THROUGH a market familiarization mission by its newly contracted Florida-based public relations firm, At the Table PR, the Saint Lucia Trade Export Promotions Agency (TEPA) this week made strides in penetration into new markets for Saint Lucian producers and products. More significantly, the marketing orientation tour sought to make space in the United States and southern Canadian markets for a broader range of producers from the manufacturing and the creative sectors.
The At the Table PR marketing familiarization and orientation tour ends today. The purpose of the mission was to meet one-on-one to better understand the market, its’ offerings and the business landscape and export development targets and strategy. At The Table PR met with business development stakeholder agencies such as the Saint Lucia Coalition of Service Industries, the Minister and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Industry, Business Development, Investments and Consumer Affairs, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Heritage and Creative Industries; and the Chairman of the National Export Council.
At The Table PR also toured the factory plants of Baron Foods Ltd and St. Lucia Distilleries, and held meetings with, ateliers of the some of the islands top visual artists.
“This marketing and promotions campaign is as gratifying for TEPA as it is for this sample of producers because it gives evidence of the equal priority TEPA places on all export-viable producers. We are anxious to begin to make inroads for services and creative producers as we’ve made for goods,” said Gasper George, TEPA Marketing and Promotion Officer with responsibility for the export development programme for the North American geographic region.