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Local businesses must also be allowed to develop

Jul 24, 2022 Letters

Dear Editor,

We as a nation must be careful as to how quickly we allow foreign businesses to expand within our borders. The primary risk being that our local business startups and developing businesses will be less competitive given the early stages of the country’s development. Our business owners must be given the opportunity to raise their quality and service to meet and surpass international standards before we invite stronger competitors to enjoy the growth we are experiencing. Without such a cautious approach, local businesses will never reach their full potential during this growth period in our country’s history. Having a few strong foreign companies present in each sector will allow local competitors to see what is expected by tourists, and it will also give our people the impetus to implement higher standards within their businesses. Starbucks is a great example for the local coffee shops.

We as a Nation would also benefit from broadening our horizons by looking beyond the USA and also consider strong brands from Europe and Asia. During my travels around the world, Vietnamese coffee has always been heralded as one of the best tasting coffees. Chinese tea houses are also world renowned. No one would doubt the reputation of an English tea shop or the peaceful experience of a Japanese tea garden. These are experiences that speak to both locals and foreigners. Our country is also known for the wide variety of fresh tea offerings and their medicinal benefits.

Our format of sales may be somewhat rustic in nature, but the quality of our products are amongst the best in the world. This growth period offers an excellent opportunity to develop the presentation of our offering and couple it with the peaceful nature of our environment. Sipping a cup of tea while watching the diverse bird population that only the tropics can offer, is an excellent peaceful experience that all can enjoy. Imagine the joy of a foreigner walking into a local tea garden and saying, “Ma’am may I please have a cup of your organically grown lemon grass tea, sweetened with your world renowned Demerara sugar, preferably the Enmore crystal if available. Please also add a touch of your organic milk from your grass fed cows?” Then the hostess politely responds, “Of course you may have a cup Ma’am, it would be a pleasure to have you as a guest”.

We must remember, the objective of prosperity is to allow for our citizens to not only make a better living, but to also have a more enjoyable and fulfilling life experience.
Many major Hotel brands are also investing, but these hotels also had their humble beginnings. Our local hotel owners should also be allowed to reap the benefits of national growth. Creating more bed and breakfast locations will provide more business ownership opportunities for our citizens.

The risk of allocating all of the growth in rooms/accommodations to strong foreign brands is that it may result in capping the growth of the local hotel business owners. Foreigners do prefer what they are used to experiencing in their own homelands, but we must provide an opportunity for them to also experience excellent Guyanese hospitality that both they and locals can afford to enjoy. If you speak with the man and woman in the street I am sure they will tell you that they would prefer to own a business that meets and surpasses international standards instead of working for one owned by someone from a different culture with different values. This is the culture of our country and we must continue to embrace it and enable it to flourish. Those who we invite to partake in our growth must share the values of our Nation and also respect our way life. Then we will be able to continue our growth trajectory without harming the culture of our Country.

Best regards,
Mr. Jamil Changlee
Chairman
The Cooperative Republicans of Guyana

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