UNICOMER Guyana, parent company of Courts Guyana, yesterday officially opened its new US$6M distribution centre at Plantation Eccles, deeming the facility one of the most state-of–the-art facilities of its kind in the Caribbean. This new facility measuring some 60,000 square feet sits on four acres of land in the Eccles Industrial Site on the East Bank of Demerara. It is fully automated and has the capacity to accommodate 18 loading trucks and 20 containers can also be stored on the premises. This facility will now be able to employ 50 persons.

Speaking at the ceremony held at the centre’s location in Eccles, Managing Director of Unicomer Guyana, Clyde de Haas explained that the centre took approximately one year to construct and boasts the latest in technology and equipment. Noting also that this centre has three times the storage capacity as that of the old facility, de Haas said that this will ensure that the company is able to meet and maintain adequate stock levels to supply all stores, “with this being the Christmas season the demand is more,” de Haas noted.
He explained that the company had outgrown the distribution location in Montrose and therefore the company needed to seek other alternatives. He thanked the Government of Guyana and the Housing Minister for assisting in making such a milestone in Unicomer’s history becoming a reality. He reiterated that Courts Guyana is here to stay and noted that the company is looking to further expand in Guyana.
“We are in 20 countries presently within the Caribbean, Central America and South America and with the opening up of this facility now, we are looking to further expand here with more stores,” said the Vice Chairman and Executive Vice President of Unicomer, Guillermo Siman. He noted that when Courts Guyana opened its doors some 20 years ago, the stores rapidly expanded to suit the market. Echoing the words of de Haas, he noted that the previous location had outlived its usefulness.
“In the quest to improve our services, Guyana became a priority for us, hence the reason for us to construct a modern 60,000 square-foot centre,” he noted, explaining the reason to invest in such a massive distribution centre. He explained further that there are 18 distribution doors enabling the trucks or offloading to be done in a timely manner in keeping with efficient customer service.

“This is an investment of over US$6M into this project and along with our continued wish to expand here, it demonstrates our confidence in the economy of Guyana,” Siman stressed, and assured the Government that the Unicomer Group will continue to invest in the development of the country.

Lance Hinds, President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), noted that he expected nothing less from Courts Guyana since the company is poised to deliver where their social responsibilities are needed. “As our economy grows, as it evolves, as it becomes more and more competitive, it is becoming more critical that we apply effective supply and logistics management for efficiency and effective customer assurance and support,” he noted.
He explained that we are in an exciting time here in Guyana and this opening follows a series of new private sector initiatives from both local and overseas investors and noted that only last Saturday another distribution centre was opened. Asserting that there was commencement of new businesses in the mining sector and only recently one of the largest oil companies opened an office here in Guyana, Hinds said “it seems that every time you make a turn in the chambers some large company or large overseas delegation is visiting and asking us how they can get involved in the market,” Hinds said.
Guyana has become a significant place of interest, he noted. Only recently, while attending an international conference, it was quoted that “Guyana will become one [of] the next economic tigers.” Further, the 2014-2015 Caribbean Export Outlook Magazine further provides some insight into how this could become a reality.
“The question to us then is this: “If all of these entities are investing and expanding and also investors continue to show interest, this then shows that faith is [being] shown in this economy,” he said, while asserting that we are at the crossroads of making history in Guyana; and how we navigate our country from here henceforth will show all what we are made of.
Minister of Housing and Water, Irfaan Ali, alluded to the fact that one year ago we could not walk here but today we are commissioning a state-of-the- art distribution centre. He stressed that Courts Guyana has been the leading entity and played an integral role in upholding their corporate responsibility, sponsorship of national events and partnership. He congratulated the local team on a job well done and encourages the company to continue contributing to the development of the country.

Dr. Ashni Singh, Minister of Finance, related that at the turning of the sod for the distribution centre, he made note of the confidence the company has in the country’s economy. “Celebrate as a country that major regional and hemispheric companies like Unicomer have found Guyana to be an attractive destination for their investments and believe that Guyana has a bright future for their companies and the fact that you have taken the steps to take the investment forward means that you are optimistic of the future [of] Guyana,” he said.
He expressed that just taking a drive to get to the centre today, will let one know of the massive investments within this sector where thousands of homes are either under construction or have been constructed. “There has been a transformation here and this is a good example of the transformation under way for Guyana and there are many more such examples,” Dr. Singh explained.
Only recently, a mining company without any much publicity invested hundreds of millions of United States (US) dollars and will almost double our gold production when it starts production in 2015, and this company has also some 700 jobs for our people; he said that this too shows investors’ confidence.
He added that “We should applaud ourselves as a country, that in the rebuilding of Guyana, investors around the world and within the Region are once again confident investing their money in Guyana and this has been the result of responsible policies adopted by this Government; but is also a result of bold entrepreneurial decisions of the private sector. This Government is firmly committed to continuing the work to preserve and further enhance the environment for investors,” he stressed.
Dr. Singh further reiterated that our country has attracted many investors but one aspect that is holding the country back is that “we cannot offer cheap electricity,” this he alluded will benefit our investor and our people.
President of Guyana, Donald Ramotar congratulated Unicomer and Courts Guyana on this historical achievement as he officially commissioned the Centre.

(Rebecca Ganesh-Ally)