THE Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action (CAFRA) undertook a Taiwanese sponsored project to provide economic empowerment for women in St. Lucia and St. Vincent through training in garment construction and soap making. The project trained twenty women in St. Lucia and fifteen in St. Vincent.
During the period of the training, attendees also learned critical business skills which have prepared them to succeed in business. An important outcome of the project was for the women to work together to produce high quality items through the establishment of a business called: Beautiful You – By Caribbean Women.
Attendees came from a wide range of geographic areas and expressed appreciation throughout the training for this special opportunity which provided them with all that they needed for the training.
As the training has come to an end, attendees are now preparing for their graduation ceremony which will be held on August 6, 2023. This event will also provide an opportunity for the media to see samples of the work which was produced by the trainees. The new economically empowered women are now busy using their skills to produce high quality clothing and soap products which are in high demand by the markets that they have been able to penetrate. Some of the women have also launched their own individual brand of products and are doing very well in the local market.
During the period of training, attendees had the opportunity to undertake a business showcase, participate in pop-up display sales and fashion shows, as well as to meet with industry professionals. Five members of the team from St. Lucia also had the opportunity to attend a trade mission in Martinique, which was sponsored by the St. Lucia Industrial and Small Business Association. Many of those opportunities allowed the trainees to meet and network with entrepreneurs in the private sector.
The goal of Beautiful You, is to penetrate the regional market and eventually the international market, after acquiring some of the equipment needed to do more large-scale production in garment production and soap making. New trainees will also have the opportunity to join the business, in order to facilitate a more robust and dynamic network of women producers. This will be done through group production and manufacturing, as well as through wholesaling of products produced by members of the Beautiful You team.
This amazing opportunity would not have been possible without the support and contribution of the Taiwanese Technical Mission, which is doing really great work in empowering the women and citizens of St. Lucia generally.