BUSINESS MONDAY: EMBRACE MANUFACTURING

WITH Barbados looking to reinvigorate its depressed economy, a leading furniture manufacturer here said that there remains a role for both that sector and overall manufacturing to help pull the country through.

Randolph Sandiford, who heads up Matrix Marketing Inc. – a manufacturer of wooden furniture, gave his thoughts on the sector, which he said in the past contributed a lot to the economy and the standard of living of Barbadians.

“It is because I believe in manufacturing and agriculture that I have remained in furniture, despite the hardships, stresses and strain,” he told this newspaper.

Speaking on the current state of the Barbados furniture industry, Sandiford said that right now he has issues.

“It is not a new thing, but a continuation of what has been in train since the 1990s when the industry went through the window and trade liberalisation became the norm,” Sandiford said in an exclusive interview.

He believes that is all well and good when countries have resources to be utilised in other sectors.

“Furniture and manufacturing played a central part in absorbing labour and that has to be utilised,” he advised.

“The two can make governing the country easier and as we know ‘many hands make light work’ and ‘the devil finds things for evil hands to do,’” according to him.

Sandiford pointed out that as Barbados develops and prides itself in the home-grown strategy, it has to deal with manufacturing by developing the skills to make the economy strong without falling back on the notion of comparative advantage. The businessman reasoned that “we do subject ourselves to comparative advantage in relation to tourism and international business”.

He indicated that it is in our enlightened self-interest to embrace manufacturing because of what it can do.

He also recalled that in the recent Brexit general elections in the UK, reference was made to skills, pottery, glass blowing, furniture making, and agriculture and agro-processing, as significant to manufacturing.

Sandiford believes that since Barbados is referred to as “Little Britain”, it should do something similar.

The Matrix Marketing official believes that one day he will see policies dear to him, being undertaken.

“That is why we chose to be innovative in utilising elephant grass and local corn stalks as finishes in our products, and which are well received here and abroad.