The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employer Confederation’s (BCCEC) chairman said yesterday he is hoping to “flip the script” on south Florida by helping Bahamian businesses to establish a physical presence there.

Chester Cooper acknowledged that the Bahamas’ relationship with south Florida was largely a “one-way street” with respect to commerce, as the BCCEC, which purports to represents 90 per cent of Bahamian businesses, gears up for an early May trade mission to the ‘sunshine state’’ in conjunction with the US Embassy.

Mr Cooper said the BCCEC planned to meet with other Chambers as well as conduct business-to-business meetings during the mission.

“We often see South Florida as simply a vacation destination without considering that it’s very nearby, it’s progressive, and it’s an economically influential state where we can do business,” he said.

“Often times we look at Florida as a place where we source products, but we have to flip the script and look at how Bahamian business can benefit from establishing a presence in Florida, or how we might make it mutually beneficial in terms of trade with Florida.

“Right now, it’s by and large a one-way street in terms of commerce. We get a lot of tourists from Florida, but in terms of commerce and trade we believe a lot more can be done.”

The BCCEC has already led missions to Haiti and Panama, with a follow-up mission to Panama scheduled for this weekend to Expocomer, the international trade fair.

“We know that there are at least one or two of our members who have started some joint venture discussions with their Haitian counterparts to do business in Haiti,” Mr Cooper said.

“We know that there is a local business who is at the moment exporting product from Haiti. Where we conduct these missions, and when we see businesses actually doing business, whether one or three, we are extremely pleased with that and we consider it success, because it paves the way for more individuals to do business.”