Over EC$48,000 was disbursed among ten small business owners on Tuesday, April 25, marking the final payments in the outstanding amounts for products supplied for the inaugural Vineyard Vincy Fest last year.
At a ceremony held by VincyKlus Inc., the agro-processing cluster who along with the Centre for Enterprise Development Inc. (CED) spearheaded the procurement of goods for the historic event on Martha’s Vineyard, the cheques were presented to the suppliers.
The first set of payments was made last October.
Vineyard Vincy Fest 2016 was held on August 27 on Martha’s Vineyard, a popular summer spot located south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
It was held under a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the government of SVG and Dukes County, Martha’s Vineyard on September 27, 2014, to encourage and facilitate closer relationships in order to enhance and expand cooperative efforts in preserving common traditions, and celebrating a long history of shared indigenous cultures.
Over fifty different products, valued at US$20,000 from sixteen small businesses, were consigned to the SVG-MV Sister Islands Committee, formed by former SVG Consulate General to the USA, Selmon Walters, the group’s Director.
Speaking at the ceremony, President of VincyKlus Mr. Simeon Bacchus explained that the products were showcased at The Marketplace, which was the center point of all activities at Vineyard Vincy Fest 2016.
These products included chips (plantain, eddoes, breadfruit, banana and sweet potato), local fruit wines, pure and flavoured coconut oils, green seasonings, hot pepper sauces (original and flavoured), cocoa sticks, guava cheese, coconut fudge, soaps, body wash, arrowroot flour, brooms, mats, craft, visual arts, peanuts, ginger sauces, foot scrubs, creams, lip balms, and candles.
“Overall, Vineyard Vincy Fest 2016 was a favourable experience that has great potential for expansion and for marketing products from VincyKlus and the wider Vincentian small business sector,” Bacchus noted.
The former CG, in his remarks thanked the suppliers for their patience and implored them to take advantage of the opportunity which the demand for their goods presents in the diaspora.
He commended the small businesses, CED, VincyKlus, and the committees in NY and St. Vincent for their roles in ensuring that Vineyard Vincy Fest 2016 came off successfully.
