Savvy Styles

Cindi Alvarez has a unique craft. She makes banana leaf dolls for a living. By taking ordinary toy dolls and painstakenly replacing  their ready-made clothing with those made from dried banana leaves, she’s ready to break into the market. Bissoondial “Donny” Rogers started  a mosaic tile business, and never looked back. When he told his family what he wanted to do, they thought he went crazy. Alvarez and Rodgers are among a growing cadre of entrepreneurs who are taking advantage of the National Entrepreneurship Development Company (NEDCO), a State company that wants small businesses to run on smooth tracks. Alvarez says that she tries to bring back a little bit of the ‘old time days” in her dolls. She dresses her dolls as  bele dancers and some of them are dressed in saris. She does not forget the modern, trendy woman as well. To keep her dolls looking good, Alvarez puts them in fashionable designs, although she admits she likes to keep them conservative and avoids making any short or revealing attire for them. To make her designs, Alvarez says she does not cure or treat the leaves in any manner.

The dried banana leaves are transformed into the clothes, something Alvarez says takes a lot of skill. Alvarez does not dye the leaves either, they are kept as natural as possible. Alvarez’s business is a small one, as she operates it out of her home in Tableland. She started her business six months ago, and she credits NEDCO with helping her get her business started. She states that without NEDCO, she would have never been able to get as much advertising for her business as she has been able to have. Although Alvarez has received calls about her dolls, she admits sales are slow. She says that whenever there are display shows, her dolls are quite popular, as they always draw much attention and admiration from onlookers. But she  is yet to make a break in the local market and is trying to find a one outside TT. She says that her dolls are popular with tourists who often take them back as gifts for friends and family at home. Alvarez said TIDCO took some orders from her in an effort to promote sales. Rogers says his business, Trinidad Mosaic Manufacturers, which was launched at  NEDCO’s Trade and Investment Conference, started when he went to install tiles for his grandmother, and he began experimenting with different cuts and designs on a plain clay tile.

Since then, there has been no turning back for him and he has the NEDCO Best Youth Enterprise to show for it. He attributes product development and the ability to compete globally as the formula for his success. He was nominated for the Prime Minister’s Award on Innovation and Invention for Product Innovation. Rogers describes his small business enterprise as “export oriented,” explaining that TT is just the “tip of the iceberg” and he sees growth as inevitable. Rogers has already sourced a foreign market for his unique mosaic tiles, and his first shipment will  go out at the end of this year to Latin American countries — Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia. Rogers is also looking at Barbados, St Lucia and the Cayman Islands.
As for the much anticipated arrival of CSME, Rogers is extremely excited and optimistic over it, saying  CSME could work in his favour, and looks forward to its implementation. Coming from a management background, getting involved in the mosaic tile business was perhaps a risk, but one that Rogers was willing to take. He admits that his mosaic tiles have been traditionally accessed by those of the middle and upper income brackets, but he aims at making it affordable to everyone who wants to have mosaic tiles installed in their homes.

Caribe Ceramics, a tile company, wants to hire him on a contractual basis. Rogers says both TIDCO and the Export and Import Bank (EXIM Bank) of TT have given him the edge he needed. “I see my business growing to the level of which I would like it to be, which is being the largest manufacturer of mosaic products in the region.” Managing her small business,  “Simple Pleasures,” from her Trincity home, Sharon Benjamin says she is living her dream everyday. Years ago, Benjamin said she was fascinated by the maunfacture of soap, and she put a great deal of time and effort into researching the topic. She explained that regular soap is made with a lot of chemicals, but Benjamin’s soaps are made from natural oils. At the moment, Benjamin produces 14 different types of soaps and two types of foot soaks. She is however, looking to expand her business next year and in years to come to more soaps and foot soaks, as well as expanding to essential oils, candles, creams, hair oils and much more. Benjamin started her business in 1998, with some success but only after NEDCO’s interventions  in 2002,   her business took off. She said that the aid she got from NEDCO allowed her to purchase more materials, and gave her the ability to send more products out for sale.

Benjamin says a huge market has developed for her product, and currently there is a greater demand than supply. She says that her business does not profit from exports, but with the CSME coming on stream, she expects that this would all change, and would help small businesses like hers to export throughout the region. Benjamin’s plans for export do not end there. She explained that by next year, she hopes that her product would be available in Barbados, and perhaps other Caribbean countries. For now, Benjamin is happy to manufacture her product for major local players such as Pennywise, Tru Valu and Excellent Stores. She also sells over the internet, as part of her expanding business. Ted and Edith Arthur are making waves with their unique leather products. Ted has been doing leather crafts for about 20 years now, but it was only in 1990 that he began doing it full time. Running the business out of their Tobago home, the Arthurs cater to a clientele that consists mainly of foreigners. They won the Corporate Award for “Global Competitiveness” at the recent NEDCO awards.

Ted said the response from foreigners shopping here has been huge, as they are fascinated by the detailed craft and the skill that goes into making the leather products. When the couple attends craft shows at the hotels around Tobago, people flock to their stalls. Their workshop is often flooded by visitors who are interested in getting their custom made sandals from Tobago. As for CSME, it seems as though the Arthurs are already benefitting from it, as Ted says  he receives good response from Caribbean neighbour Barbados. In fact, in the next few weeks he will be visiting Barbados, showcasing his product at a trade show there. He believes that this trip would provide him with an opportunity to develop an export market. He said that since he approached NEDCO, they have been constantly supportive of his venture and believes that this has allowed his business to grow.