Recession forces CFW to get creative - Cooper
Kingsley Cooper, (left) CEO of Pulse, in
discussion with Christopher Anthony Nathan, programme administrator of the
Caribbean Academy of Fashion and Design at the University of Trinidad and
Tobago, at the Caribbean Fashionweek launch at Hilton Kingston hotel last
Friday.
Although the country is experiencing tough
economic times, Kingsley Cooper, Pulse Investments Limited chairman, promised
one of the best Caribbean Fashionweeks (CFW).
At the press conference, which was held at
the Hilton Kingston hotel last Friday, Cooper said Pulse found ways to deal
with the challenges faced.
"We have been creative in how we dealt
with it. We have learnt how to make something from nothing," Cooper said.
"We were challenged with no money and no
sponsors wanting to put up money .... Those with money were holding back. We
managed to produce the best show with fewer resources."
In order to do this, Cooper said, they had to
widen the net of sponsors, use more in-kind support and tightly manage the
funds they had. In addition, he said, they had to increase the entertainment
factor in order to lure more people to the event.
Lisa Bell of Jamaica Trade and Invest (JTI) noted that, with the decrease in revenues from traditional areas of export, such as bauxite, it has forced the Government to focus more on creative industries.
In : Entertainment