Manufacturers Urged to Produce Quality Goods

Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, is encouraging manufacturers to ensure that their products are of a consistently high quality.

“No matter where in Jamaica you are, as long as you are producing quality products, you will rise to the top…and gain the support that you need,” he stated.

The Governor-General was speaking on April 19, at the unveiling of the mobile publicity campaign for the National Baking Company Limited’s ‘Bold Ones’: New Champions of Manufacturing’ initiative at King’s House in Kingston.

Under the campaign, the eight small businesses, selected by the National Baking Company in February, to benefit from its ‘Bold Ones’  support programme, will have their  goods and services advertised on the company’s trucks.

The companies are: Belcour Preserves Limited; Debz Limited; Patwa Apparel; Pretti Slippery; No Brand Chemicals; Southside Distributors Limited; Sue Tru Caribbean Manufacturers and Distributors Limited; and Visionaires (Mango Valley Pride).

The companies will have island-wide exposure, through giant colour photos of the entrepreneurs, their production lines and their products, which will be emblazoned on the delivery trucks.

The Governor-General commended the National Baking Company for supporting the companies and exposing their products and services island-wide.

He said the campaign mirrors the ‘I Believe’ initiative, which “embodies the ideal of Jamaica being positioned as a place that inspires persons to believe in, and actualise their full potential in order to contribute to building a prosperous, progressive and peaceful nation”.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Continental Baking (National Baking) Company, Gary Hendrickson, informed that some of the trucks will go on the road daily providing maximum exposure of the selected companies.

"We do it on the basis that we believe in manufacturing, obviously these bold ones believe in manufacturing and we are here to support them,” he stated.

The eight companies chosen span five sectors – agro processing, food, garment, chemical manufacturing, and health/beauty, and represent six parishes across the island.

They were selected for the support based on their use of indigenous resources; employment of at least five persons; being tax compliant and less than seven years old; and having a compelling story.

Over the next six months, they will receive multi-media promotional packages, invaluable media exposure, and will be hosted by the National Baking Company at its mega booth at the upcoming ‘EXPO Jamaica 2012’.

The ‘Bold Ones: New Champions of Manufacturing’ initiative was launched in 2010 to highlight the contribution being made by recently established manufacturing companies to the Jamaican economy.

The on-going programme was born out of Mr. Hendrickson’s vision of encouraging Jamaican manufacturers to position themselves as world leaders, and his group’s commitment to motivating and supporting the country’s new entrepreneurs.

By Chris Patterson, JIS Reporter