PM: Tourism success depends on people as much as place

A strong visitor economy will hinge on service standards and the ability to blend business and leisure experiences, Prime Minister Mia Mottley said on Monday, as she urged workers to see themselves as central to Barbados’ competitiveness and appeal.

Speaking at the grand opening of the Blue Monkey Hotel and Beach Club at Paynes Bay, St James on Monday, she declared that tourism is about much more than accommodation, as it must combine relaxation, business, entertainment and memorable experiences.

She described tourism as a bridge that allows Barbados to remain relevant to visitors seeking rejuvenation, relaxation, entertainment, and business:

“It is that combination of factors that more often than not we have to get right because a person doesn’t set out to say I’m only coming here for business. When they come for business, they want to dine. When they come for business, they still want to engage with people. When they come for business, they may still want a sea bath, so that we have to find a way of blending the experiences in a way that just simply makes one definitive point: that Barbados welcomes you, that Barbados wants you here, and that Barbados will always ask for you to come back.”

Mottley highlighted the need to renew all aspects of the tourism experience to provide visitors with better, more relevant choices, especially as the perception persists that Barbados caters mainly to an older demographic.

She said newer hotels demonstrate the industry’s modernisation and reflect investor confidence in Barbados’ economy.

“This is evidence of the modernisation that’s taken place. We opened Royal Vessence a few weeks ago, and while we have done no formal opening for the Hotel Indigo, [it] has in fact been hosting a number of major experiences nationally such that Bajans are aware of the new offering that is with us.”

A number of new hotels are expected over the next two to three years, she said, describing them as evidence of confidence in the management of the Barbadian economy.

“Nobody will invest in an economy that does not expect to give them the kinds of returns and the kinds of growth path that they want to see for their money.”

She said staff provide the most important part of the visitor experience, often determining whether visitors return or recommend Barbados to others.

“I want to reinforce it because at the end of the day, when we walk into a hotel or a restaurant, we do not see the shareholder. You see the staff and how that staff greets us and how that staff treats us determines whether we come back again, whether we shout from the rooftops of how excellent the experience was, or whether we let go in good old Bajan parlance a long stupes.”

Noting that almost one in every two dollars produced annually in Barbados is linked to tourism, the prime minister said it was imperative that every aspect of the visitor experience be renewed.

Mottley encouraged workers to view tourism as a career and highlighted authenticity, kindness and excellent service:

“You will determine the kind of experience that people have in this hotel and in every other hotel, villa, and attraction that we have locally. But it is up to you to determine fundamentally that this must be the best one that you can get anywhere in this region, and I want eventually to suggest anywhere in the world. Authenticity comes not from speaking pretty. Authenticity comes from the heart, and authenticity comes from being decent with people.”

She pointed to the need for collaboration and a symbiotic relationship between owners, investors and staff:

“There has to be a win-win, a win for the owners, a win for the workers, and I have been around long enough to know and to see that where that win-win relationship exists, then more often than not, people’s sense of satisfaction and people’s sense of appreciation will always be there.”

She said tourism’s impact extends beyond hotels and attractions, supporting areas including transport, maintenance, manufacturing and other services.

“Those people driving trucks who are delivering goods, those people who are fixing equipment, mechanical and electric equipment that necessarily require volume in order for their businesses to be sustained, and I can go on and on so that when we see each other slipping or not doing the things that we ought to do to be welcoming.

“Then I invite each and every one of us to reach out and to ask each other to remember who we are and why we are in this business and why we must play our part.”

(LG)