A YOUNG Guyanese entrepreneur, Mario Joseph, owner of Mario’s Juice Bar, Smoothies, Shakes, Burgers and Grill House has made the bold step of expanding his business despite the constraints of the global pandemic.

At the small opening ceremony of his new Sheriff Street location on Friday, Joseph said that he started out as small businessman some five years ago while studying Economics at the University of Guyana.

He said that as a student, he saw the need for healthy, hygienic food options on campus, and as he saw that opening he decided to take a shot, since being an entrepreneur was always on his bucket list.

The student, which he was at the time, started out selling on the catwalk of the Turkeyen campus, and after he got the permission extended to vend by the then Vice-Chancellor, he expanded to having a caravan on the tarmac to sell his food and juices.

Now with the COVID-19 guidelines and campus having been shut for some months, Joseph was motivated to open his first ‘outside-of-campus’ location.
He said he faced many hiccups and challenges, but with the help of his family, his mother in particular, Small Business Bureau (SBB), the team at Action Coach Guyana, and other individuals, he was able to pull through the rough patches and open his new location.

Joseph said that he is anticipating the reopening of outside so that he can provide a hangout spot for citizens of Guyana, serving quality local beverages and food.
He also noted that he intends to grow to soon become both an onshore and offshore provider, as Guyana has oil operations.

Chief Executive Officer of the Small Business Bureau, Dr. Lowell Porter was also at the launch/opening ceremony. He remarked that entrepreneurship is the key for development in Guyana, and instead of criticising small businesses, people should support and help them grow.

“We see so many small businesses today and sometimes we criticise them. ‘Oh, they could have done better; they should have done this; they should have done that.’ But I’m pretty sure when Peter D’Aguiar started, he started from a very small location. So I think what we need to start looking at is how we can support,” Dr. Porter said.
He urged Joseph to look at where he can get his supplies from and where he can include smaller farmers to help them develop.

He also noted how much he admires Joseph’s tenacity, because he was determined and goal-oriented when he interacted with SBB to be granted opportunities for funding.
“He knows what he wants, and he goes out there to get it. And I had to support. Every time we see a small business in Guyana, we want to see how we can help,” the CEO said in his remarks.

Also present at the opening was Head of ActionCOACH Guyana, Dr. Vishnu Doerga; Owner of Project Development Consultancy, Anije Lambert; Coaching Director at ActionCOACH, Keon Smith; and a few of Joseph’s family members.