— Business Expo exhibitors

By Ravin Singh
THE lack of access to domestic and regional markets, and the limitations of financing for small businesses are perhaps the two most critical factors hindering further propulsion of the economy through this sector.

Local craftsman Peter Rodney, a middle-aged Berbician whose pieces comprised shell-designed picture frames and table centres, jewellery made from coconut shells and other creative compositions of craft from local products, decried the major challenges facing his venture in a two-minute conversation with this publication.

Sitting behind a table in a mini-booth shielded from light, the man explained that his occupation thrives in the midst of constraints, but because he resides in Berbice, where the market is much more limited than that of Georgetown, he is forced to sell his products at wholesale prices.

What was surprising about this revelation was that the quality of his products had deceived onlookers into believing they were machine-made.

And despite him having to invest hours into producing some of his smaller pieces, he has still been forced to sell wholesale. The money from this, he says, cannot compensate for the labour invested into producing the items.

He says he relies heavily on events such as the Business Expo and GuyExpo to fix the actual prices on his products.

The craftsman suggested that opportunities for small-business owners like himself to tap into financing such as grants would prove beneficial, not just for themselves but for the economy, if they were to flourish. Financing of that sort, he said, could assist in purchasing tools and equipment to improve quality and increase production.

But financing would not be a problem for small businesses if local and regional markets were available, he declared. According to Rodney, if government were to push for small businesses to access more local and regional markets, faster turnover would ensue, and this would reduce the need for grant financing.

He offered said, “The cost for advertising is usually not something we could afford. So areas of financing for small businesses and marketing are critical for the development of small businesses, and I think these are the areas the government needs to target to help the sector develop.”

And while Christina James of the Blue Flames Women’s Group agrees that those factors, if addressed, could help to boost small businesses, she sees support for packaging of local products as imperative.

Displaying several products made by factions of the association, including cassava bread, eddo powder and nuts, she suggested that if materials for packaging of these products and other foodstuff could be imported on a large scale, or if there could be some local company helping with packaging, this could reduce operational cost.

Addressing the issue of packaging, she said it could also help in improving the quality of products, which can help the small-scale producers to compete with producers of similar products in regional and international markets.

But the inaugural Business Expo which was birthed as an alternative to support small businesses in the absence of GuyExpo this year, seems not to be benefiting all. One such person is Indria Doodnauth, sole proprietor of Garden Image Plant Shop. According to the plant fanatic, who is a regular exhibitor at local exhibitions, the area where this form of small business is situated is discouraging, given the bleak atmosphere.

“They always dump us in the area,” she lamented, adding: “hardly anybody visits this area from year to year.”
She reasoned that “if they find a spot in front for us, I think we could do 100 per cent better. But right now, with this little small business expo, it’s very critical.”

However, she recommended that those struggling with marketing issues should adopt an approach which she has been using for years. She says that for businesses to access more local markets, they need to “go out and visit customers” even while they have customers coming to them.

Most would describe the event as having a sober atmosphere, although it was perhaps intended, since the Minister of Business had related that the initiative was not organised with the intention of having entertainment overshadow business-oriented activities, as has happened at previous expositions.

The crowd that had been anticipated failed to show up at the exposition, whether through insufficient advertising or lack of interest on the part of citizens. The event nevertheless provided an opportunity for these businesses to promote themselves through direct engagements with consumers who provide valuable feedback and reviews.