For more than three decades, the Barbados Association for the Blind has taken part in the annual Barbados Manufacturers Association (BMA) Trade and Innovation Expo (TIE) (formerly known as the Barbados Manufacturers Expo, BMEX).
This year, officials of the association were particularly pleased with the networking opportunities that the exhibition provided as they continued to seek exposure for their mops and furniture repair skills.
“We normally come out to BMEX every year and we go to Agrofest. We try to keep the exposure alive. So we keep coming,” said Cheryl Griffith, the association’s marketing and sales officer.
As Griffith spoke with Barbados TODAY during the expo at the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium last weekend, tucked beside a huge poster in the background was Anderson Lowe, a member of the association, carefully and intricately weaving the seat on a chair.
“I have been doing this since 1986 – caning chairs,” declared Lowe, as he showed off his caning skills last Saturday.
The association has more than 20 other members who meticulously make mops and repair furniture at its St Pauls Avenue, Beckles Road, St Michael headquarters.
Griffith, who said she welcomed the new location for TIE, said it continued to provide the association with the opportunity to showcase how those who are visually impaired are able to do their work with much precision.
“What we do when we come, we not only sell mops but we also bring what we do at the centre for the blind – we demonstrate. We bring out our workers so the public can see how we do the cane at work,” she said.
Gushing about the mops, Griffith declared that they were “100 per cent cotton” and could either mop heads or complete mops could be purchased in three different sizes.
“They were all handmade by the blind and visually impaired at the Barbados Association for the Blind. We also have caned chairs and rush chairs that were all done by the workers at the Barbados Association for the Blind. There is nothing that my workers can’t do. Just give us a chance, give us a try and you will see. You will keep coming back over and over all the time,” she said with conviction.
The association can produce about 800 mops daily, while it can take up to a day and a half to two days to complete work on a chair.
Pointing to some mops with coloured handles, “happy mops”, Griffith said the proceeds from the sale of those items would go toward the association’s mental health programme.
She said the 66-year-old organisation continued to provide job opportunities for its members but called for greater support from the public.
“We only hire our own because we realise in this Barbados, 2023, I find that the other businesses in Barbados don’t hire us. So we have a home and a business for our people to keep them employed at all times,” Griffith said. “We want all of Barbados to support us. It is a very worthy cause because we keep our people employed and the material is a very high quality.”
“We have had repeat customers over the years. That is a very good thing, but we want the whole of Barbados to continue to support us and keep us at the forefront,” she added.
