MOBAY EXPO One of the biggest ever
THE MONTEGO Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s upcoming MoBay Expo, which is set for March 6 to 8 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, will be one of the largest ever since the biennial event was first staged 30 years ago.
According to President of the Chamber, Janet Silvera, the support from the business community has been overwhelming, and statistics, so far, indicate that the booth count for the event, which is being held under the theme ‘Driving Success through Enterprise’, should reach 100 by the first week of March.
“So far, we have over 90 booths confirmed for Expo 2020. That is a real feat because we thought we were going to do only 70, and we know that by March 6, we will have 100 booths,” Silvera said at a pre-expo cocktail reception at the Whitter Village in Ironshore on Thursday night.
“We know that we have a delegation coming from Cuba. The first international group to appear at any expo that the Chamber has had came out of Cuba, and Cuba has confirmed that they will have a delegation at our expo. This expo is critical to Montego Bay because it allows the businesses here that opportunity to meet with customers outside of them walking into their businesses, plus massive exposure to locally and we hope that we will have some other international participants,” she added.
She also reiterated the fact that the Chamber is embarking on an initiative aimed at ensuring a concomitant number of housing solutions in tandem with the projected increase in the island’s hotel room count over the next five years through the Invest MoBay aspect of the event. This, she said, would focus heavily on attracting new investors in the housing sector to St James in a bid to meet the needs of hotel workers in particular.
MoBay Expo gets under way on Friday, March 6, with the official opening ceremony, featuring Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica president Keith Duncan as keynote speaker. It will be followed by two days of full-fledged activities, including a full day of entertainment on Saturday, March 8, by Coral Cliff Gaming Lounge and a kiddies village, all free to the public.
Persons wishing to attend the expo have access to free shuttle service from Pier One via Knutsford Express, Tropical Tours, Ward’s Auto, and Real Mystic Tours to the venue and back. The event climaxes with a gospel concert, which attracts an entrance fee of $500.
Other sponsors of the expo include the Tourism Enhancement Fund, the Montego Bay Convention Centre, RJR Gleaner Communications Group, Ascend Innovation, Western Mirror, S Hotel, MBJ Airports Limited, VIP Attractions, Housing Agency of Jamaica, Sandals, Victoria Mutual, National Housing Trust, Magna Motors, Cheap Vacations, and National Commerce Bank.