Richard Deane, Business Writer

Omar Azan, president of Jamaica Manufacturers' Association, tests a Sealy mattress at the JMA/JEA Expo 2008 at the National Arena, St Andrew, on Saturday. Azan is owner of a Boss Furniture, a maker of beds.

The Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA), and Jamaica Exporters Association (JEA) have, since 1996, been creating the opportunity for businesses, from the comfort of home base, to sell their products to a diverse clientele. But it was the weekend event which appeared to have stood out most prominently for exhibitors, whose feedback from the show was that, for the first time, it really revolved around buyers, and as such created value for Brand Jamaica.

The National Arena, over four days, was arrayed with 222 booths, showcasing over 1,500 products - from mining to government services, beds, electronics, and every con-ceivable product found on store shelves.

Impressed buyers

But, like all trade expositions, the real motivation for exhibitors, as they plastered on the decorations and passed out product samples, was to impress the local and international buyers with the hope of creating new business linkages with potential overseas clientele.

"This year, we really made an emphasis on buyers and not just consumers," said Berletta Forrester of Jamaica Trade and Invest (JTI), a sponsor of the trade show.

JTI was given the task of enticing international buyers to the event, and with approximately 80 distributors and traders from North America, Europe, the Caribbean and India present at the expo this year, Forrester says that the mission was accomplished.

"We have always had buyers at the show, but it is fair to say, that this is the most international buyers we have ever had in any one show," Forrester said.

One manufacturer, JHA and Associates, who specialise in metal fabrication and architectural finishes, gushed at the possibilities that it has opened up for the company.

JHA Marketing Manager Rebecca Harper said buyer response was, in a word, "fantastic".

"We had some people from Trinidad and Guyana," Harper said.

What stood out this year, she told Wednesday Business, was the presence of real estate/construction companies.

"This is actually the first time that construction people have come," she said, "There was a developer from Florida who had come with all his plans."

Another satisfied exhibitor, Laura Lee Jones-Davis, who is the authentic gifts and craft cluster facilitator for the Jamaica Business Development Centre, was as effusive as Harper. Her word to describe the show: "fabulous".

"I must commend the organisers this year because we have seen buyers from all over the world and, I am not exaggerating, orders have generated from that," Jones-Davis said.

Group manager of the McLaren Group of companies, Dwight Thomas, who had on display Mack Chem industrial chemical products, said the show's success was partly due to the organisers' inclusion of exhibitors in the planning process.

"I would give this year an edge over the others," Thomas said, "They had done a lot of research and got a lot of feedback and I know that we attended a lot of meetings that they had."

It is now up to his company, he said, to deliver on the orders generated from the May 1-4 expo.

"They have given us information and it is now for us to get the ball game rolling and get the thing off the ground," Thomas said.

richard.deane@gleanerjm.com

Governor General Professor Sir Kenneth Hall and Lady hall try on hats during their stop at the Cinderella Hat booth on the third day of the JMA/JEA Expo at the National Arena last Saturday. - Photos by Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer