SME Conference – Vision and Planning

On January 18, 2012, the NOVA Committee of the Chamber will host its biennial business conference at the Trinidad Hilton. NOVA works towards the development of our local SME sector through knowledge-exchange, strategic networking and issue advocacy. This year’s conference has been modeled around the action statement “Make It Happen: Success In Any Environment” and will deliver on all three focus areas.

Participants will interact with an eclectic group of industry specialists on issues specifically geared to improve their business such as effective human resource management, application of new media & software for improved efficiency, successful debt & equity financing and opportunities in regional exporting.

Two highly interactive sessions will be facilitated by Past Presidents of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce from which requests from the business community participants on initiatives and incentives that the Government can adopt for the betterment of the SME sector, will be prioritized and advocated for by the Chamber.

In addition, participants will hear personal stories from keynote speaker Mario Sabga-Aboud, Chairman of the Pizza Boys Group of Companies, Claudia Pegus, renowned fashion designer and Neysha Soodeen, the force behind the internationally acclaimed MACO magazine; three individuals who have indeed made success happen.

We hope to see you there but if not, this article shares information on the three featured entrepreneurs who have achieved astounding business success in difficult environments.

Mario Sabga-Aboud

In 1986 while Trinidad & Tobago struggled under the weight of a deep economic depression, Mario Sabga-Aboud opened a fast-food restaurant which sold hamburgers to a public that everyone knew loved chicken. Despite the naysayers, it turned out Trinidadians liked patties, too. One year later, the nation would find out that people quite possibly liked pizza even more than patties, and Pizza Boys was born.

Today, the Pizza Boys Group of Companies is the umbrella under which an impressive collection of restaurants operates. Mario Sabga-Aboud may have been called crazy in 1986, but in 2011, he can lay claim to having built a fast-food empire, the evidence of which is seen on street corners and mall food courts throughout the Caribbean, serving us pizza as well as Chinese food, giving us a taste of France and satisfying caffeine cravings.

In the span of two decades, the Group has gone from one location to many and franchisee to franchiser. However, in his keynote speech, Mr Sabga-Aboud will speak not just about the hard work behind the obvious successes but also the hard work behind business ventures that still failed. He will share with us his experience with brand creation, impart words of wisdom on people management and discuss the special dynamics found within family businesses.

Claudia Pegus

Claudia Pegus is more than an haute couture fashion designer. She is one of the main drivers of the growth of the fashion industry in Trinidad & Tobago, working tirelessly towards the creation of a space which allows for the operation of retail and export-oriented fashion houses as well as encouraging the development of our young people who wish to find a career within the industry.

Over the course of three decades Ms. Pegus has learnt from old Spanish tailors, apprenticed with English couturiers, presented collections at international Fashion Weeks, consulted for governments, continued to provide for a private clientele outside of the shores of Trinidad, taught at university and opened as well as closed retail outlets.

Ms. Pegus is both artist and businesswoman. In her presentation at the conference, she will highlight her successes and share her struggles. In addition, she will speak to the importance of securing niche markets, and the benefits to be found in working towards the greater good of an industry and not just a personal business.

Neysha Soodeen

Like Mario Sabga-Aboud and Claudia Pegus, Neysha Soodeen is no stranger to people calling her crazy. Head of the Toute Bagai Publishing Company, she launched a magazine that no advertiser or banker wanted to get behind. Today, it is one of the leading Caribbean magazines and can be found on coffee tables across the world and in stores that previously didn’t want to accept it for sale.

From one magazine to three, the MACO brand is synonymous with quality and advertisers recognise the intrinsic value of sharing space with such a brand. At the start however, she could only hold on to advertisers who were more comfortable with radio and television, by offering deep discounts.

Those days are well behind her but Neysha Soodeen will share with our conference participants her plans to successfully weather the storm of a shrinking publishing industry. As current President of the Caribbean Publishers Network, she is advocating for the regional industry to take advantage of the demands that are still out there while evolving so as to leverage the power of new media and technology.

These three local entrepreneurs offer different stories but the commonality running through each is that of having vision and bolstering this with hard work.

To find out more about the conference agenda, the speakers and facilitators, read our blog at http://makeithappen-conference.blogspot.com or find us on Facebook at “Chamber SME Business Conference – Make Success Happen”.

To register for the conference, email or call Ms. Cheryl Lyn Kurban at ckurban@chamber.org.tt, 637-6966 ext 228