Melinda Belle is an intriguing lady and entrepreneur of 7 years. Starting out with her company Astrape Finance offering accounting and financial management for small businesses she's now also known for the Money Matters with Melinda community and the ImageUp Summit. When it comes to building a personal brand in her niche, she's killin' it!  Well known large financial services companies in Barbados have noticed her influence too and they seek her out to connect with customers and employees. So it was such a treat to interview her for Backstage with Bajan Brands and I hope listening to the chat Melinda and I had will be a treat for you too.

Locally, there are several emerging handmade soap producers operating mainly from home. One of these has named her young brand “Dawn by Nature” and it has become a personal favourite of mine. Two of the products quieted the terrible itching caused by an allergic reaction I had earlier this year that resulted in a breakout on my arms, chest and legs. Continued use also visibly reduced the splotches that were left behind.  I spoke with founder of 'Dawn by Nature' , Dawn-Dew Thompson, for this first episode of season 2 of Backstage with Bajan Brands. 

Real Estate development company Apex Construction Inc. started operations in 1988 in the midst of a middle-class home building explosion in Barbados. Today 30 years on the company is still intensely focused on the market it wanted to serve back then -. the typical middle-class Barbadian family with dreams of owning an affordable and finished home. In this week’s episode of ‘Backstage with Bajan Brands’, Managing Director of Apex, Benjamin Niles, talks to me about how they intend to keep driving the cost of homes down to keep serving that market.  Talk about holding a position.

If you’ve ever shopped in the commercial centre of Barbados’ capital Bridgetown, you may be familiar with the two often contrasted and most popular streets. Broad Street, considered more ‘high brow’ and Swan Street, known for one-door bargain shops. 

Well, Harmony a small ladies clothing retail store was an anomaly on Swan Street when I discovered it a decade ago with its attractive storefront, walkable layout, carpeted dressing room, knowledgeable and attractively uniformed store assistants. It was like high street retail that didn’t yet really exist on the high street in Bridgetown at the time. 

So I was excited to sit down with the co-owners Shyam and Varsha Mahtani just a few weeks after the launch of their second store at Sheraton Mall in Christ Church. It’s been a busy year for the husband and wife team with the new store, renovations to the main store, a 50th anniversary celebration and a rebrand.  In this 5th episode of ‘Backstage with Bajan Brands’, they walk me through what has kept Harmony thriving.

Multi-media consultant Rachelle Mayers founded Mayers Media Inc. 7 years ago in Barbados after a whirlwind run in the entertainment industry in Jamaica. Rachelle is a tech head, a creative and a solopreneur extraordinaire. She’s expanded her personal skill set in videography, film-making, editing and directing and has established strong professional partnerships to create exceptional content for mainly corporate clients.

You’ll usually find Rachelle behind the camera or directing a team or working with a client to develop concepts. You’ll even see her in front of camera conducting interviews or occasionally hosting. But in this episode I catch Rachelle in her office working on a Saturday and put her in the ‘Backstage with Bajan Brands’ hot seat to tell the Mayers Media brand story.

In Barbados the name Nicholls is synonymous with bread and more specifically salt bread, a Bajan (Barbadian) favourite for tummy-filling sandwiches we call cutters. Harold Nicholls founded Nicholls Baking Co. in Antigua in 1958, but then relocated to Barbados where the business has been operating since 1967. There’s no question of its longevity, but it’s the corporate brand’s most recent moves that have caught my attention.  Before 2014, when I heard the name Nicholls I’d just think ‘old-fashioned’, now, the “traditional bakery, fusing modern equipment with yesteryear baking skills” (company Facebook page) has decisively upped its brand game. And it’s done this by owning that position of tradition and building on it. In this 3rd episode of 'Backstage with Bajan Brands', Melanie Springer of Brownest Eye Productions, the company tasked with the 2017 Nicholls Baking Co. rebrand shares a bit about that process.

In this second episode of Backstage with Bajan Brands I chat with husband and wife team Empress Zingha and DJ Simmons. They founded Gine On?! the online magazine, 2 years ago to feature upcoming arts events in Barbados, along with the artists involved in them. Pretty much a round-up of what's going on in Barbados, or as we locals say "Wuh Gine on".  From an online magazine, Gine On?! has now become an online media outlet and is growing beyond their expectations. We talk about where they started, how they see Gine On?! the brand growing and what else is in store.

Brand and Design Consultant Ann-Marie King was the lady behind the incredible development of Barbadian agribusiness brand, Carmeta's. I recently wrote a Linkedin article on why Carmeta's with its range of gluten-free flours, flour mixes, cookies, cakes and desserts, all processed from local produce, and its seasoned meats, is one of my favourite Bajan brands. 

On this first episode of Backstage with Bajan Brands, Ann-Marie shares her thought process during the development stages Carmeta's. We also talk about how she got into the marketing profession and what's next for her and her business AEK Consulting.