June 24, 2022 (Georgetown, Guyana) – 33 Guyanese entrepreneurs from several industries have successfully completed a 2-day capacity building training on pricing and marketing for micro-enterprises.
The training, which was held on Thursday and Friday, was a collaborative effort between the International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly – Guyana (IDPADA-G) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA). This was designed to benefit the entrepreneurs who have registered thus far, for the upcoming Exhibition & Sale being hosted by IDPADA-G on July 21-22, 2022 on Main Street.
At the training, the entrepreneurs participated in discussions and activities that were tailored to provide insight on the methodology for calculating cost of production, which will provide adequate knowledge on how to fairly price their products. They also benefited from marketing strategies they can apply to their businesses to increase brand awareness, and ultimately, clientele and sales.
The industries represented were Arts & Craft, Agro Processing, Home Decor, Hair & Skin Care, Fashion & Jewellery, Food & Drink and Clothing & Branding. The participants were grouped accordingly, thus allowing them to network with like-minded entrepreneurs. Agricultural Health Specialist at IICA, Maxine Parris-Aaron, who was also one of the facilitators, said that she was extremely pleased with the level of participation by the entrepreneurs. “There was very active participation by the participants, and the interest among the participants was high. I believe the facilitators addressed some of the major challenges that the entrepreneurs would have at this time. I felt that the materials covered were appropriate for what is going to follow, that is, the entrepreneurs participating in the exhibition. The information given will now position the entrepreneurs to produce higher quality products and also to be able to market those products in a manner that will be beneficial, not only to them in terms of income generation, but also it would enhance tourism in Guyana for them being able put those products out on the market, and a little bit more attractively, and also add cost that would attract customers and clients,”Parris-Aaron said.
Johnell Prince, owner of Jays Custom Creations, described the experience from the workshop as “very beneficial” . “I’ve learnt so many things that I can apply to my business moving forward. Two things that really stood out for me were Economies of scale, and how to apply the four Ps of marketing – Pricing, Placement, Promotion and Product,” she said Expressing similar sentiments, Rebekah Waddell, owner of Tie-Dye Elements, the training was a very good one that was well executed by the organisations. “One of the first things that stood out was that we were able to meet persons within our area that we work, which for me is arts and craft, and we were able to share beyond our business experiences and it was encouraging. I learnt a lot, to add to things that I knew already, and I’m sure the other businesses also gained… I especially took for granted how I priced things and that all costs should be considered, and that was something that was explained in detail and we had a practical assessment on how to do it. So I was reminded of how important it is and how necessary it is to determine profitability and being able to reach your target market, and having a price that is suitable for your customers as well,” the young entrepreneur shared.
The participants of this training and other entrepreneurs will be at IDPADA-G’s Exhibition & Sale next month.
