exemplary contributions to science, science education and public service.

In essence, the good doctor is not the type to joke about the potential health or medicinal benefits to be derived from plants, even if they are ground provisions. Indeed, he is among a growing number of scientists who believe that such dietary staples as yam, bananas and sweet potato may give Jamaica’s famed Olympic sprinters their edge.

Dr. Henry Lowe, Executive Chairman

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Something Dr Henry Lowe is deadly serious about is Jamaica’s potential to derive a national fortune from the development of a nutraceutical industry.

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JAMAICA BIO-TECH

Nutraceuticals, he explains, are types of chemical compounds, isolated from plants, which have health-giving properties: they can enhance wellness and have medicinal value as well. Jamaica, he adds, is particularly blessed with plants of the right sort; indeed, it has 84 of the 160 recognised and established medicinal plants of the world.

“The value of the global market for these products has been estimated at half-a-trillion US dollars,” says Dr Lowe. “If we could claim a tiny percentage of that, for example, .01 per cent, this could make all the difference to Jamaica’s fiscal and economic future. We could do the job just by using what’s growing in the ground here in Jamaica.”

Founded in 2010 with a mandate to develop and commercialise nutraceuticals, cosmeceuticals and pharmaceuticals from Jamaica’s indigenous medicinal plants, Bio-Tech R & D may well be the match to set this industry alight in Jamaica.

Over the past two years, Dr Lowe and his fellow scientists at the Institute (staff has grown from 5 to 42, including 8 PhDs) have been hard at work creating a line of products designed to take a bite out of the enormous nutraceutical market.

Early in 2012, Bio-Tech R & D launched a line of seven scientifically developed and proven nutraceuticals under the Eden Gardens brand, including its flagship product Alpha Prostate Formula 1, which contains cancer-fighting compounds isolated from Jamaican Ball Moss. Other nutraceutical products under the brand are designed to help with stress, arthritis, flexibility and diabetes, as well as overall health and wellbeing.

Following quickly on the heels of these products, Bio-Tech R & D also introduced a line of five herbal medicinal teas under the Eden Gardens brand. For example, there isGuinea Hen Weed, an anti-cancer brew that combats joint and prostate inflammation; Soursop& Ginger, a blend rich in antioxidants and has been known to relieve nausea, headaches, arthritis and upset stomach; and Cerasee& Ginger, which is rich in antioxidants and is an excellent blood purifier, anti-diabetic, colon cleansing blend. Then, in July 2012, it added Jamaica Gold and Premium Power Porridge, two energy-enhancing products for athletes and convalescence.

In August of 2012, as Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt was tearing up the track at the Summer Olympics in London, representatives from Bio-Tech R & D were also in that city introducing Eden Gardens to potential distributors from

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the UK and Europe. They were there at the invitation of the Caribbean Export Development Agency to participate in its Break Point initiative.

Dr Lowe describes the reception from distributors as “absolutely excellent”. “They loved all of the products we put out and distributorships were negotiated for the UK and Europe,” he adds.

JAMAICA BIO-TECH

In the meantime, the research institute is building a strong home base, and Dr Lowe says on-line sales from Canada, as well in the United States, are beginning to blossom.

Positive feedback from consumers using the Eden Gardensnutraceuticals and medicinal teas is also starting to flow. According to Dr Lowe, this is led by Alpha Prostate 1, which is reporting “fantastic results” for prostate health.

The doctor says that, in addition to the need for capital to fund ongoing research and development, the biggest challenge currently facing Bio-Tech R & D is getting the Eden Gardens name and products out to the world; in other words, marketing and awareness-building.

However, a boost in this area may be on the way. Dr Lowe has had a strong expression of interest from a Canadian company about distributing the Eden Gardens product line.

“They called me the other day and told me they want to fly down to Jamaica on their private jet and talk about it,” he says.

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Meanwhile, the Institute has other innovative and beneficial products in the pipeline, including a formulation to help fight skin cancer. This product, says Dr Lowe, could be “a blockbuster” on its own in the United States where there are approximately three million new skin cancer patients each year.

The doctor is complimentary of the help Bio-Tech R & D has received from Caribbean Export Development Agency. “They were very supportive in our formative years, helping us to get our staff trained by HACCP and arranging for me to visit Barbados and other islands,” he says. “They helped open my eyes to what other people were doing and to the value of networking.”

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In Belize there is a company not afraid to take on challenges and prove that in the Caribbean strong brands can be birth.

Coool Delight, is one such brand. Taking over the soft drinks market in Belize with its popular fruit drinks, and proving that with the right approach the promising agro-processing industry can truly bear fruit.

MoveOver,Cola!

With its range of citrusy fruit flavours such as orange and lemon, tropical pineapple, as well as apple, grape and fruit punch, it seems that whenever Belizians seek to quench their thirst they are demanding Coool Delights and the new Frooot Blasts blends. The choices come in tantalizingly refreshing combinations of pineapple-banana, orange-grapefruitpineapple, orange-cherry, peach-apple, or in lemon, cranberry, and soursop.

The company behind the Coool Delights and Froot Blasts brands of drink is Caribbean Premier Products Limited. The organization has been in business for a mere five-and-a-half years and already it is changing the taste preferences of local Belizeans, guiding them away from carbonated beverages and into non-carbonated fruit drinks, frozen novelties and purified drinking water.

Building and nurturing home-grown brands with the ability to be globally competitive is the focus of a repositioned Caribbean Export.

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Kahlil Salazar, Founder

BELIZE CARIBBEAN PREMIER PRODUCTS

According to the man charged with driving Competitiveness and Innovation at the Agency, Chris McNair, “The most valuable asset a company has is its brand. What we are diligently trying to do is get Caribbean companies into the mindset where they understand how and why that value must be built. For us at Caribbean Export it cannot be business as usual any longer.”

Certainly for Caribbean Premier Products Limited it was never business as usual. The enterprise is the brainchild of Kahlil Salazar, who, before he founded the company, graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Computer Engineering. With the family passion for manufacturing and self-employment driving him, Salazar went against his years of training and founded Caribbean Premier Products Limited.

At the beginning, there was little local competition in this segment of the beverage industry. Moreover, Salazar noted the opportunities in the “dollar market segment” of the beverage industry, in a developing country where the “poor forms the majority” of the population. This price point, he realized, would drive customer demand.

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At present, Caribbean Premier Products employs 23 full time and eight seasonal employees. Its main market is Belize, but the company also exports its products to Guyana and Barbados.

Market research carried out in Jamaica, as a result of a Caribbean Export Development Agency’s Accelerated Procedures Grant, suggests that the opportunities for entry and growth into the Jamaican market are promising.

Caribbean Premier Products Limited expects to follow these prospects with further visits to Jamaica to analyse the market and to seek out prospective importers and distributors.

Caribbean Export Development Agency has provided valuable assistance to Caribbean Premier Products through it grants programme. First assisting with the sourcing and purchasing of a liquid nitrogen injector and the training of staff in the use of the equipment.

A second intervention approved in February 2012 saw the company receiving assistance for marketing activities such as graphic design, website development, market research and trademark registration.

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BELIZE CARIBBEAN PREMIER PRODUCTS

Project 3 is currently in the implementation stage. When completed, the expansion and modification of the industrial factory building will bring the company one step closer to CROSQ and HACCP certification, the highest level in the industry. It will also see the replacement of old, faulty equipment with a new compressor with refrigerated air dryer and a shrink wrapper with tunnel, which will increase output capacity from 6-8 cases per minute to 12-16 cases per minute.

By partnering with the Caribbean Export Development Agency, Caribbean Premier Products has been able to improve product quality, appearance, reduce the cost of production and gain access to the CARICOM market.

Additionally, five of the company’s employees were trained in the use and maintenance of the equipment, and in the physical and chemical hazards associated with the use of liquid nitrogen.

There is no doubt the role Caribbean Export has played in the company has led to marked improvement and in a few

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months it will launch its newest brand, Caribbean Sunrise which will carry fresh juice and milk drinks.

It is a truism of today’s business world that marketing constitutes a major portion of any budget. No matter the quality of the product, without extensive marketing and promotion, business suffers.

With support from Caribbean Export, Caribbean Premier Products has been able to develop posters, billboards, truckwraps, TV and radio ads that have turned the company’s flagship products, Coool Delight and Frooot Blasts, into household names.

Looking to the future, Salazar sees Caribbean Premier Products as “the leading manufacturer of fruit drinks on the local market and a name well established in CARICOM for quality and superiority,” with a minimum of two containers per month exported to CARICOM. To which we have but one word of encouragement: Coool!

BARBADOS BLUE WATERS

TemplateforSuccess The Caribbean’s cultural heritage, history and racial makeup are all ingredients that produce intriguing experiences and engaging brands. It is the region’s colourful past that also continues to drive the promising Creative Industries with the potential to transform economic futures. For the Agency charged with the responsibility of improving exports from the region, Caribbean Export sees this largely unrealized potential of the Creative Industries as the Caribbean’s next frontier.

Understandably, they are not alone in their vision. One Barbadian film company sees the value in the region’s heritage and is seeking to develop commercially viable products around it.

Blue Waters Productions Inc. is the brainchild of its founder, Alison Saunders who saw the wisdom of a commercial venture in the Creative Industries. Located in Barbados, Saunders launched her first full-length film “Hit for Six” based on one of the region’s beloved sports—Cricket.

The film made its debut in the midst of the sport’s most popular period- The Cricket World Cup. With the Caribbean stricken with World Cup Cricket fever for weeks on end, and the island awash in cricket fans from around the world who had come to see the final matches, “Hit for Six” also hit the screens.

Alison Saunders, Founder

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The film, about a young cricket player struggling to make his mark in a highly competitive sport, and tempted by the corrupt financial rewards offered by match-fixing, was highly topical. The premiere was a red-carpet affair held at the island’s leading Cineplex.

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BARBADOS BLUE WATERS

Like the phenomenal success of Reggae, there is also great worth in the rich stories of the region and independent filmmakers like Saunders are stepping forward and realizing that value, but she believes there is work still to be done.

Saunders contends that with more funded and coordinated marketing efforts to film, television markets would go a far way in helping to drive the audio-visual industry further.

Caribbean Export shares her view on the need for additional support to the industry. The Agency has taken artistes and producers to various international trade shows helping to expose regional talent and build valuable connections for these industry practitioners to develop their craft.

Since then, Hit for Six has been making the rounds at film festivals as well as cinemas in other Caribbean islands.

Currently, it is being shown on television in South Africa, and Saunders hopes it will show in many other countries on that continent.

“It is the first Barbadian film to be exported commercially,” she says.

Blue Waters early success in the Creative Industries can be seen as a testament to why Caribbean Export strongly believes in the ability of this emerging sector to transform the region’s economy. The Agency contends that it is one of the Caribbean’s natural competitive advantages. Icons past and present such as Bob Marley and Rihanna have taken the Caribbean flare, culture and sound and have captivated the rest of the world with it. Decades after his death Bob Marley still continues to captivate and earn income for his estate.

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Blue Waters was also a beneficiary of grant funding provided

by Caribbean Export to develop the company’s latest Creative Industries product. “I really appreciate that Caribbean Export is helping us take our stories to the world! This is a powerful form of export because while we are selling products, we are also selling our culture, our countries and the tremendous capacity of our people.” says Saunders, in response to her support from the Agency.

The funding provided is helping the company in its production of a documentary titled Panama Fever: a Caribbean Journey.

It’s about the tens of thousands of Barbadians who went to Panama to help build the canal between 1904 and 1914, and their descendants who still live there.

“Barbadians were the single largest group of people to help build the canal,” says Saunders. “Some 40,000 Barbadians left home to go to Panama.”

Many stayed and settled there, and there is a sizeable Diaspora of Panamanians with Barbadian ancestors living in that country today.

Saunders finds it sad that two peoples so closely linked by history know so little about each other. “We in Barbados don’t know our families in Panama, and they don’t know us,” she says.

BARBADOS BLUE WATERS

Panama Fever: A Caribbean Journey may help to rectify this, and Saunders is strengthening its appeal by structuring the documentary around a journey of her own.

In 1905, one of her great uncles left Barbados for Panama to work on the American phase of the canal. Panama Fever traces her personal journey to Panama – and Cuba – in search of information about him and his descendants.

“These are my relatives, and I want to understand what it was like for them over there back then, and what it is like for them today,” she says.

Saunders plans to release of Panama Fever: a Caribbean Journey in 2014 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the canal’s construction.

In the meantime, the trailer has been making the rounds.

For example, it was shown at a recent Diaspora conference in Barbados, as well as the opening night of the Caribbean Tales Film Festival, and accompanied a trade mission by the Barbados Government to Panama.

“We have received a lot of support online for this project,” says Saunders.

Strong stories and good timing may be among a film-maker’s stock in trade, but you also need to know how to get your films in front of audiences and make money in the process.

And of course, you need to know how to raise the substantial sums of money you need to produce them in the first place.

Blue Waters has been acquiring these capabilities thanks to the grant made by the Caribbean Development Export Agency. The funds enabled Saunders to hire vital marketing and distribution expertise and to develop a shrewd fundraising strategy to attract funds from potential investors.

The grant also helped to finance the production of the documentary’s trailer. Saunders says, “Being able to go to Panama and Cuba through the Caribbean Export grant, we

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have been able to get excellent support from the Caribbean community in those countries. We have already been able to create a community of support for the film by making the 10minute trailer available on YouTube. There was tremendous response online. We are also following up leads that the trailer made possible with a regional funding agency, an educational institution, a credit union and an airline.”

It is evident that though the product produced within the Creative Industries sector can be incredibly viable it can also be a very costly exercise and effective planning is crucial.

“Marketing and distribution are so important,” says Saunders.

“Before we even started the documentary we wanted to know how we were going to sell it and who we were going to sell it to.”

In essence, Saunders has been using the funds provided by Caribbean Export to also build a model than can help Blue Waters’ future film productions stand on their own and be profitable.

“This is why the funding from the grant has been so important,” she says. “We wanted to make sure that Panama Fever, while it is an important project from a social and historical point of view, could also be viable; that it could pay its own way.”

Undaunted, Blue Waters has another project in the pipeline and is teaming up with other players to promote Barbados as a filming destination to international movie makers.

“We are building relationships to help us move our little industry forward,” says Saunders.

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ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES TAMI B

TakingthePlunge Think of the Caribbean and you may readily think tourism.

There is however, another sector which is quietly driving economic growth in the region – It is the Creative Industries.

“It significantly exceeds anything previously imagined.” That is according to a report produced by the Geneva based World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) on the economic impact of the creative industries. In the region, this is an impact which is largely the result of creatively gifted individuals stepping forward and harnessing the rich cultural heritage of the Caribbean and transforming it into sought after products.

One can certainly argue that Tamiko Browne is one of those gifted individuals who are helping to drive the demand for Caribbean creative expression.

The St. Vincent-based swimwear designer and founder of Tami B Designs is determined to redefine what it means to wear a bikini. Her eye-catching and sophisticated line of luxury swimwear has been developing an international reputation since it was launched five years ago.

The American-born designer, who is married to a Vincentian, has now expanded her line to include resort wear, which consists of evening wear, handbags and sandals. Recently, a group of international recording artists commissioned her to create the wardrobe for their latest music video.

It all started with Browne’s decision to make a better bikini – one that she would be comfortable wearing herself. “I was tired of the cookie cutter approach that many designers were using, she says, “and I was fed up with bikini bottoms that sagged when they got wet.”

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ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES TAMI B

Tamiko Browne, Designer & Founder Browne had barely started when she was presented with a marvellous opportunity to showcase her work. Hearing that the first ever Islands of the World Fashion Week was going to be held in the Bahamas, she decided she had nothing to lose by asking to be part of it.

“I just saw it as an opportunity to get my feet wet,” she says.

With no samples yet to submit, she took a chance and sent in sketches instead. It paid off, and the event’s organisers wrote back saying they loved the sketches and asking Browne to participate. “There was a mad rush for me to create a collection,” she says. “At that point I wasn’t even sure what a collection should consist of, and I was asking myself ‘How am I going to put my aesthetics into it?’”

Browne’s ‘aesthetics’ impressed a panel of judges that included fashion industry notables such as Canadian fashion mogul, Peter Nygard, and Alphadi, the Nigerian fashion designer known as the ‘magician of the desert’. So much so that she took the top award in both of the event’s categories: Up-and-Coming Designer and Cultural Piece.

The cultural piece was an eye-stopper: a swimsuit made of woven fibres, much like the kind Vincentian women use to make baskets. “I decided I really had to do something outside

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the box if I wanted to make an impression,” says Browne.

The impact of the piece encouraged Browne to introduce an environmentally friendly element to her line, using natural materials, such as cotton and hemp, and processes that create less waste and pollution. For example, some items are hand-embellished using sea-shells, while others have buttons made of coconut shell.

“This type of creative vision and innovation goes well towards building the unique Caribbean brand”, says Chris McNair, Manager ofCompetitiveness and Innovation at Caribbean Export. “We are keen on helping companies with the DNA to be globally competitive, be able to develop world-class brands. It is why most of our interventions are designed around building brands.” For the agency this means some handholding and lots of exposure.

In the summer of 2012, Browne benefited from an experience that she believes will help her find the right international market niche for Tami B Designs. She qualified for a study tour to Britain and Europe, sponsored by Caribbean Export for a select group of Caribbean fashion designers as part of the London Engage project -a project designed to help showcase ‘Brand Caribbean’ and position the region as an emerging market ripe for investment.

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ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES TAMI B

“I was counting on it being a valuable opportunity for me to gain a lot of knowledge, and it proved to be,” she says. “The tour took us to Manchester, Berlin and Paris, and it really opened my eyes. What I learned is proving very beneficial to my label.”

As a result of this exposure, Browne is now talking to contacts and buyers in Europe who she believes may be keen to carry her line. She is also optimistic that similar talks with a boutique in nearby Martinique will prove fruitful.

An important lesson this entrepreneurial and innovative designer has learned from the tour is the value of research. It is a discipline she recommends to anyone hoping to launch a product from small beginnings.

For example, she became familiar with those labels that would compare with hers, and identified those department stores that she should target.

For many Caribbean companies however, research can and often is a very costly exercise. “We recognised very early that if we as an agency wanted to help companies build world-class brands, research needed to be a fundamental element of their development.” Explains David Gomez, the agency’s Manager of Trade and Export Development.

“We knew however, that the prohibitive costs would create major difficulties for companies and this led us to develop the Market Intelligence System.” According to Gomez the new ICT based system still in its development, will provide regional companies with critical market and trade insight to help make informed decisions about where to go and what to go with when seeking to enter new markets.

“I now know that I need to focus on a niche – something unique,” she says. “And I have learned that the stores I need to target are those that have a section dedicated to resort wear. When you make my kind of fashion clothing you can’t wait for summer to be in the stores. You have to be showing all year long.”

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A grant from Caribbean Export later this year is also on the cards for Tami B Designs and Browne is grateful for the funds which will help to further develop her business.

“This type of support is so important for small entrepreneurs like me who start with little more than an idea,” she says.

“There aren’t too many places for us to go to get the help we need.”

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO MEILING

NoClutter, nogimmicks The pomp and pageantry of the region’s various carnivals have long given credence to the creative expression and ability of a people now known for style. For the Caribbean the ability to express a diverse cultural heritage in fashion creations is almost organic. It is a talent, which today is helping to drive a very viable Creative Industry; and one who continues to lead the charge is Meiling of Trinidad and Tobago.

Whisper the name “Meiling” to a Caribbean fashionista, and an image springs immediately to mind: a vision of cool linens in crisp clean lines; ethereal gowns in exquisite silks; fanatic attention to detail. No clutter, no gimmicks,- just style in the purest sense of the word.

Meiling Esau, née Achong, but known to all simply as Meiling, is an icon in the Trinidad fashion industry – a descriptor which makes her cringe, but which is true nevertheless. Her arrival on the scene back in the 1970s marked the first step of a revolution that would re-define Caribbean fashion in the eyes of the world, moving it from “colourful and exotic” to “elegant and sophisticated”.

Meiling was born into fashion: her mother Evelyn was, in her words, “one of Trinidad’s leading dressmakers”. Young Meiling spent a lot of time in her mother’s shop, gathering up scraps of fabric and trim to fashion dresses for her dolls.

Learning almost by osmosis the underlying crafts of sewing and garment structure, she knew at an early age that she wanted a career in fashion design.

At 16, she travelled to the UK to study at the Lucy Clayton School of Design, returning with her diploma in the early 1970s. She worked for a year in a garment factory – there were many in Trinidad in those days –

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Meiling Esau, Designer

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO MEILING

before setting up one of the island’s first designer boutiques, in a renovated garage. A few years later, in 1982, Meiling Inc. Ltd. was incorporated.

Modestly, Meiling attributes her early success to “good timing”. The bold fashions of the sixties had electrified the world; in the Caribbean, there were a lot of hip young people hungry for design, but not getting it locally. Enter Meiling, quiet and fastidious, with an aesthetic that was unmistakably Caribbean, yet a style that was clearly international. It didn’t take long for the “icon” designation to take hold, as local socialites and celebrities jostled to wear her creations.

In the 30-odd years of her career, Meiling has designed everything from corporate employees’ uniforms to beauty pageant attire; she collaborated with Emmy award-winner Peter Minshall to produce the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Her work is respected throughout the Caribbean, and beyond.

She has been honoured with various awards: in 2008, she received Trinidad and Tobago’s Chaconia Silver Medal for long and meritorious service in the field of business; and was also named the “Grand Master of Fashion Design” at Caribbean Fashion Week in Jamaica. In 2011, she won the Women of Influence Award from The Association of Female Executives of Trinidad & Tobago, and in 2012 was nominated as one of the top 50 influential people in T&T. So it’s not surprising that in 2012, Meiling was selected to participate in the Caribbean Export Development Agency’s exciting Break Point project, which flew a creative group of entrepreneurs to London to present their ideas to a panel of high-powered UK investors –one of whom has expressed interest in bringing the Meiling brand to UK markets.

The Break Point initiative for Caribbean Export was really about doing things differently and giving life to very viable emerging industries and have them take advantage of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). Manager of Competitiveness and Innovation at the agency, Chris McNair explains, “We needed to give companies a better chance at breaking into the lucrative European Union market but we realized that in order to do this we needed a vehicle that prepared them.

They needed to be ready to use the advantages of the EPA.” Caribbean Export also sponsored a Study Tour to Berlin, Paris and Manchester, as well as facilitated participation in the prestigious Dominicana Moda fashion week in the Dominican Republic.

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO MEILING

Meiling was one of only five regional designers invited to exhibit, and was singled out by a reporter from British Vogue as one of the top five designers in the show.

She has high praise for these Caribbean Export initiatives, which, she points out, give creative entrepreneurs like herself the opportunity to reach out to wider markets, and to learn about international standards. “A lot of us aren’t financially able to go to all these markets, to do the research, to meet with all these people,” she says. “These shows are also good because you network with other designers.”

Her visit to the Dominican Republic allowed her to make contacts with manufacturers, opening the door to possible collaborations in the future. As she points out, the Dominican Republic is already a signatory to trade agreements which facilitate exports to the European Union; and they possess a manufacturing capacity and expertise not currently available in Trinidad. “My atelier is not big enough to handle big orders,” she explains. “I prefer to (manufacture) regionally, if I can’t keep it in Trinidad.”

Meiling deplores the loss of manufacturing capacity in Trinidad, which she attributes to the current trend towards “instant fashion --even if it falls apart the next day”. Cheap imported clothing has forced garment factories and many fabric shops out of business, meaning she has to import most of her fabrics. “When I started out,” she recalls, “there was (a fashion) industry but no design; now, there is design but no industry.”

However, she is heartened by recent attempts to re-stimulate the industry in the region: for example, the Caribbean Academy of Fashion and Design, at the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), whose first crop of young designers graduated last year. Eager to mentor emerging talent, she teaches nine weeks a year at the Academy. “It is an excellent programme,” she says.

Her long-term goal for her company is to expand to new markets in the Caribbean and internationally. “It’s all about marketing, and getting it out there,” she muses. And she sees Caribbean Export as a vital part of that process. “I appreciate their professionalism,” she says. “It’s always a pleasure working with them.”

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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC PRO RD S.A.

LabourofLove The Caribbean’s information communications technology (ITC) sector is beginning to show real signs of improvement and expansion. Fueled by a crop of enterprising and innovative entrepreneurs, technology is becoming more integrated into business ventures and new startups.

This increasing passion for new technology and what it can do for regional business ideas is helping to give birth to a modern-day regional entrepreneur. No more evident is this than in the case of Dolores Vicioso. The grand-daughter of a once leading Dominican journalist, it was inevitable that Vicioso would inherit her grand-father’s love for knowledgesharing.

Her introduction into this field took a very hands-on approach.

By participating in many projects for various companies, she was able to learn from talented photographers and writers.

She later studied business at the local UNAPEC University, and decided to continue on to acquire a Masters degree in journalism at Columbia University in New York City.

Born in an era of advanced technology Vicioso was able to take her grand-father’s passion to another level, “It was only second nature to take advantage of new technologies, to disseminate information and respond to world and local information needs,” she says.

Dolores Vicioso, Founder

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She founded the information specialist business dr1.com, an internet portal with a popular news service – a forum for questions and answers, guidebooks and maps on the Dominican Republic.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC PRO RD S.A.

“Lodging is a key area of the travel industry,” says Vicioso.

“Carrying out the database positioned us in the minds of key clients as market leaders. This has attracted new contracts for information products, including the Ministry of Tourism, tourism clusters and private travel companies.”

Customizable products are spinoffs of this project, and Vicioso has also used the information to prepare destination maps for travel destinations in the Dominican Republic, and

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guidebooks for Santo Domingo, La Romana-Bayahibe and Samana.

An appreciation of the role ITC must play in the region’s development is never far from Caribbean Export’s initiatives.

The Agency has taken steps to help companies recognize this fact and make full use of the new technologies. In 2010, Vicioso’s company was awarded a grant of 15,000 Euros to carry out the lodging database project as well as dr1.com’s redesign and software upgrade.

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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC PRO RD S.A.

“The grant from Caribbean Export Development Agency helped the company to produce a directory of internetpromoted lodging facilities -the most comprehensive database on hotels available in the country in any form –and accessible via the internet,” Vicioso explains.

The company was recently awarded a second grant of 28,600 Euros to enable completion of the project,thereby developing the most complete inventory of hotels and rentals via a Lodging Database, and expanding the scope of the project.

These markets are her company’s main markets because their main language is English. So reaching these markets in as many ways as possible is a big focus. Phase two of the Caribbean Export grant therefore will be used to complete a new technological platform for the website that will link all products for global viewing via mobile, tablet, and web.

Not one to settle, Vicioso is always pushing the boundaries and in 2010 the company began producing a guidebook in Italian; in 2011 they introduced a guidebook in Spanish; and in 2012 was able to produce their first guidebook in French and new guidebooks in English-Spanish.

In 2013 the company is hoping to produce their first German guidebook. “Working in different languages has expanded the reach of our products,” Vicioso says.

Growth is top priority for Vicioso, and to achieve this she is planning on setting up a base for product distribution in the different destinations, taking advantage of strategic alliances.

“We need to continue to develop our sales team to market the products that we are producing and take advantage of the platforms that we are creating,” she says.“We need to also continue developing products by moving into more audiovisual products.”

This will be made available in print form later on this year.

“We intend to expand the database to beyond the original 423-plus properties, to encompass those already promoted on the internet, those that do not yet have an internet presence, plus the growing rental property category,” says Vicioso.

David Gomez, Caribbean Export’s manager of Trade and Export Development, contends, “This kind of ‘big data’ driven business who embrace technology to empower customers is really a step in the right direction. It is no different to us at the Agency recognizing, that in order for us to better help these companies, we need to give them access to more data.”

Gomez believes that with the development of Caribbean Export’s new market intelligence system, companies like dr1.com and others will be able to make far more informed decisions about their expansion and growth.

For Vicioso expansion means the travel and export markets of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

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Vicioso explains that the new Caribbean Export grant will enable the company to comb the leading travel destinations, providing the company with an expanded level of inside information on these destinations that will be used for other travel products.

“We would like to stress that the Direct Assistance Grant Scheme served as a catalyst to compile and present this information,” she says. “The main advantage was that we were able to implement the project in one single initiative, which, if done without, would have delayed the project and reduced its impact. Working with Caribbean Export made it possible to focus and concentrate on getting the project done in the short term.”

GUYANA BRASS ALUMINUM & CAST IRON FOUNDRY LTD

BrassintoGold

The quintessential agricultural economies of the region are beginning to diversify. Many might argue not fast enough.

Whatever the argument is however, the reality remains the same. Signs of a deliberate attempt to embrace new technology and move towards sustainable manufacturing are evident. One company which is certainly embracing the change is The Brass Aluminum & Cast Iron Foundry (BACIF) Limited of Guyana.

After years of helping Guyana conserve foreign exchange, BACIF is now ready to help its country earn it. While most other companies’ mission statement might emphasize customer satisfaction, values and the importance of employees to the enterprise, BACIF’s own mission includes one principle rarely articulated: “To contribute to the national economy by manufacturing items usually imported, thus saving foreign exchange.”

The company’s emphasis on local manufacturing, rather than the importation of foreign goods, together with the saving of scarce foreign exchange, reflects concerns that have occupied not only the people of Guyana, but perhaps all governments, many economists and countless citizens of the post-independence island-states of the Caribbean, as they seek sustained development with limited resources.

The small Foundry that later became Brass Aluminium & Cast Iron Foundry Limited was founded by Claude L. Geddes in 1959 and was incorporated as a company in 1982. The company’s growth and incorporation coincided with the increased volumes of work undertaken, improvements in product quality, together with increasingly more complex jobs that were being demanded by the chief industrial companies in Guyana.

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Peter Pompey, General Manager

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GUYANA BRASS ALUMINUM & CAST IRON FOUNDRY LTD

From a four-man machine shop doing business in Guyana, Brass Aluminium & Cast Iron Limited has evolved into a 72person operation, all of whom are full-time employees. These include pattern makers, foundry men, molders, core makers and machinists.

In essence, BACIF is a manufacturing operation that calls for highly skilled staff. Maintianing skilled staff requires an ongoing commitment to training, according to Peter Pompey, the company’s general manager for the past 13 years.

“Continuous training is done at all levels of our company,” he says.

Pompey is himself a trained foundry technologist, and has received extensive training in Jamaica, the United Kingdom and Poland in smelting and machining bronze, aluminium and cast iron metals. He has also been educated in operations management.

BACIF approached the Caribbean Export Development Agency in mid-2012 and received funding to assist with the development of important activities needed to increase exports and grow business.

Currently, the company supplies engineering spares and products to the major industrial sectors and essential services

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of Guyana. These include the Guyana Sugar Company, Guyana Water Incorporated, Guyana Power & Light and BOSAI Minerals.

BACIF has also entered the major CARICOM markets of Barbados, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Trinidad & Tobago. The funding that the company has received will help it to deepen, as well as widen, that market penetration, with a view to becoming a major player in those markets.

To these ends, the company is funneling the grant from Caribbean Export towards market research/intelligence via missions to Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Suriname. Increased marketing and promotion activities, including a company website, updated brochures and the production of a promotional DVD are also scheduled. The company intends to use part of its Caribbean Export funding to pursue the highest levels of quality management, leading to ISO certification and the Lean 6 Sigma System, which will increase productivity and reduce costs.

Clearly, BACIF is gearing up. Pompey envisions “endless possibilities” for the business because new sectors in manufacturing will emerge.

GUYANA BRASS ALUMINUM & CAST IRON FOUNDRY LTD

“There is massive expansion taking place in the mining sector in Guyana in the areas of gold, bauxite, manganese and other minerals,” he says.

Pompey also sees the opportunities in a growing construction sector, ongoing petroleum exploration, and the potential possibility of hydroelectric power coming on stream in another few years.

BACIF recognizes that its competitors are not only the small casting shops in Guyana and the Caribbean, but foundries as far off as India and even China. As such, even as it employs the funds from Caribbean Export in pursuit of increased productivity and internationally recognized quality, the company has diversified its manufactured offerings.

Along with its engineering spares and components and castings, BACIF has begun to manufacture stove burner

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lids, stairway pieces and decorative fences, security grilles, letterings and signs for businesses, different types and sizes of gear shoes, connecting rods, baffle bearers, brake drums and a host of other made-to-order jobs.

In 1987 the company received the Presidential Award for Import Substitution as well as the Presidential Award to the Private Sector. In 2008 it was presented with the GMSA President’s Award “in recognition of the company’s penetration into the Caribbean market with the production and supply of pumps, mill bearings and other spares especially for industry.”

The four-man business that began as a dream, with equipment that comprised a single250-poundcrucible, that produced only aluminum pulleys and cooking utensils for the local market, has come a long way. It is clearly determined to go even further.

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SACHA COSMETICS

Make WomenMore Beautiful

Manufacturing is not dead in the Caribbean, neither is the willingness to see it thrive. Even though it can be a costly exercise, manufacturing in the region has been able to celebrate noted success, but most involved in the sector would readily argue much more still needs to be done. Doing more however, is a combination of astute management and leading innovation to bring down costs and develop competitive and well branded products.

One manufacturing success story is certainly that of Sasha Cosmetics of Trinidad and Tobago. It’s founder, Kama Maharaj vividly remembers the beginning of their manufacturing story starting with his mother. She ran the biggest hair-dressing school in the Caribbean, training more than 10,000 students over the years. “She was the grande dame of beauty in San Fernando,” he says.

Young Kama, hanging around his mother’s salon, was fascinated at the changes she wrought, her customers leaving the salon not only looking good, but “puffed up” with pride in their appearance. “It’s not how you make people look: it’s how you make them feel,” his mother would say, as she applied a little lagniappe of makeup after a hairdo.

It was a credo that would stand Maharaj in good stead when, years later, he founded Sacha Cosmetics. He fell into the

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job more or less by accident. Having studied economics at New York University, he was back in Trinidad and Tobago teaching Maths, when an American company that his mother did business with decided to close up shop. Ever the businesswoman, she suggested he should take it over.

At first, he balked; what, after all, did he know about cosmetics? His mother told him, simply: “Your job is to make women more beautiful.” “That made sense to me,” says Maharaj; and the rest is history.

Sacha launched with a series of bright makeup colours, but Maharaj was obsessed with the deeper mystery of foundation makeup. He had noticed even in his mother’s salon that women wearing foundation always looked as if they were wearing a mask.

“Foundation never matched their skin,” he recalls. Invented for Caucasian women, the tones were all wrong on women with what he has since dubbed “exotic skin” – women of colour, Latinas, Asians. He decided it was a problem worth solving; after all, the secret to success in business is to find an unrecognized need and fill it. And the journey to manufacturing begun.

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SACHA COSMETICS

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SACHA COSMETICS

With his brother Utam, who held a doctorate in chemistry, research got underway to develop a foundation for exotic skin. “It took us about 15 years to get it right,” says Maharaj; “but we did it.” When Sacha’s Second Skin foundation first appeared on the market, there was shock: It looked like mud. Retailers were horrified when Maharaj withdrew all his previous, popular skin products from the shelves, leaving them with no option but to carry the new foundation.

It was a risky move, but it worked. Today, Sacha Cosmetics, with its 14 different shades of foundation, is a leader in its

Tobago, Barbados and Guyana markets, and sales remained steady.

In 2012, Sacha Cosmetics received a Euro15,000 grant from Caribbean Export, to design and purchase display tester units for their products, to be installed in different parts of the Caribbean. The units, acrylic makeup holders on an inclined plane, to be placed atop store counters, would allow customers to test the products without needing the help of a sales assistant. “In Trinidad and Tobago we have point of sale people,” Utam Maharaj explains; “but in smaller stores or rural areas, that is not always the case.”

The cases have been an unqualified success, he says.

“Everywhere we sent one to, we were asked for more.”

Encouraged, the company applied and has been approved for a second grant, for Euro30,000, to create entire wall-units, which they hope to have in the stores by April, 2013. Smaller stores will get the small tester cases; larger outlets will be assigned the wall units. “Experience shows these things have an impact on sales, but they have to be in the right store,” Utam Maharaj says.

field. “No-one in the world can match exotic skin as well as we do,” boasts Maharaj. “That’s all we’ve been doing for 33 years.”

In 1999, when the Miss Universe pageant was held in Trinidad and Tobago, Sacha Cosmetics won the bid to be the official makeup supplier. “We decided to test our foundation on the skins of the world,” Maharaj says. Everyone loved it. They repeated their triumph the following year at Miss USA: “We went up there and blew them away.”

While foundation crème is its signature product, Sacha also makes eye shadow, blush, lipstick and lip gloss. All their makeup, says Maharaj, has “staying power”, formulated to withstand tropical temperatures and vigorous activity.

With the exception of eye pencils, all of Sacha’s cosmetics are manufactured in Trinidad; from a staff of five, 33 years ago, the company now has 130 workers on payroll. They rode out the recent recession by “staying internally focused,” says CEO, Dr. Utam Maharaj, Kama’s brother. The business concentrated on solidifying its position in the Trinidad and

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Sasha Cosmetics’ innovation in its field also saw it securing a place as a finalist in the Caribbean Export’s Break Point initiative – developed to expose companies to the EU market and put them before prospective investors and distributors.

Commenting on their Break Point experience Utam Maharaj says, “It pushed us to spend valuable time to prepare material for promoting our line in a more focused manner.”

Finalist in the Break Point initiative were taken to London and had to make their case before a panel of investors and distributors. Utam hopes that the agency can continue its efforts in facilitating more introductions to investors for businesses like Sasha Cosmetics who have a track record in the region.

Despite their obvious track record of business success, Kama Maharaj has no hesitation in justifying Sacha’s grant applications. “We are competing with companies bigger than Trinidad and Tobago,” he points out. “There’s no way we can go out there and compete with their displays. So we appreciate whatever grants we can get. It’s an excellent programme.”

BARBADOS BANKS HOLDINGS

BlueSkies-GoldenBrew Ask the manager of Competitiveness and Innovation at Caribbean Export, Chris McNair what is the Agency’s main thrust and he will readily say to you, “To help build world-class brands!” Of course one can argue with a region who’s storied past is a kaleidoscope of visceral experiences and unique advantages, there is no reason why with the appropriate support and commitment this cannot be achieved.

Certainly one company on the small island of Barbados is proving this to be true. Banks (B’dos) Breweries Ltd. has built a reputation for itself as the home of the international award winning lager: Banks Beer. Revered by visitors to the island for its unique taste and body, the beer has assumed the title of: “The Beer of Barbados” Building such a strong brand is no easy undertaking and not to mention the associated costs. Today the beer is brewed in a spanking new plant, currently the most technologically advanced brewery in the western hemisphere. The brewery’s fully automated; high-speed packaging centre can process 10,000 cases of Banks premium lager a day. There is a canning line as well as a bottling line to match preferences in international markets.

Ray Chee-A-Tow, Chief Commercial Officer

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Though making its home on an island measuring only 166 square miles, Banks (B’dos) Breweries’ vision far outstrips its geographical location. Standing in their “Brewseum” with its floor-to-ceiling windows exposing views of the ocean and the horizon beyond, Ray Chee-A-Tow, Chief Commercial Officer of parent company, Banks Holding Limited, offers a peak into their vision. As he explains that over the years hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of tourists have consumed Banks beer during enjoyable and memorable holidays in

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BARBADOS BANKS HOLDINGS

Barbados. He contends that the challenge now is for the company to ensure that its premium lager is embedded in those memories.

“I want people to say that Barbados is a beautiful country, with beautiful people, and a great beer,” he says. “And of course I want them to be able to buy that beer at home.”

Banks is the only brewery in Barbados and has been making internationally award-winning beer on the island since 1961.

Since it also enjoys a 75% share of the local market for beer, it can truthfully claim to be “the beer of Barbados”.

Chee-A-Tow, however, wants more than just local market dominance for the brand. He is determined to position Banks as the international beer of Barbados. And he plans to do this not only by making it internationally accessible, but also by leveraging the island’s scenic beauty and its reputation as a top holiday destination.

This type of vision is almost in lock step with the views of Caribbean Export. Their ardent commitment to the development of globally competitive brands is grounded in the belief that the region has something that is competitively unique “our culture, our experiences and or history make for solid foundations on which to lay the building blocks for globally successful brands,” contends Chris McNair. “By investing in building strong brands we will begin to develop products and systems capable of holding critical niches in export markets.”

For Banks, export markets are not at all a new concept now being embraced. Six years ago, based on positive market research, the company began an export drive into Canada and targeted cities in the USA such as New York, Miami, Atlanta and New Jersey.

Chee-A-Tow describes these targeted markets as ‘prime gateways’ to the huge US market, and says sales were doing very well until the financial crisis hit the US. “In the four months before the Wall Street crash we shipped 30,000 cases to the US,” he says.

As a result of the subsequent recession, the brewery has taken a hit on sales volumes in the US, but not on price. “We have not priced downwards,” says Chee-A-Tow. “We are considered to be a premium import in these markets, and that is where we intend to stay.”

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BARBADOS BANKS HOLDINGS

But penetrating those international markets isn’t easy: most of them are dominated by big brands with deep pockets. It takes major financing and staying power, because the returns on investment from exports can take a while.

Every dollar helps, which is why Banks is grateful for the funding it has received through two grants from the Caribbean Export Development Agency.

Chee-A-Tow will access one of these to help finance the marketing campaign designed for the British and European markets. At the heart of the campaign’s ‘look’ are images of real places in Barbados and a tag line that describes Banks beer as “Brewed under sunshine and blue skies”.

But brewing under sunshine and blue skies, and in one of the world’s most desirable tourism destinations brings with it responsibilities to help maintain the environment.

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Banks Breweries has embraced these responsibilities. The highly automated plant vents none of the ‘cooking odours’ often associated with brewing and recycles its waste and water. It saves on energy normally used to heat huge volumes of water by recycling steam and using that instead.

Helping Banks to be such an environmentally conscious manufacturer, as well as become more cost competitive, is what the second Caribbean Export Grant is all about, says brewery manager, Akash Ragbir, “We will use it to supplement some of the costs the brewery faces in implementing its water recovery and re-use system,” he says. “This system collects waste water from production, as well as rain water, and reuses it in what we call our ‘wash-down’ processes.

This reduces our demand on the island’s water supply and the cost associated with that.”

Building a world-class brand right in the tiny Caribbean island of Barbados is clear testament that greatness can be brewed under sunshine and blue skies. A step towards strengthening ‘Brand Caribbean’.

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SMAKS

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SMAKS

ARoyalSip?

If ever there was a case study of how the storied past of the Caribbean region is able to contribute to building blocks of successful brand building, then SMAKS is it.

The Trinidad and Tobago based company whose tea products have successfully managed to harness the appeal and mystique of the Caribbean and embody its essence, history and culture has already received the ‘seal’ of recognition.

When the Queen of England writes to thank you for your tea, you know you’re on to something good.

Not that the brand’s creator, Kiran Akal ever had any doubts.

His foray into the luxury tea market has been driven from the start by personal enthusiasm, a passionate love of the beverage, and a conviction that he has something new and exciting to offer to tea-lovers everywhere – including Buckingham Palace! In a world where so many products go for the lowest common denominator, his company, SMAKS Luxury Group (Bespoke Tea), takes a “quality over quantity” approach. “Yes, we are more expensive, but we are not concerned with mass production,” he declares. “Teas are really a craft, not an industry.”

Kiran Akal, Founder & Creator

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Akal puts his money where his mouth is: he drinks about 14 cups of tea a day, “from the time I get up, to when I go to bed.” The love affair started when he was 10, and blossomed when he went to university in London and discovered the world of fine, loose-leaf teas. It served him in good stead many years later, when he was brainstorming with his sister about a way to re-brand his mother’s 31-year-old business: the original SMAKS, a store in Trinidad and Tobago that sold luxury goods, including fine crystal and porcelain. “My sister suggested I should sell tea, because I drank so much of it,” he recalls. It was a no-brainer.

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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SMAKS

After lengthy deliberation, it was decided to keep the somewhat mysterious company name, which is actually an anagram for all the members of the family. The uniqueness of the name “has turned out to be hugely successful for us,” he says. If nothing else, it creates curiosity – always useful for generating business.

Akal’s fascination with tea is about more than just taste; he sees it as a cultural statement. SMAKS produces unique blends of tea, some of which are specifically designed to reflect the storied history and flavours of the Caribbean.

Hence the names of his blends: Trinidad Breakfast, Tobago Afternoon, Barbados Silver, and Antillean Green.

“We look at the islands for inspiration and we try to tell a story in every tea that we make,” he says. And what stories history has bestowed on the Caribbean! A “collision of cultures” converging on the islands from every corner of the world; the tea-producers and the tea-drinkers meeting here in the colonial triangle of trade.

As the Caribbean “We can make a tea unique from the rest of the world,” Akal notes; one that can stand shoulder-toshoulder with renowned companies like Fortnum and Mason, and Mariage Frères. “We have these super-desirable products in the West Indies – Trinitarios cocoa, tropical lemon grass, orange peel, anis, hibiscus, nutmeg, sorrel … These things are available in other countries, but we have the best; it’s a question of terroir.”

Then he poses the crucial question: “If we have all these things, why aren’t we making use of what all these people came here for? We have to take control of our commodities and market them as a luxury product.”

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Helping companies take control of the rich cultural heritage of the region and the venerable status it holds in the minds of a curious international audience is what Caribbean Export is helping companies like SMAKS harness and exploit. “We have a rich culture that can easily be representative of the rest of the world but is amazingly infused with or historic past.

Why would we not want to use this to our advantage? We must if we are going to build unique and globally competitive brands.” says Caribbean Export’s Executive Director, Pamela Coke-Hamilton.

Akal has done just that; and it seems to be working. SMAKS bespoke teas started in 2011 with a TT$70,000 overdraft and 10 kilos of tea; two years later, the company orders about 200 kilos of tea leaves a month from India and China and sells the final product in five countries, including the U.S. The leaves and specialty ingredients from the West Indies are blended in England by a master blender, and then sent to the Caribbean to be packaged for export. The teas – currently seven different blends - are sold loose-leaf, or in Japanese fuso-bags, made of a special fabric. They are gaining popularity in luxury hotels and shops with discerning clienteles.

In July 2012, the company won an ‘Ideas to Innovation’ grant from the Trinidad & Tobago government; and in December received approval for a 30,000 Euro grant from the Caribbean Export. It was not SMAKS’ first interaction with the organisation: the company was involved in TIC 2011, Design Caribbean 2011, and made its impact in the UK market through the agency’s ‘Break Point’ initiative-- a new realty television series developed by Caribbean Export to assist companies with export potential.

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO SMAKS

Helping the company to further strengthen its brand, Caribbean Export continued its engagement with SMAKS through its grants programme. The money received is earmarked for developing the company’s branding and packaging; creating an e-commerce website; protecting its trademark and copyright; and creating an inventory management system to accommodate SMAKS’ phenomenal growth. “This grant will allow me to travel to different markets, and manage my business better because of implementation systems,” Akal explains. “It helps us considerably, and we intend to apply for another grant, to help grow this company into a major luxury brand in the next 24 months.”

His optimism appears justified. The appreciation of fine tea has exploded in recent years across non-traditional markets like North America; and Akal points out, “Tea is where wine was in the 1980s, people have discovered it.” The spread of e-commerce means that “the market is now the world”; former barriers to trade are falling fast.

Trade barriers are falling and opportunities are opening up.

One major opportunity is the almost four-year old Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) signed between CARICOM and the European Union. Caribbean Export has set its sights on realizing the advantages present in this agreement and through its Break Point creation was able to show SMAKS and other companies some openings.

In addition, SMAKS continues to innovate; it has recently produced an exciting new blend in collaboration with Angostura Bitters. Produced under strict supervision and deepest secrecy (necessary to protect Angostura’s notoriously secret recipe), Akal confesses that “We don’t know what’s in it. What we have created is a lovely tea—a tea digestif.” The company has also – again in collaboration with Angostura – developed a product not available anywhere else in the world: a chai rum, scheduled to be launched in 2013.

Akal lauds Caribbean Export for its efforts to boost local exports, “This is an enormous amount of help that is being given to people; it’s a high privilege to have that kind of support.” He believes it’s time for entrepreneurs to “stop asking what Caribbean Export can do for you, and start asking, how can I use Caribbean Export to achieve my goals.”

Clearly, he’s following his own advice.

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BARBADOS CARIBBEAN CONSULTANT SERVICES

HarnessingtheHeat In Barbados, Caribbean Consultants Limited(CCL) sets out to capture valuable solar energy from sun-cooked parking lots.

In the Caribbean, heat from the mid-day sun turns uncovered parking lots into giant skillets: you could fry an egg on these asphalt-covered expanses.

Suppose you could cover them with structures that would both provide shade for vehicles and transform that heat into electrical energy? And what if these same structures could be used as charging stations for electric cars? Caribbean Consultants Limited (CCL), a Barbadian company, is undertaking a pilot project to put it to the test.

With a history in structural engineering and the construction of commercial buildings, CCL is a provider of commercial real estate space in Barbados.

Wildey Business Park, its flagship complex of five office buildings on the outskirts of Bridgetown, is home to law firms, international businesses and also the U.S, Embassy.

And these businesses need lots of parking spaces – over 200 spots.

Later this year, in a pilot project supported by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export), CCL will install a “solar carport”by covering parking spaces and placing solar panels on the structure’s roof. These are anticipated to serve as the electric vehicle charging station.

Simon Richards, Environmental Consultant

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“Obviously, we will have to evaluate its effectiveness, and we are cautious about making any grand predictions,” says Simon Richards, Environmental Consultant with CCL who is

BARBADOS CARIBBEAN CONSULTANT SERVICES

overseeing the pilot project. “But at the same time we are very excited because of what this could mean for us – and for Barbados – if the pilot project proves itself,” Richards added.

“Not only will we be creating additional value for our tenants, we will also be participating in the green economy which is something that the Barbados Government very much supports,” says Richards.

CCL also has solid connections in some of the other islands, so the opportunity to expand regionally exists. However, Richards is quick to point out that success in Barbados must come before CCL looks to transfer the technology elsewhere.

In addition, he acknowledges that the company has no patent on the technology – indeed, it is acquiring it from suppliers in Europe – so other companies can get in the act as well.

“If the pilot project proves successful, naturally we hope we will have a head-start,” he says. “But is it available to anyone.”

Richards acknowledges that the structure’s function as an electrical vehicle charging station is one that may raise the eyebrows of sceptics. After all, what is its value when there are not yet any pure electric cars in Barbados to charge?

“You might say it is a chicken or egg situation: which must come first, the car or the station,” he says.

Put another way, if CCL builds it, will they come? Richards certainly hopes so, but to help the process along CCL is planning to bring in the first completely electric car to demonstrate that such vehicles – and the charging stations needed to sustain them – can work in Barbados.

Richards acknowledges that a grant by Caribbean Export, which will help to pay for technology, installation and some marketing, has made all the difference.

“The funds provided by Caribbean Export have given us an opportunity to try something innovative, while reducing the risk of CCL having to undertake the entire cost on its own” he says.

“We are going to work hard to prove that this concept can work, and that the payback will not be as long as some might think.”

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ANTIGUA & BARBUDA RUTH’S PLACE

ThePersonalTouch The Caribbean tourism product is arguably one of the most sought after experiences internationally. It is also, for the many smaller operators, a very difficult and costly product to upgrade and maintain. So competing means finding realistic solutions to remain attractive. For Ruth’s Place in Antigua this meant not only defining a product offering that gave her a competitive advantage but doing so while identifying more sustainable ways of operating and the investment for achieving this was made possible through Caribbean Export’s grants programme.

Located in the north of Antigua, in Hodges Bay, close to the Medical School, Ruth’s Place is a charming property which boasts 12 one-bedroom, four two-bedroom and eight studio apartments. What began as an idea many years ago started to take shape in 2005, when the Government of Antigua and Barbuda gave concessions to local persons to build facilities to host the Cricket World Cup, Ruth Spencer responded to the call and took the plunge into building Ruth’s Place.

The guests to Ruth’s place are lured by the warmth and hospitality of the owner, as well as by the many free and personalized services offered. For instance, Ruth’s Place offers complimentary airport transfers and free Sunday lunches to guests.

Ruth Spencer, Owner

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A typical Sunday meal can consist of baked barbecue chicken, macaroni cheese, mixed vegetables, lentil rice, green salad, and fruit punch. In this activity Ruth is ably supported by her colleague, Rosa, who operates a nearby eating establishment.

At present, Ruth’s Place employs three people on a part time basis, chiefly for maintenance purposes.

ANTIGUA & BARBUDA RUTH’S PLACE

It was through the Antigua & Barbuda Investment Authority, that Spencer learnt about the Caribbean Export Development Agency. andin 2012 approached Caribbean Export with two proposals. Under the Direct Assistance Grant Scheme’s Accelerated Procedure, Ruth’s Place gained a grant that helped to finance a generator and a solar water heater. The second grant, awarded under the Regular Procedures, was approved to finance a solar energy system.

In recalling her experience with Caribbean Export Ruth says, “…I would have lost my [hotel guests] -Foreign medical students and [tourists], if I did not have the solar heater to heat the water and more importantly the generator. I feel powerful when I can turn my switch on and power is generated and light comes on. The generator is so powerful that not only is the new building supplied with standby power, but my home next door which also has a few units, is also connected to the standby power supply.” She continued, “I have shared my business development and growth as a result of Caribbean Export with many other small business owners and they too want to submit proposals next time around.”

Since partnering with the Caribbean Export Development Agency, Spencer has been able to take her business green by using renewable energy. Once all of the solar panels are installed on the roof of the property, electricity expenses are expected to decline from a monthly high of EC $8,000.00 to negligible sums, maybe even $0.

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Since receiving the grants, Spencer has also begun to expand by adding six more units to the property, as she has seen an increase in occupancy by as much as 30%. And she expects the growth to continue.

Despite the downturn in the world’s economy, Spencer remains optimistic about visitors to Ruth’s Place. Most of her guests are from Europe: the United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Spain, and even though they too feel the pinch of the recession, they seek out Ruth’s Place for her extras.

So intent is she on keeping her guests, many of whom are repeat visitors that Spencer takes her guests on country tours of Antigua for free. It’s all part of the all-inclusive, make-the guests-happy nature that is so much a part of Ruth’s Place.

For the future, Spencer envisages renovation and expansion of facilities to include other services, such as a restaurant, and even additional transport for more island tours.

Also in the cards is the development of a website for Ruth’s Place and what Spencer calls “a higher level of marketing.”

To this end, she has begun to advertise her business on air and hopes to expand her marketing reach by doing promotional tours, as well as seeking specialized marketing and IT training.

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ANTIGUA & BARBUDA RUTH’S PLACE

Helping companies like Ruth’s Place and others is one of the fundamental drivers for Caribbean Export’s focus on the development of their market intelligence system and the much-touted Helix Model. According to Chris McNair, Manager of Competitiveness and Innovation at the agency, “We have got to be able to deliver the right kind of assistance and make the impact in areas of the enterprises which can produce the best results. We cannot speak to helping develop world-class brands as an agency and not have world-class support mechanisms to drive it.” The Caribbean Export’s Helix Model is a system developed by the agency to deliver targeted interventions based on critical assessment of high performance areas found in successful global brands.

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DOMINICA DISCOVER DOMINICA AUTHORITY

ThePowerof PulsatingRhythm Dominica’s tourism authority intends to make the Nature Island renowned for its culture as well Rich with its diverse cultural heritage and a microcosm of the rest of the world in its representation of a global cultural mix, provides the Caribbean with significant advantages when it comes to the creative industries. Some indeed argue that this is the Caribbean’s greatest and strongest competitive advantage.

The Discover Dominica Authority’s (DDA) CEO, Colin Piper might very well subscribe to this argument. He believes that events exploiting Dominica’s rich creole culture have great potential to bring long-stay visitors to Dominica, just as nature- and adventure-linked experiences do. This is why the DDA is taking steps to raise the international profile of Dominica’s World Creole Music Festival, held during the last week of October coinciding with the island’s independence celebration.

Colin Piper, CEO

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The island of Dominica for many however, is one which uniquely stands out among its other Caribbean counterparts and rightfully so. It bills itself as the Nature Island, and it’s hard to challenge this claim. Much of its mountainous 290 square miles is still covered by some of the last true remaining oceanic rainforests in the world. The island can boast of having 365 rivers, waterfalls galore, and 300 miles of hiking trails.

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DOMINICA DISCOVER DOMINICA AUTHORITY

Dominica is also rated as one of the world’s top 10 dive sites, and if you want to watch whales in the Caribbean this is this place to do it.

You get the picture: it’s more about nature and adventure than pulsating rhythms of intoxicating creole vibes.

But the Discover Dominica Authority (DDA), the island’s official tourism promotion body, is determined that the country’s third greatest asset should get equal billing with its natural and adventurous attractions. That asset is its deeply embedded creole culture, a result of the island’s French past.

As Piper explains, the Festival has been in existence since 1997. It was created both to attract visitors during a traditionally slow month and provide an outlet for the traditional and contemporary creativity of Dominicans. “It allows the French side of us to come out,” he says.

It is that outpouring of creative expression mixed with the region’s unique history that continues to fuel the prospects for the Creative Industries. Caribbean Export Development Agency recognizes the significance of this sector and has dedicated its attention to harnessing those prospects through special interventions to deliver results. The agency continues to make strides in reaching out to industry practitioners to bring more structure and value to the sector. Taking artistes to world class events like MIDEM and WOMEX to provide the type of exposure that can only lead to growth opportunities.

Serving as a clear indication of the industry’s potential, Dominica’s annual Festival has become a success over the years, attracting approximately 3,000 visitors to the island.

Indeed, it has transformed the month of October, generally a slow period for most islands in the Caribbean, into a peak time of tourism activity for Dominica.

“Most of the visitors come for the Festival’s three-day weekend, but some will come for a week or longer,” says Piper. “This means they have an opportunity to see some of Dominica’s other attractions as well, and that is what we are hoping for.”

The DDA promotes the World Creole Music Festival as ‘Three days of pulsating rhythm’. The music is different, it lasts all night, and there is lots of time to get together and socialize. Taken all together, this is no doubt why the Festival has become what Piper calls the island’s “marquis event”, especially for the under-30 generation.

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There is a large contingent that comes from the nearby French islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, whose populations share the synergy of creole language and music and are familiar with the musicians and performers who headline the Festival.

The music featured at the Festival includes local genres such as cadence and buyon, compa out of Haiti, andzouk, which is popular in the French islands; as well there is soukous from the Ivory Coast and Cameroon in West Africa. The groups performing these musical styles come from nearby islands, but also from as far away as Miami, New York City and Paris.

But the English and Spanish elements of the Caribbean are represented as well, emphasizes Piper. “We also have reggae from Jamaica, soca from Trinidad and Barbados, and Latin styles from Cuba or Latin America,” he says.

Over the years, the World Creole Music Festival has built up a loyal following in the English- and French- speaking Caribbean. But the DDA wants to extend the reach and reputation of both the Festival and the destination itself.

“We know the Festival is now a fixture on the entertainment calendar in the Caribbean, but we want to look beyond and really take it to the world,” Piper says. “In the future, we plan to bring in more and more international groups to help us do this – to brand the event as a truly international one.”

The challenge, of course, is getting the word out – to the right people using the most effective means. The DDA plans to use funds provided by the Caribbean Export Development Agency through its Direct Assistance Grant Scheme, a programme that is financed by the European Union.

Specifically, the DDA is producing a DVD of the acts and performers filmed and recorded during the last Festival.

These will be distributed to promote the 2013 festival, explains Piper.

“We plan to target trade shows, as well as reach out to the Dominican diaspora overseas because word-of-mouth can be such a powerful endorsement for this type of event,” he says. “And of course we are going to target radio and TV stations. When stations play this music, they can tell listeners that it comes from Dominica’s World Creole Music Festival.”

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Overview ofCaribbeanExport Initiatives Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) is a regional export development and trade and investment promotion organisation of the Forum of Caribbean States (CARIFORUM) currently executing the Regional Private Sector Programme (RPSDP) funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF). Caribbean Export’s mission to increase the competitiveness of the Caribbean countries by providing export development and investment promotion services through effective programme execution and strategic partnerships.

Over the last two years, Caribbean Export carried out numerous work programme activities specifically designed to enhance the competitiveness of firms from CARIFORUM countries through investment, management and product development, market expansion and export diversification.

Additionally we have strengthened the institutional capacity of public and private sector Business Support Organisations (BSOs) particularly sector associations, trade promotions agencies and investment promotions agencies through some of these activities.

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Some of our key initiatives include the facilitation of the Direct Assistance Grants Scheme (DAGS), Grant Proposal Writing, Export Marketing and ProNet Training. Our beneficiaries have also participated in regional trade shows such as the Trade and Investment Convention (TIC), Dominicana Moda and Design Caribbean; and international missions to Europe in the form of Study Tours to Paris, Berlin and London, Break Point and London Engage.

With each mission, tradeshow or event Caribbean Export aims to optimise the export potential regional entrepeneurs as well as highlight the investment potential of the Caribbean as we seek to take Caribbean Excellence to the world!

KeyCaribbeanExport Personnel Back row, left to right] David Gomez Manager Trade and Export Development Pamela Coke Hamilton Executive Director Christopher McNair Manager Competitiveness and Innovation [Front Row, left to right] Anthony Bradshaw Chief Operations Officer Escipion Oliveira Deputy Executive Director

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Company Name

Country

13 Degrees North Productions

Barbados

3D Veterinary Services

Barbados

A.C.E Agro Matrix

Barbados

A & M Enterprises

Barbados

A La Carte Marketing Services

Trinidad & Tobago

A Mazaharally & Sons

Guyana

A Taste of the Caribbean Ltd

Jamaica

Abacus Inc

Dominica

Abordage SRL

Dominican Republic

Abrahams & Cole Coffee Company Limited

Jamaica

Accela Marketing

St Lucia

ACLA Works Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Aerogas Processors Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Aegis Business Solutions

Trinidad & Tobago

Agroindustrial La Esperanza (AGROESSA)

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Dominican Republic

DAGS Accelerated

CaribbeanExport Beneficiaries l

l

73

l l

l

l

l

l

73

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES A - AG

l

l

l l

l l

l l

l l

l

l

Country

AIC Securities Ltd

Barbados

aJeanté

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Antigua and Barbuda

Albrosco Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Amazon Authentic

Guyana

Ambar Nacional

Dominican Republic

Amel's Collection of Fashion

Antigua & Barbuda

Amitabha Joyeria

Dominican Republic

Amonle Studio Workshop

Barbados

Amya Designs

Antigua & Barbuda

Ansa McAl Enterprises Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Ansa Polymer Ltd

Barbados

Antigua & Barbuda Coalition of Service Industries

Antigua & Barbuda

Antigua & Barbuda Investment Authority

Antigua & Barbuda

Antigua & Barbuda Employers' Confederation

Antigua & Barbuda

ARIMA

Guyana

Arlene Martin Design

Jamaica

Aroaima Forest & Agricultural Producers

Guyana

Art Fabrik Ltd

Grenada

Artesania Puello Arturo Tappin

Dominican Republic BARBADOS

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ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES AJ - AR

Country

Asociacion Dominicana De Productores De Ron (ADOPRON)

Dominican Republic

Asociacion para el Desarrollo, Inc

Dominican Republic

Associated Brands Ind Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Associated Manufacturers Ltd

Jamaica

Associated Packer Incorporated

Guyana

Atelier Dore

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Suriname

Atlantic Southern Traders Inc

Guyana

Atlantis Seafood

Barbados

Atkins Design

Barbados

AVARK

Barbados

Ayissa Textiles

Barbados

B&D Trawling Ltd

Jamaica

Bahamas Chamber of Commerce

Bahamas

Bahamas Heart/Cancer Centre

Bahamas

Bain Street Group

Guyana

Banks (Barbados) Breweries Ltd

Barbados

Barbados Association of Bailiffs and Debt Collection Agencies

Barbados

Barbados Bottling Company Ltd

Barbados

Barbados Coalition of Service Industries

Barbados

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ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES AS - BA

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Country

Barbados Customs Brokers and Clerks Association

Barbados

Barbados Dairy Industries Ltd

Barbados

Barbados Institute of Management and Productivity

Barbados

Barbados Investment and Development Corporation

Barbados

Baron Foods Limited

St. Lucia

Barrington House Premium Cigars

Jamaica

Bel-Car Export & Import Company

Belize

Belcour Preservers Ltd

Jamaica

BELTRAIDE

Belize

Belizean Society of Composers Authors

Belize

Bellina Jamaica Ltd Belo-Jaean /Belomy Muart/World Music Promotions Belzeb Inc

Jamaica Haiti Grenada

Benedicta S.A. Bermudez Group

Trinidad & Tobago Barbados

BINEL

Suriname

Bio-Tech R&D

Jamaica

Black Hawk Manufacturing Laboratory

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â—?

Dominican Republic

Beverages Caribbean Inc

Bird's Nest Food

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Barbados Jamaica

â—?

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ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES BA - BL

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Blades & Blades Consultancy Services

Country Barbados

Blue Ribbon Manufacturing Limited

Jamaica

Bloxburgh Gourmet Creations Jamaica Ltd

Jamaica

Blue Mountain Coffee Venture Ltd

Jamaica

Blue Waters Productions

Barbados

Bodine Victoria Johnson

Bahamas

Boite a Bijux/Danielle st Lot

Haiti

Bon Accord Estate Ltd

Grenada

Brass Aluminium & Cast Iron Foundry Ltd

Guyana

Brenda's Jewellery & Craft Tienda

Barbados

Browne & Browne Inc

St Vincent & the Grenadines

Bureau of Standards

Antigua & Barbuda

Buzz Apiaries

Jamaica

C&G Star Trading

Jamaica

Callaloo

Grenada

Canco Limited Cantral Marketing Corporation Caracoli

Dominican Republic Jamaica Antigua & Barbuda Haiti

Cardelli Farms Ltd

80

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Barbados

Caanan Honey Limited

Cano Industrial, SRL

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Belize

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81

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81

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES BL - CA

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Carib Glassworks

Trinidad & Tobago

Caribbean Academy

Antigua & Barbuda

Caribbean Agro Producers Corp

Dominica

Caribbean Consultants Ltd

Barbados

Caribbean Copyright Link

Barbados

Caribbean Digital Media Centre

Barbados

Caribbean Downloads/DanceBEAT Records Caribbean Insulation Services Ltd Caribbean Labs & Traders

St. Kitts & Nevis Trinidad & Tobago Dominican Republic

Caribbean LED Lighting

Barbados

Caribbean Liquid Sugar

Dominican Republic

Caribbean Music Group

Trinidad

Caribbean New Media Group Caribbean Office of Cooperative Agriculture

Trinidad & Tobago Grenada

Caribbean Paper Company Ltd

Belize

Caribbean Premier Products Ltd

Belize

Caribbean Treats (2010) Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Carib-World Travel Ltd

Antigua & Barbuda

Carleston Products

Jamaica

Casie Nicely

Jamaica

Cavaliers Sports and Tour Club

Guyana

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DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

â—?

â—?

83 ●

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83

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES CA - CAV

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Country

Cemtile Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Central Food Packers Ltd

Jamaica

Central Navigation Services

Trinidad & Tobago

Cham Com

Antigua & Barbuda

Chamber of Commerce

Bahamas

Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Suriname

Chatak Foods Products Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Chem Clean Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Chemtrax Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Choo Enterprises

Barbados

Christopher Martin

Jamaica

Cinnamon Productions

St Lucia

Citrus Company of Guyana Inc

Guyana

Claudia Edward

St Lucia

Clay Products Ltd

St. Lucia

Clinical Research Management

Barbados

Cluster Del Mango Dominicano (Promango) Coffee Solutions Colthrust PR Limited Contemporary Caribbean Crafts Cooperativa Para el Desarollo de la Cienaga (COOPDECI)

84

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Dominican Republic Jamaica

â—?

Trinidad & Tobago Multiple Dominican Republic

â—?

85

● ● ●

●

●

●

●

●

●

85

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

DAGS Accelerated

COMPANIES CE - CO

●

●

● ●

●

● ●

● ●

●

● ●

●

● ●

● ●

●

●

●

Coral Spring Vinters

Country Barbados

Country House Products

Jamaica

Country Traders Limited

Jamaica

Courtyard Art Studio

St. Lucia

Creations by Cherie

Bahamas

Crimson Dawn Manufacturing Co. Ltd

Jamaica

Crystals Business Solutions CRS Music & Media

Antigua & Barbuda Barbados

Cummin's Leather Establishment

Guyana

D&J Shipping

Guyana

David Andre Collection

Haiti

De La Grenade Industries Ltd

Grenada

Debbie's Closet

Barbados

Delicious Fruits S.A

Haiti

Delta Glass Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Denyse Fashion & Fabric Design Department of Culture

â—?

Guyana St Vincent & the Grenadines

Derrick's Stones Ltd

St. Lucia

Designs by Nadia

St. Lucia

Din Chel Craft and Souvenirs

Dominica

Dinexstep Sandals

Jamaica

86

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

â—?

87 ●

●

● ●

87

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES CO - DI

● ●

● ●

● ●

●

●

● ●

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●

● ●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Country

Discover Dominica Authority

Dominica

Division of Agriculture

Tobago

Division of Trade & Enterprise Development

Tobago

Division of Tourism

Tobago

Doll House Creations

Barbados

Dominica Coalition of Service Industries

Dominica

Dominica Manufacturers Association

Dominica

Domus Inc

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Antigua & Barbuda

Earthly Creations Gift Shop

Grenada

Eastern Caribbean Collective Organisation for Music Rights Inc

St. Lucia

Eco Coleman & Son Forgers Bees

Jamaica

EcoFarms

Jamaica

Ellis & Associates Eminsa (Empresa de Ingenieria, S.A.)

St. Vincent & the Grenadines Dominican Republic

Empire Global Investment

Guyana

Empretec Guyana

Guyana

Event Essentials Eco Design EnviroMed Limited Exclusive Cottons of the Caribbean Inc Fachoy Foods Ltd First Choice Restaurant Inc

88

â—?

Trinidad & Tobago Jamaica Barbados Jamaica Barbados

â—?

89 ●

●

●

●

●

89

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES DI - FI

● ●

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●

● ●

●

● ●

●

●

●

● ●

● ●

Fifth Element Designs Five Star Farms Fondo Cubano De Bienes Culturales Foresight Intl Ventures Forest Products Development & Marketing Council of Guyana Inc Forward Industries Ltd Four Seasons Colonade Free Town Bee Farms Fresh Start Ltd

Country Barbados Trinidad & Tobago Cuba Antigua & Barbuda

Trinidad & Tobago Barbados Jamaica Trinidad & Tobago Grenada

Fruit Joy Manufacturing Company Limited

Jamaica

Fuggles Inc, T/A Petite Anse

Grenada

G.E.T Inc.

â—?

Guyana

Fruit, Flowers and Figures Corp

Full Circle Production

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Trinidad & Tobago Barbados

G.T. Traders

Guyana

Garifuna Heritage Foundation Garmex Apparel Technical Centre Gary Lubin

St. Vincent & the Grenadines Jamaica Haiti

Gawket Technologies Genethics Pharmaceuticals Ltd Glissings Trees Honey

90

Barbados Trinidad & Tobago Jamaica

â—?

91

● ●

●

● ● ●

●

●

●

●

●

●

91

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES FI - GI

● ●

●

●

●

● ● ●

● ●

● ●

Country

GOM Food Industries N.V

Suriname

Goshen Manufacturing & Distributors Ltd

Jamaica

Grenada Board of Tourism

Grenada

Grenada Chamber of Commerce

Grenada

Grenada Coalition of Services Industries

Grenada

Grenada Custom & Export Division

Grenada

Grenada Distillers Ltd

Grenada

Grenada Fountain of Youth Yoga Studio

Grenada

Grenada Mother Earth Enterprises

Grenada

Grenada Society of Architects

Grenada

Guyana Apicultural Society

Guyana

Guyana Arts & Craft Producers Association

Guyana

Guyana Gold Fields

Guyana

Guyana Manufacturing & Services Association

Guyana

Guyana Office for Investment

Guyana

Guyana Small Business Association

Guyana

H. Williams Bookstore Handicraft Development Handmade Treasures Hatt Eaton Designs Headline Entertainment

92

Trinidad & Tobago Bahamas Guyana Guadeloupe Jamaica

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

â—?

93

●

●

● ●

●

●

●

●

●

93

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES GO - HE

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Heather Jones Designs Ltd Heavenly Gifts

Country Trinidad & Tobago Grenada

Herbs in Action/Tropical Entertainment and Promotions

Grenada

Hidden Treasures

Grenada

Higher Calling

Barbados

HIPAC Limited

Barbados

Hive and Honey Bee Enterprise

Jamaica

Home Central

Jamaica

HoneyKist Apiaries Limited

Jamaica

Hot Mama Belize Ltd

Belize

Hotel Alexandrina Inc

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Hugh Pure Mohan Fruit/Vegetable & Fish Export Hylite Services Limited Indra Denys Rudder Info Exchange Ltd

Barbados Guyana Trinidad & Tobago Barbados Jamaica

Instrumentalist

Barbados

Irie Rock

Barbados

Island Life TV

Barbados

Island Network Inc

94

â—?

St Vincent & the Grenadines

Heritage Theatre Co of Grenada

HR Consultancy

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

St Vincent & the Grenadines

â—?

●

95

●

●

●

●

●

95

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES HE - IS

●

●

●

●

● ● ●

●

●

● ●

● ●

●

●

●

●

Country

Iyanolla Pictures

St. Lucia

J-Muzik

Jamaica

J&J Spirits

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Dominican Republic

JP Marshall Associates

Barbados

Jamaica Association of Composers, Authors & Publishers

Jamaica

Jamaica Exporter's Association

Jamaica

Jamaica Business Development Corporation

Jamaica

Jamaica Macaroni Factory Limited

Jamaica

Jamaica Manufacturers Association

Jamaica

Jamaica Sheep Farmers Association

Jamaica

Jamaica Wood Products and Furniture

Jamaica

Jamaica Standard Products Co. Limited

Jamaica

Jamaican Teas Limited (Caribbean Dreams)

Jamaica

Jamaican Yaad Style

Jamaica

Jamrow Trading & Manufacturing Company Ltd

Jamaica

Jerries

Guyana

Jet Express Trinidad Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Jiffy Manufacturing Co. Ltd

Jamaica

Joachim & Associates Ltd

St Vincent & the Grenadines

Jorge Bullosa

Cuba

Jorge Hernandez

Cuba

96

â—?

97

● ●

●

●

●

97

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES IY - JO

● ●

● ●

● ●

●

●

●

● ●

● ●

● ● ●

●

Jorge Luis Medina Castell

Country Cuba

JTW & Associates

Guyana

Juice Power/Water World

Guyana

Julans Closet

Jamaica

Juliet Morgan T/A Shoan's

Jamaica

Justice Institute Guyana Inc.

Guyana

K.C. Confectionery Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Kalinago Barana Aute

Dominica

Kayman Sankar & Co. Ltd

Guyana

Keejai Enterprise

Guyana

Ken Cooper's Collection

Trinidad & Tobago

Kent Farms

Trinidad & Tobago

Kez Entertainment

Antigua & Barbuda

Kirie Bain

Trinidad & Tobago

Kisson Group of Companies

Guyana

Kountry Delight Enterprise Limited

Jamaica

Knights Video Production

Guyana

Knyko Studio

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Antigua & Barbuda

KPB Chartered Accountants

Dominica

Kraftia's Association

Guyana

Kross Kolor Records

Guyana

98

â—?

99

● ●

● ●

●

●

● ●

●

● ●

●

●

ProNET Training

●

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES JO - KR

● ●

● ●

●

● ● ●

●

●

●

●

99

Country

Label House Group Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Langston Roach Ind Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Leather Land International

Guyana

Lee Productions Inc

St Lucia

LeeWind Paints Ltd

Antigua & Barbuda

Lifetime Roofing

Trinidad & Tobago

Lindabelle Creations & Designs Lonsdale/Saatchi & Saatchi Lonestar Supplies Luna Design

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Barbados Trinidad & Tobago Jamaica Barbados

Mac's Bee Enterprise Madero Taller Artesanal

Jamaica Dominican Republic

Majesty International

Guyana

Mangrove Women Producers

Guyana

Marie Sharp Fine Foods Ltd Mariska Designs

Belize Guyana

MarkOff Music Publishing Co

Dominica

Matouk International USA Inc

Trinidad & Tobago

Matties and Company Maturity Music Ltd Maya Bags

Bahamas Trinidad & Tobago Belize

100

â—?

101 ● ● ●

●

●

● ●

● ●

●

● ●

● ●

●

● ● ●

●

●

●

●

101

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES LA - MA

McBride Caribbean Limited

Country Barbados

McIntosh Bedding Company Limited

Jamaica

MCP Farms Limited

Jamaica

Meico Ltd

Jamaica

Meiling Inc.

Trinidad & Tobago

Memorex Enterprise Men's Educational Support Association Merk Imports

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Guyana Barbados Dominican Republic

Metalwear Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Michelle's Confectionary

Grenada

Michelle Henderson

Dominica

Mina Tinera

Haiti

Ministry of Food, Production, Agriculture Ministry of Tourism

Trinidad & Tobago St Vincent & the Grenadines

Ministry of Tourism Industry & Commerce

Guyana

Miracle Hands

Guyana

Moses Essence

Grenada

Mr. Chinn's Honey

Jamaica

Mr. Dale

Barbados

Ms. Brafit Ltd Multigestiopnes Laxis, SRL

102

Trinidad & Tobago Dominican Republic

â—?

●

103 ● ● ●

● ● ●

●

● ●

● ● ●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

103

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES MC - MU

●

●

● ● ●

Country

Multipet Service Station Limited T/A Camil Estate

Jamaica

Music Industry Association of Belize Naipaul's Travel Nanook Enterprises Ltd National Cultural Foundation National Investment Promotions Inc T/A Invest SVG Natmed Ltd

Belize Trinidad & Tobago Jamaica Barbados St. Vincent & the Grenadines St. Lucia

Natural Blends/Troots N' Ice/Culchan Cannon Studio

Trinidad & Tobago

Nature's Finest Bees & Honey

Jamaica

Grenada

Nine One Designs

Barbados

Nut-Med (Noelville)

Grenada

Nyack & Company

Grenada

Onika Best

Barbados Belize

Organisational Soul Ltd

Bahamas

Organised Interiors

Grenada

P & A Ltd

Antigua & Barbuda

P.A. Benjamin Manufacturing Co. Ltd.

104

●

Antigua & Barbuda

Mawasa

Orange Gifts

●

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Natural Oils & Products Limited

National Economic and Social Council

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Jamaica

●

105 ●

●

105

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES MU - P

● ● ●

● ●

●

● ●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

P.A.M. Enterprises Inc. Pallarax Productions Pamela Fox Classics House of Niya Bing Panland Trinidad &Tobago Ltd Park's Lumber Parry W. Bellot & Co Ltd Partner's in Rural Development Pasta Enterprises

Country Barbados Trinidad & Tobago Guyana Trinidad & Tobago Guyana Dominica Guyana St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Patwa Apparel

Jamaica

Pedro Plains Jamaica Jerk

Jamaica

Penny's Creative Cabinet Shop

Grenada

Perishables Jamaica Ltd

Jamaica

Persio Abreu, S.A.

Dominican Republic

PFK Barcellos Narine & Co.

Guyana

Pickapeppa Company Limited

Jamaica

Platform Houtsector Suriname

Suriname

PLS Consulting

Grenada

Point Coco Agricultural Cooperative

Trinidad & Tobago

PR Project Management

Trinidad & Tobago

Print on Demand Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Pro RD S.A.

Dominican Republic

106

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

107

● ●

●

●

●

●

107

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES PA - PR

●

● ●

● ●

● ●

● ●

●

● ●

● ●

● ●

●

●

Professional Services Consulting Ltd Prudential Printers

Country Barbados Trinidad & Tobago

Purity Bakeries

Barbados

Qdesign & Marketing

Barbados

Queenbee Honey Products

Jamaica

Quintex

Guyana

Rafferty Intimates

St. Lucia

Randy Luta Mc-Intosh

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

●

●

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Ras Poultry Farm

Guyana

REA Envirohealth

Barbados

Reggaetawa

Jamaica

Resource Options Limited

Jamaica

●

Reve Limited

Jamaica

●

Richard Gittens & Associates Ricks & Sari Argo Industries Limited

Barbados Guyana

Ridge Farms Enterprises t/a Ridge Farms

Bahamas

●

Rising Honey Enterprise

Jamaica

●

Romeo "Mystic" Nermal

Guyana

Roses Confectionery Roraima Financial Services Rosmacs Herb Garden

108

Barbados Guyana Antigua & Barbuda

109

● ProNET Training

●

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES PR - RO

● ●

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●

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● ●

●

●

●

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●

●

109

Royal Mayan Shrimp Farms Limited Royals Nature Farms & Nursery Rupununi Farm Ruth's Place

Country

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Belize

●

Antigua & Barbuda Guyana Antigua & Barbuda

Ryan Chase - Buggy - "Fully Loaded Band"

Barbados

Rykki de Jude

Barbados

Sacha Cosmetics Limited Saint Lucia Coalition of Service Industries

Trinidad & Tobago Saint Lucia

Salada Foods Jamaica Ltd

Jamaica

Savory Products

Guyana

Seagull/Dutchman Marine Surveys & Services

Antigua & Barbuda

Senoj Creations

Guyana

Seprod Limited

Jamaica

Servicios de Confecciones Peronalizadas, Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada Seven Rivers Herbs & Spices Co

Dominican Republic Jamaica

Seventh Silver Star Inc

Dominica

Shelniel

Barbados

Shiba Investment Ltd T/A Hotel Mocking Bird SINECORP

Jamaica Dominican Republic

Sit Uo Consulting

Barbados

SKARP Distribution Inc

St. Lucia

110

●

●

●

111 ●

●

●

111

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES RO - SK

●

●

● ●

●

● ●

● ●

●

● ●

●

● ● ●

●

●

SMAKS, The West Indies Tea Company Societe Generale de Production Agroindustrielle (SOGEPA) S.A

Country

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Trinidad & Tobago Haiti

Songwriter/Foundation for Copyrights in Suriname (SASUR)

Suriname

Soothing Touch Da Spa

Barbados

Solar Apex

Barbados

Solaris Global Energy Limited

Barbados

Sorena's Winery N.V.

Suriname

Southern Fruits & Food Processors

Jamaica

Southside Distributors Limited

Jamaica

●

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

●

Spencer & Associates Inc Spencer's Apartments

Antigua & Barbuda

Spice Girl Products

Jamaica

Spur Tree Spices Jamaica Limited

Jamaica

●

St. Kitts & Nevis

●

St. Christopher National Trust St George's Welfare Programme

Grenada

St. Lucia Industry and Small Business Association

St Lucia

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Chamber of Industries and Commerce

St Vincent & the Grenadines

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Coalition of Service Industries

St Vincent & the Grenadines

Stained Mehendi Steel Magnate Enterprises Stonetree Records

112

Trinidad & Tobago Grenada Belize

Break Point

● ●

●

113 ●

●

●

●

113

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES SM - ST

●

● ●

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●

● ●

●

●

● ●

● ●

●

●

●

Strategies Caraibes Studio Jay Recording

Country Guadeloupe Trinidad & Tobago

Sue Tru Caribbean Manufacturers & Distributors Limited

Jamaica

Sun Island Jamaica Limited

Jamaica

Suriname Manufacturers Association

Suriname

Susie's Inc

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

Antigua & Barbuda

SVG Association of Music Professionals Sweet Creations Tabra Apiary Culture Enterprise Talma Mill Studios Ltd Tami B Designs TCL Guyana Incorporated

St Vincent & the Grenadines Trinidad & Tobago Jamaica Barbados St. Vincent & the Grenadines

Antigua & Barbuda

Tele C.A.I.N

Trinidad & Tobago

Terneille Alesa

Dominican Republic Bahamas

The Caribbean Coffee House

Trinidad & Tobago

The Copper Artisan

Trinidad & Tobago

The House of Paper Products Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

The Jerk Place & Restaurant Limited

Jamaica

The Master Room Studios

114

●

Guyana

Technology and Business Specialist Limited

Tereke Producciones

●

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

●

●

115 ● ●

●

●

115

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES ST - TH

● ● ●

● ●

● ● ●

●

●

● ●

●

●

● ●

●

●

●

Company Name

Country

DAGS Accelerated

Thomas & Sons Family Bees

Jamaica

â—?

Tijule Company Limited

Jamaica

Tivoli Drumers and The Grenada Cultural Foundation

Grenada

Tiyi by Design

Barbados

Tobago's Finest

Tobago

Tobago Chamber

Tobago

Tobago Hospitality & Tourism Institute

Tobago

Today's Home Centre Ltd

Jamaica

Tony Brooks Architecture

Barbados

Tony's Punch

Dominica

Top of the Line

Trinidad & Tobago

Topaznhance

Trinidad & Tobago

Tourism Intelligence International

Trinidad & Tobago

Tourism Services Ltd

Grenada

Trafalgar Union Community Development Council

Guyana

Trainmar

Trinidad & Tobago

Trevor Hamilton & Associates

Jamaica

Trini Style Productions

Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad Aggregate Products

Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad Cement Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad Hotels, Restaurants and Tourism Association

Trinidad & Tobago

116

â—?

●

117 ●

●

●

●

●

●

117

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES TH - TR

●

●

● ●

●

●

● ●

● ●

●

●

● ● ●

Trinidad & Tobago Manufacturers Association Tropical Rich Resources Inc Tropijugos S.R.L Two Seasons Guest House Limited Tye Manufacturing Co lTD

Country Trinidad & Tobago Guyana Dominican Republic Jamaica

Jamaica

Upper Berbice Forest & Agricultural Producers Association

Guyana

Ur-Imagination Inc

Barbados

Valley Creek Hotel

Antigua & Barbuda

Ven Caribbean Paper Products

Trinidad & Tobago

Vicki Telford Architects Inc

Haiti Barbados

Viking Traders Ltd

St Lucia

Vincent Edward's Bees

Jamaica

Vincy Klus

St Vincent & the Grenadines

Vincyfresh

St Vincent & the Grenadines

118

●

Trinidad & Tobago

Uniforms Centre

Veve Collections

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

●

●

119 ● ● ●

● ●

●

●

●

●

●

119

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES TR - VI

●

●

●

● ●

Country

Voluntary Service Overseas Guyana

Guyana

Waitukubli Kalinago Art & Craft Association

Dominica

Walwyn Consulting

St. Kitts & Nevis

Water Solutions Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

White Cane Industries

Grenada

WiDa Consultancy & Services

Suriname

Williams Legacy

Barbados

Willos Bridal/Fabric Boutique/Internet CafĂŠ/Gift Shop

Guyana

Wilsons Travel Service

Guyana

Windward Pasta

St. Lucia

WITCO

Trinidad & Tobago

Women's Entrepreneurship Network

Guyana

Wonderfully Made

Antigua & Barbuda

Woods-man Caribbean Ltd

Trinidad & Tobago

Wynlee Trading

Jamaica

Xiomara Fortuna

Dominican Republic

YKK West Indies Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

York Garments Limited

Trinidad & Tobago

120

DAGS Accelerated

Company Name

â—?

121

● ●

●

●

●

●

121

ProNET Training

Export Marketing Training

Grant Proposal Writing Training

TIC

Womex (2011)

Dominicana Moda

Caribbean Fashion Week

Study Tours

Design Caribbean

Health & Wellness

Fancy Foods

London Engage

Break Point

DAGS - Regular

COMPANIES VO - Y

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Head Office: 1st Floor Baobab Tower Warrens, St. Michael, BARBADOS BB22026 Tel: 1-246-436-0578 • Fax: 1-246-436-9999 Email: info@carib-export.com Sub Regional Office: Av. Pedro Henríquez Ureña No. 150, Torre Diandy XIX, Piso 7, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Tel: 1-809-531-2259 • Fax: 1-809-473-7532 Email: c.export@cotedel.net.do Website: www.carib-export.com

Published by Ethnic Vision

Primed for Success is brought to you by the Caribbean Export Development Agency as part of the Regional Private Sector Programme (RPSDP) funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF).

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