POND ISLAND--St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) in collaboration with Kalaboom Events opened a Carnival Boutique in Carnival Village on Friday evening. The boutique is stocked with everything St. Maarten Carnival and will sell Carnival event-related items.
SCDF President Alston Lourens was on hand to give acting Minister of Tourism Cornelius de Weever a first-hand look at the store and explained that the location would soon be a hub for Carnival revellers to get their Carnival-related items.
The store will feature items that revellers and visitors could have as keepsakes, including but not limited to caps, shirts, water bottles, umbrellas, bags and more. Kalaboom Events has an elaborate marketing and branding strategy.
Lourens said merchandising is just a part of this strategy, but one which should not be underestimated. “We look at merchandising Carnival as a product on a store shelf surrounded by competing products. We believe we have the best Carnival in the Northeastern Caribbean, but if we can’t get our brand out there, it’s like kissing a girl in the dark, you know what you’re doing, but she doesn’t.
“With the help of a carefully formulated merchandising strategy, which we have, we can highlight the unique value of the Carnival brand to attain a true status of ‘best in the region,’” he said.
Vendors who would like to have their items sold in the store can contact Kalaboom Events on Facebook or visit the store in the Village.
