7 News Belize

Expo: New Venue, New Energy
posted (September 20, 2010)
The 2010 Expo was held on Saturday at the ITVET compound in Belize City. We visited to find out if the new venue was enough to breathe new life into this fixture of the September celebrations schedule. Here's what we found:..

Andrea Polanco, Reporting
After the gates opened around 9 on Saturday morning, hundreds lined up to experience the biggest trade show in the country. It is a city-based event, but every year people come from all across the country for the Belize Expo Fair.

Some come for the sun, some for the fun and others for the rum….

Shopper
"I come from Hope Creek, Stann Creek District."

Andrea Polanco
"Ok so what did you come to do at the EXPO today?"

Shopper
"Well basically we come here for the great experience to taste all the foods and to see different stuff that Belize have."

Andrea Polanco
"So what do you like so far?"

Shopper
"I just come for the drinks actually. Its free and its nice."

Andrea Polanco
"Do you want to tell me what you enjoy about the EXPO this year?"

Shopper
"Everything, the snacks, all the games, everything."

Andrea Polanco
"You enjoying the EXPO today?"

Shopper
"Of course they have a lot of stall and its very fun to be out especially in this hot sun."

Andrea Polanco
"So what you enjoy so far?"

Shopper
"Well so far you have the university and I'm from 6th form looking for a university, son it's good that they have a stall out here for that - Galen University."

Shopper
"I come from Orange Walk."

Andrea Polanco
"So why you come all the way from Orange Walk to this EXPO at Belize City today?"

Shopper
"Well we were on our way to Belize for another thing and we just decided to stop by a little whole and check out the EXPO. It's our first time here."

Andrea Polanco
"Alright, so first time here. Are you enjoying it so far?"

Shopper
"Well it's nice, it's hot though."

Andrea Polanco
"So you buy anything so far? Have you seen any good deals already?"

Shopper
"Well the DigiCell yes. The triple up."

Andrea Polanco
"Are you enjoying the EXPO today?"

Shopper
"Yeah this place is awesome."

Andrea Polanco
"So what are you enjoying so far?"

Shopper
"Mostly the beer but the food is good too."

Andrea Polanco
"Yeah, first time. I live in the city about a year now and this is my first time."

Andrea Polanco
"So what's your impression?"

Shopper
"It's big; a lot of stuff to do and it's a lot of fun for sure."

Shopper
"I came from Belmopan to the EXPO today. I came last year because I really enjoyed the EXPO. I like the free stuff."

Shopper
"I came to this EXPO to see the fantabulous prices they have here and so far so good. Come people at home you can save a good amount of money."

Andrea Polanco
"So this is your first time at EXPO?"

Shopper
"Yes this is my first time."

Andrea Polanco
"So what you think about it?"

Shopper
"Very good. All the prices are very reasonable. Lots of discounts."

Andrea Polanco
"What is your favorite booth here today?"

Shopper
"Red Bull and Monster, I love those energy drinks."

While hundreds came out for the expo, they found what they had come to know and love: established businesses offering sizeable discounts and spreading company goodwill:

Calvin Reimer: Manager Quality Poultry
"Not a lot of purchasing is going around; we are just giving back to the community and sample the chicken. Make sure that chicken is part of their plate."

Andrea Polanco
"So why does Quality Poultry Products keep coming back to the EXPO every year?"

Calvin Reimer: Manager Quality Poultry
"We believe it's a very good way to show appreciation to our customers and to promote our products - hormone free, healthy chicken."

Henry Alegria Provost-Galen University
"Well we are here showcasing our programs both undergraduate and the graduate level. We also interested in pointing out that most of degrees and hopefully by the end of this year all of them are actually accredited in the United States via relationship we have with the University of Indianapolis."

Andrea Polanco
"Galen has been at the EXPO for some years now from since it started. What has the response been like over the years?"

Henry Alegria Provost-Galen University
"Well I just started this year but from speaking to my colleagues I know that their response has been very good, I know that quite a number of students have actually been recruited who were first contacted at the EXPO here."

Andrea polanco
"So today people have been passing thru. What have the comments been like?"

Henry Alegria Provost-Galen University
"All positive really and as I said it's important for us to be present at these events because there are quite a few people who weren't aware actually that Galen University exist, where it is and so it's important for us to make ourselves known, increase our presence around the country."

For other businesses it was their first time at the expo and they told us that the response from the public was overwhelming…

Andrea Polanco
"I believe this is your first year at EXPO. Why do you decide to participate in this?"

Pandora Canton-Owner: Pandora Window Box Nursery
"Well one of the reasons was the venue, its much cooler and also I've been working with some of the children in schools from last year so we decided to get together because the theme and focus is for children and to encourage children to get more into the garden and plant their own herbs and vegetables and fruits."

Andrea Polanco
"What has the support been like since morning?"

Pandora Canton-Owner: Pandora Window Box Nursery
"It's been very good actually from since yesterday from even when we were setting up everybody was coming around and it's been really good."

Andrea Polanco
"So you plan to come back next year?"

Pandora Canton-Owner: Pandora Window Box Nursery
"I think I will. I really think I will and we have quite a few children coming in asking lots of questions and as i said that's what its all about to encourage the children."

Pandora's helper-student
"I am helping the school. I encourage to come and to learn about the compost bin and help them learn more."

Andrea Polanco
"So you talk to any kids since this morning?"

Pandora's helper-student
"Yes."

Andrea Polanco
"So what they tell you?"

Pandora's helper-student
"They tell me that they are getting to like it. This is an example on one."

Gift Shop attendant (Kolbe Foundation)
"We are out here at the EXPO fair for the first time and we have all our items that the guys made at the prison on exhibition. You can come out and see whatever you like you can buy whatever. All these were handmade; they were done by the prisoners. Whatever we sell goes back to them because we educate them and we also put a saving a side for them when they come out from there."

Andrea Polanco
"So why they KOLBE Foundation decide to come out to the EXPO this year?"

Gift Shop attendant (Kolbe Foundation)
"Well I think they wanted the public to see how creative the guys are and what they can do."

Andrea Polanco
"So you have a lot of people stop in at the booth this morning?"

Gift Shop attendant (Kolbe Foundation)
"Yes we have a lot and we also making a little sale as well."

Every year the Belize Expo grows…more booths, more visitors, more entertainment…. To try to accommodate this, Vanessa Peyrefitte of the Belize Chamber of Commerce told us why the ITVET is the new location

Vanessa Peyrefitte, Marketing Manager BCCI
"We are at a new location this year and the reasons for that being that we wanted a change and we poll our members after the EXPO last year and some of them said that these are some of the things that we would want to see; maybe if we could change the location and so we look into that and fortunately the ITVET facility was recently renovated and we went into talks with ITVET and they said yes it's not a problem. So as you can see the infrastructure here is of a higher grade than the SJC compound and we felt that this location would provide greater market access to participants and also to the public at large."

Patrons of the event also preferred the new location:

Shopper
"We like the location. Actually I see more stuff this year."

Shopper
"I like the environment. I think it's a better environment than SJC Gymnasium, so I think it's very nice."

Shopper
"I think it's so much better the stalls are very far apart like compare to SJC, they had it in the gym and it was well pack, but out here we can have free space."

And it was certainly a hit for the phone companies which rolled out some of the biggest tents but still had customers waiting in lines. The Digicell booth was so packed that we couldn't even get under the tent - but for those wanting a deal on phones or credits it seemed that no line was too long…

At news time we could not reach the organizers to find out how this year's crowd compared to those in previous years.

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