Tourism Linkages Hub eyes craft industry"s earning potential

BY KARENA BENNETT Business reporter bennettk@jamaicaobserver.com

Thursday, September 25, 2014    

The Tourism Linkages Hub (TLH) is seeking to develop Jamaica’s craft industry which, it says, has the potential to earn billions annually.

According to TLH Project Manager Carolyn McDonald-Riley, a single chain in the craft market industry can earn up to US$40 million ($4.5 billion) in annual revenues.

Plans are now under way to capitalise on the creativity of craft producers through exposure to high-end craft designs, gift shop operators and hoteliers, over the next six months.

“We can get far more out of our craft vending industry,” McDonald-Riley told the Business Observer.

“Our gift shop operators will tell you that they have travelled abroad and have bought craft items that could have been supplied in Jamaica,” she added.

Under the initiative, the TLH hopes to host a mini craft show where producers will be better able to understand the demands of the market. This is expected to boost the productivity of the sector and replace some of the 4,600 jobs lost among craft and related trade workers last year.

“We will be addressing what the products should look like to appeal to any buyer,” the project manager stated.

The Hub will also feature a price show, aimed at encouraging hoteliers and operators to support their own products, especially with local craft items being traded at lower prices than those from overseas.

The TLH will also be working closely with Sandals Resorts International to create a platform where manufacturers and CEOs can interact and develop business opportunities.

“We have invited the purchasing managers of all the hotels to come and meet with the persons in the production sector,” McDonald-Riley said.

Under the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, TLH creates and improves linkages between the tourism, manufacturing, agricultural and other sectors of the economy to stimulate further growth in those areas.

The Linkages Hub currently stages the monthly Agro-Tourism Farmers’ Market and Arts in the Park, and, for the first time, TLH has been included in the annual tourism trade show Jamaica Product Exchange.

Since its inception in June last year, the TLH has worked with manufacturers such as Boss Furniture Limited, McIntosh and Continental Bedding, and Pioneers Meat Company Limited.

Jamaica Fibreglass Products Limited (JFP), also a beneficiary of the TLH, has ongoing partnership with the Spanish Court Hotel. The JFP is currently exploring the possibility of partnering with a Spanish hotel operator under the National Insurance Fund (NIF) to supply furniture and fixtures to the company.

“That is currently at the procurement stage and the NIF has to do a public tender,” she said.

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Tourism Linkages Hub eyes craft industry"s earning potential

20 inner-city residents complete leather craft course

TWENTY residents from the inner-city communities of Central Village, Lauriston, and Shelter Rock in St Catherine are now better equipped to earn a livelihood, after completing a two-month intermediate leather craft and business development skills training programme, conducted by the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC).

The initiative, which was undertaken in partnership with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) at the JBDC’s Incubator and Resource Centre, on Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston, now enables the participants to produce a range of leather products, including belts, wallets, and purses.Funding, to the tune of $1.4 million, was provided by the Japan Social Development Fund Grant for the undertaking, which saw the participants being taught a range of techniques in leather craft. These included rawhide preparation, measuring and cutting, edge finishing, pattern making, cutting and assembly, surface decoration, and stud setting. The training sessions were facilitated by JBDC’s trainers,The participants were presented with certificates, start up leather craft kits, and course material, to help them kick-start their business operations, during a graduation ceremony at the JBDC’s Resource Centre last Friday.Speaking with JIS News following the ceremony, JBDC Technical Services Manager Colin Porter underscored the importance of the training programme in equipping the participants with not only the basic skills, but the concept of entrepreneurship which, he argued, can make the difference between a good and a great product.“It’s one thing to make a leather product, but it’s another thing to make a leather product that has the design value to it… that has some appeal. So the design value has to be of such that it can be compared to any other product coming from any other country,” he said.In this regard, Porter had high praise for the participants’ recognition of this and commended their positive approach to the programme, noting that they were prepared to work together to ensure its success.“They helped each other out. If someone had a difficulty (with any of the programme’s concepts), someone (else) who would have picked up on the concept earlier would join the instructor and help their colleagues…It showed that they grasped the idea of not just gaining skills, but of camaraderie,” he said.Porter expressed confidence that the participants will do well in their future endeavours, adding that follow-up visits will be conducted with them to keep abreast of their progress and provide assistance, where possibleSpeaking on behalf of the participants, David Ormsby, in expressing gratitude for the intervention, said much was learnt during the two-month course. He noted that while the training has ended, “this is the start of something new and the essence of something great, and is the start of a (new) beginning in the lives of the (participants)”.

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20 inner-city residents complete leather craft course