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The MPE Caribbean Report Newsletter offers travel, tourism, Caribbean and global news in a newsletter format. To share stories, information or intelligence, contact us at info@marketplaceexcellence.com.

JUNE 6, 2022

Caribbean American Heritage Month 2022

June is National Caribbean American Heritage Month, according to a proclamation issued by U.S. President Joseph R. Biden Jr.

Here are some of the highlights from President Biden, who honored “the immeasurable ways Caribbean Americans have added to our American dream”:

• America’s strength has always been rooted in our diversity. Millions of Caribbean Americans strengthen our country through their vibrant cultures, traditions, languages, and values. 

• The prosperity and opportunity that draw so many immigrants to America would not be possible without the contributions and legacies of Caribbean Americans. 

• This month, our Nation also celebrates the extraordinary leadership and achievements of Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black American of Jamaican heritage to hold this high office. 

• I am also honored to celebrate alongside brilliant and dedicated public servants of Caribbean heritage — including Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona (Puerto Rico), Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas (Cuba), and Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice (Jamaica). 

• The Nation’s first Supreme Court Justice of Puerto Rican descent, Sonia Sotomayor, and the late General Colin Powell, the son of Jamaican immigrants and the first Black Secretary of State, have blazed new trails in service to the American people. 

• Too many Caribbean Americans continue to face systemic barriers to success. Caribbean Americans have been impacted by systemic racism and disparities in opportunity. 

• My Administration has taken a whole-of-government approach to advancing racial justice and equity in order to begin healing those wounds and strengthening opportunity for all. 

• We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to ensure that every American — no matter who they are or where they come from — has equal access to the American dream.

Barbados names new CG to Miami

Rudy Grant, Barbados Consul General-designate to Miami

Rudy Grant, CEO of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA), has been named Barbados’ new Consul General-designate to Miami.

“I have asked Mr. Grant whether he will serve as our Consul General at Miami, he has agreed and he gave the appropriate notice to his employers. He agreed some time ago and he will now take up the post at a date that he and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have agreed upon,” Prime Minister Mia Mottley recently disclosed.

Grant replaces former Consul General, Neval Greenidge, who took up the post in October 2018.

Grant ends his BHTA assignment at the end of the month after being in the post for six years. 

Sandals opens doors in Dutch Caribbean 

The Awa Seaside Bungalows at Sandals Royal Curaçao

Source: sandals.com

Sandals Resorts International (SRI) has opened its 16^th Sandals Resort, Sandals Royal Curaçao, welcoming its first guests last week and marking the company’s debut in the Dutch Caribbean.

Sandals Royal Curaçao is located within the exclusive, 3,000-acre Santa Barbara estate – just 15 miles from the Curaçao International Airport.

Locally inspired accommodations include entirely new room categories, such as the Kurason Island Poolside Butler Bungalows and Awa Seaside Butler Bungalows, capturing the height of luxury and overlooking private lagoons and the Curaçaon coast.

The resort features 351 rooms and suites and offers 11 culinary concepts, including eight restaurants, seven of which are new to the brand and only available at this resort, three beachside gourmet food trucks and 13 bars. 

PR vs. Advertising

Public relations and advertising serve different purposes, but they go hand in hand when it comes to marketing. PR is essentially storytelling. It’s a way to get the message about a person, destination, event, product or service out into the world. PR is a sister industry of journalism, and PR specialists work closely with journalists to share compelling news and original content that align with their editorial needs. 

Advertising, on the other hand, is all about sales. If PR and journalism are sisters, advertising is their cousin. Advertising is used to sell things that can be bought or signed up for (e.g., a ticketed event, travel to a destination, or a hotel package deal). Advertising pros work with media sales representatives to get ads placed on television, in magazines, on news websites and more.

Digital Digest

Social Media: A startup guide

Social Media (SM) is a complex mix of platforms and content types. Different platforms attract different consumers. The initial stages should mainly focus on engagement and creating an online persona. Here are some steps to help get started:

• Platforms: Shortlist the platforms that make the most sense for your brand. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok are the most commonly used platforms today but generating content for them all can be a challenge. Alternatively, register on all platforms but focus on only a few for content generation and engagement at the start.

• Cross-Posting: Most platforms can support the same type of content (photos, videos, gifs, etc.) with minor adjustments. Although it's not recommended for the long run, it's OK to start by cross-posting content from primary platforms to secondary and lower-priority platforms.

• Key Performance Indicators: Set goals for all platforms and establish an ultimate goal for social media marketing. Focus on high-performing content and target group.

• Voice: Find the brand’s best voice, unique hashtags, topics and themes for engagement. It’s great to experiment with trending topics but brand communication should stay uniform across all marketing channels.

• Fan Base: Build a base that responds well to the brand’s communication. A smaller but engaged following is better than a large, unengaged audience.

• Business Accounts: Instead of setting up a SM account using a personal email account, consider opting for a business account/business manager. It provides better security and control over the platforms.

• Review Growth and Evolve: It's essential to measure your platform growth and ROI on a regular basis. Under-delivering platforms should be used for soft targets while higher-performing assets should be used for more quantitative goals such as sales and lead generation.

Achieving success on social media is a process. Registering a space and establishing a presence is just Step One. Learn and adapt to changes with the quickly evolving platform. Stay consistent. Don’t give up!

Medical Moment 

World No Tobacco Day

• In 1987, World Health Organization (WHO) member countries designated May 31 as World No Tobacco Day. The global campaign theme for 2022 is “Tobacco: Threat to our environment".

• Throughout its life cycle (growing and cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, use, and disposal of tobacco products), tobacco pollutes the planet and damages the health of all people.

• “The harmful impact of the tobacco industry on the environment is vast and growing, adding unnecessary pressure to our planet's already scarce resources and fragile ecosystems.” – WHO statement

On May 30, 2022, "A Smoke-Free Caribbean: A Win/Win for Health and the Environment" webinar was jointly hosted by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC), the Caribbean Public Health Law Forum (CPHLF) and the University of the West Indies (Cave Hill) Law and Health Research Unit (LHRU) in celebration of World No Tobacco Day.

MPE Caribbean Report

In this week’s MPE Caribbean Report, we feature a pioneer in sustainable tourism development who wants to see meaningful and lasting sustainable development across the Caribbean.



Marketplace Excellence Corporation (MPE) is a global public relations, marketing and media company.