分类： business

Tucked near the bustling center of Jamaica’s Montego Bay, a new gated residential development called Park 7 Ave is taking shape, rooted in a straightforward design philosophy from lead architect Robin Baston: build a space you would be proud to call home.

The end result of Baston’s approach is a cozy, 34-unit community spread across five three-story buildings, configured to balance occupancy with generous open green space that avoids the overcrowded feel common to many mid-market apartment projects. The development includes 22 one-bedroom units and 12 two-bedroom units, all outfitted with modern, sought-after amenities ranging from a community shared swimming pool and dedicated yoga deck to on-site laundry facilities, in-unit solar water heaters, walk-in closets, and premium marble threshold showers with tempered glass enclosures. Pricing starts at JMD $35 million for one-bedroom layouts and JMD $50 million for two-bedroom units, positioning the project between luxury high-end developments and dense budget-focused builds.

Construction on Park 7 Ave kicked off in mid-2023, with an initial completion target of the end of 2024. That timeline was disrupted when Hurricane Melissa swept through the region, pushing the expected handover to the first quarter of 2025. According to Baston, the project is now progressing steadily, having reached the roof construction phase across all blocks, with some units already moving into advanced interior work including tiling and internal wall framing.
Baston leads Robin Baston Associates (RBA), the architectural firm behind the development, which brings 30 years of regional design experience spanning villas, resort properties, commercial and retail spaces, and residential remodels. His past notable projects include Jamaica’s Long Mountain Country Club, multiple private villas in Silver Sands, the Canadian Chancery, the Imperial Optical corporate headquarters, and all Kingston Bookshop retail and office locations. Baston also serves as a director of Fullon Properties Ltd, the developer behind Park 7 Ave, which was founded 10 years ago and has previously delivered successful projects including Chatham Grove and Chatham Palms in Montego Bay, and the Charlton Road development in Kingston.

In a recent interview with *Jamaica Observer’s Real Estate on the Rock*, Baston shared detailed insight into Fullon Properties’ fourth residential development, breaking down what makes the project unique in Jamaica’s competitive real estate market.

Fullon Properties has carved out a distinct niche in Jamaica’s residential development space over its 10-year history, introducing industry innovations that have reshaped local consumer expectations and left real estate agents eager for more of the firm’s work. “They literally call asking, ‘When is the next project?’” Baston noted. Among the company’s trailblazing changes to the local market are the trend of naming developments after their street addresses and the popular one-deposit downpayment plan, which eases financial strain for buyers by making budget management far more accessible.

Fullon’s unique operating model draws on long-standing partnerships with contracted accounting services, in-house architectural expertise, and close collaborative relationships with local real estate agents, engineers, and contractors. While the firm currently focuses exclusively on residential development, it has plans to expand into commercial projects in the coming years.

When asked what differentiates Park 7 Ave from competing residential developments in Montego Bay, Baston explained that the project fills a gap many developers have ignored. “While many residential developments are either geared toward the luxury market or focused primarily on maximising unit density, Park 7 Ave was conceived to provide a balance between affordability and exclusivity,” he said. A core distinguishing feature is the project’s architect-led design philosophy, which guided every decision from individual apartment layouts to amenity integration and the overall community character.

Park 7 Ave also upholds Fullon’s long-standing tradition of delivering distinctive, non-formulaic residential communities. Rejecting the repetitive, boxy architectural aesthetic common to mass-produced apartment developments, the project embraces a timeless design that is built to hold its visual appeal and market relevance for decades.

The development’s target market aligns with its balanced positioning: it caters primarily to young professionals, growing local families, Jamaican residents returning from overseas, and real estate investors who want high-quality, thoughtfully designed housing in Montego Bay without the steep price tag that comes with luxury developments.

For prospective buyers, Baston highlighted multiple key advantages of purchasing a unit at Park 7 Ave. The development offers a rare combination of open communal space, exclusive gated access, and panoramic views at an accessible price point. Every unit in the five-block community boasts either unobstructed sea views or sweeping vistas across Montego Bay toward Westgate, Bogue, and Reading, guaranteeing spectacular sunset views for all residents.

Even though it is priced for the mid-market, Park 7 Ave still delivers the exclusive feel that home buyers seek, at a far more manageable entry point. Baston pointed to Fullon’s previous popular Montego Bay development, Chatham Palms, as a proven blueprint for the project’s success. Following completion, Chatham Palms saw a 100 percent increase in property value in just two years. The development also proved its construction quality during Hurricane Melissa, emerging from the storm with zero structural damage — a testament to Fullon’s commitment to sound building practices and durable design.

When global streaming star IShowSpeed unveiled his 15-stop Caribbean tour in late April, Jamaica’s official tourism body jumped at an opportunity far beyond hosting a single entertainment stop: a chance to leverage the creator’s massive global audience and diehard fanbase to put the island nation front and center for young travelers worldwide.

Jamaica Vacations Limited (JamVac), a government agency under Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism, built its strategy around a key industry insight: digital creators now hold far more sway over travel decisions and destination awareness among younger demographics than many traditional marketing channels. For JamVac Executive Director Joy Roberts, the partnership was a natural fit beyond just reach — IShowSpeed’s unfiltered, authentic public persona aligns perfectly with the vibrant, unpretentious culture of Jamaica, making him the ideal messenger to showcase the island to the world.

“As soon as we confirmed Jamaica would be a featured stop on his tour, we knew we had to lean into this opportunity to authentically highlight our island’s culture, people, and one-of-a-kind experiences to a massive global audience,” Roberts told local outlet Jamaica Observer.

Unlike JamVac’s core mandate of managing airlift capacity and driving travel demand through partnerships with traditional tour operators, this initiative required a rapid cross-government and cross-sector collaboration. Teaming up with the Ministry of Culture and the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), JamVac coordinated logistics on a tight timeline to deliver a seamless visit for the 55-million-subscribe YouTube creator while maximizing Jamaica’s global exposure. The accelerated operation pulled together everything from local transportation to authentic Jamaican culinary experiences and culturally rooted activities in mere weeks.

Roberts emphasized that stakeholders from every corner of Jamaica stepped up to make the visit a success, from public sector agencies to private business owners, entertainers, chefs, local tour operators, and transportation providers, all eager to showcase their country in a positive light. She specifically highlighted Miss T’s Kitchen, which provided local meals throughout IShowSpeed’s stay, and Jamark Transportation, which handled the creator’s ground logistics.

Prominent Jamaican entertainment entrepreneur Romeich Major was one of the first private sector leaders to join the effort, a decision he calls an obvious no-brainer. “Any opportunity to support entertainment and national uplift, regardless of who it’s for, I will always show up,” Major said. He contributed sponsorship and organized the tour’s dancehall-focused finale event; while clips of the party were not part of IShowSpeed’s official livestream, they spread rapidly across social media and gained millions of organic views. “There was no way we’d let one of the world’s biggest creators come to Jamaica and not let him experience a real Jamaican dancehall event,” Major explained.

The payoff for the coordinated effort was substantial: the Jamaican leg of the tour generated millions of dollars in earned media value, putting the island in front of tens of millions of global viewers. IShowSpeed’s livestream from Kingston racked up more than seven million total views, with a peak of nearly 195,000 concurrent live viewers tuning in to see his explorations.

Major summed up the opportunity simply: “He has a huge platform that reaches all over the world, so now millions more people get to see what Jamaica has to offer. It was an incredible initiative — the only downside is he didn’t have more time to see everything; he needs two or three full days to really experience the island,” he added with a laugh.

Roberts echoed that sentiment, noting that the unscripted, spontaneous nature of IShowSpeed’s content gave audiences an unfiltered look at Jamaica’s culture that traditional advertising cannot match. That visibility was particularly critical this year, as parts of Jamaica’s tourism sector continue to recover from damage caused by Hurricane Melissa. “When you’re still rebuilding after a major storm, staying top of mind for global travelers is non-negotiable. Initiatives like this keep Jamaica on the list for people planning their next trip,” Roberts said.

The partnership also highlights a rapidly growing new frontier for tourism marketing: influencer-driven destination promotion. Roberts noted that while traditional marketing campaigns still hold value, influencer content — especially live streaming — allows audiences to experience a destination in a far more immersive and authentic way than pre-produced ads. JamVac has not yet released final cost figures for the initiative, as it is still compiling total expenses.

The JTB, which facilitated IShowSpeed’s VIP welcome at the airport but took a less central role in coordination, also praised the project’s impact. Director of Tourism Donovan White confirmed that the only costs the JTB incurred were for the welcome event, which included stilt walkers, traditional drummers, and Jonkonnu dancers. “Since IShowSpeed arrived in Jamaica, his content has already earned millions of global views, and clips keep circulating across social media,” White said. “That kind of authentic exposure to young audiences is extremely valuable, and you can’t put a price on that.”

White added that it is still too early to measure the full long-term impact on visitor numbers, but the potential benefits are enormous. “His content showcased our culture, music, food, energy, and people in real time — that kind of organic visibility is impossible to replicate through traditional advertising,” he explained. White also noted that Jamaica’s ongoing popularity with top influencers is no accident: the island’s natural scenery, vibrant culture, and global soft power resonate deeply with young digital audiences, and content from visits like this remains searchable and shareable online for months or even years, extending its promotional value long after the livestream ends.

Coordination of local artists and production for the tour stop was handled by IShowSpeed’s personal team in partnership with local private sector production partners. Major summed up the effort: “More than a hundred people from across the island came together to make this work — from security to drivers to every person behind the scenes. It was a total team effort.”

Under the blistering heat of southern Pakistan’s famed mango-growing region, farm workers perch precariously on thick tree branches, moving quickly to pluck ripe golden fruit and drop it into canvas sacks held by colleagues on the dusty ground below. It is peak mango season, but a sharp, unforeseen disruption tied to the ongoing Middle East crisis has upended the entire supply chain, leaving thousands of farmers and traders facing crippling financial losses this year. Pakistan, which has stepped in to mediate talks between conflict parties, has watched its agriculture-dependent economy get dragged into the crossfire of regional instability, with disastrous consequences for the country’s most iconic export crop.

The annual mango harvest in Sindh province, the heart of Pakistan’s mango industry, kicked off in June. A preliminary ceasefire deal between warring parties announced by Pakistani mediators this week came far too late to salvage the 2024 export season, which wraps up in September. Traders and industry leaders confirm that total exports are on track to drop by at least 30% compared to last year, driven by plummeting demand in key regional markets and a four-fold surge in international shipping costs.

In Tando Allahyar, the core of Pakistan’s mango cultivation belt, orchard manager Mohammad Shakeel oversees fields of the premium Sindhri variety – a golden-skinned mango celebrated across South Asia for its rich, sweet flavor and juicy pulp, named for the province where it thrives. Today, Shakeel says he is staring down losses so severe that many independent contractors have walked away from harvest contracts entirely, abandoning their advance deposits rather than risking further debt. “So many losses have been incurred, the contractors have even left their advance money,” he told AFP in an interview on the orchard floor.

Pakistan is the world’s fourth-largest mango exporter, growing more than two dozen commercial varieties that normally generate roughly $110 million in annual export revenue. The “king of fruits,” as it is known across South Asia, is not just an economic staple but a cultural icon for the country. The current crisis lays bare the deep geopolitical vulnerability of Pakistan’s economy, which relies heavily on an agricultural sector already grappling with growing climate disruptions ranging from extreme heatwaves to catastrophic flooding.

Waheed Ahmed, Chief Patron of the All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporter Association, explains that nearly 80% of Pakistan’s mango exports go to markets in the Gulf region, Iran, and neighboring Afghanistan – all areas that have been gripped by escalating conflict and political instability in recent months. “The border to Afghanistan is closed, there is war in Iran… there is war in the entire Middle East,” Ahmed noted. He projects that total mango exports will fall from around 110,000 tonnes last season to just 80,000 tonnes this year, a 27% drop that aligns with trader forecasts of a 30% decline in export revenue.

While Ahmed welcomes the preliminary US-Iran ceasefire announced this week, the agreement came too late to reverse the damage to this year’s harvest, and long-term uncertainty remains for future seasons. “The main challenges still remain,” he said. Persistent conflict along Pakistan’s western border with Afghanistan has already frozen cross-border trade, leaving hundreds of loaded trucks stranded at closed crossings for months. Meanwhile, escalating tensions around the Strait of Hormuz – the world’s busiest maritime oil trade route – have driven up global energy prices, pushing shipping costs to unprecedented levels. Last year, Ahmed says, a 25-tonne container of mangoes cost roughly $1,400 to ship to key Gulf markets. This year, that same container costs between $6,000 and $7,000, a more than 300% increase that prices most exporters out of the international market.

Any hopes that flooding the domestic market with cheap, surplus mangoes would offset lost export earnings have quickly been dashed by broader economic pressures spurred by the regional conflict. Pakistan’s inflation rate jumped from 5.5% in the pre-conflict July-February period to 10% in the three months after hostilities escalated, according to official government data. Soaring prices for basic goods including bread, fuel, and housing have left working-class Pakistani households unable to afford even the deeply discounted mangoes now available in local markets.

At a bustling open-air market in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest and most economically diverse city, customer Muhammad Ashad examined stacks of plump, cheap mangoes priced at 200 Pakistani rupees (roughly $0.72) per kilogram – exactly half the price he paid last year. “Mangoes are very cheap this time compared to the last few years… because our export has stopped,” he explained. “I am seeing everywhere that there are very good mangoes, but people are still not able to buy them.”

Shakeel, the orchard manager, says the dynamic creates a lose-lose situation for producers and consumers alike. Local prices are at rock bottom, but millions of households cannot afford to purchase the fruit even at half the 2023 price. “In the local market, the price is low. But not everyone can afford to buy mangoes. Look at the state of the country: expenses are rising… income is low. Should they buy their bread first or our mangoes?” he asked. For Pakistan’s $110 million mango industry, the 2024 harvest will go down as a cautionary tale of how regional geopolitical instability can quickly unravel the livelihoods of millions of people working in one of the country’s most important agricultural sectors.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — In a landmark move to address Jamaica’s growing demand for accessible small business financing, First Union Financial Company Limited has unveiled a J$1 billion dedicated initiative aimed at lifting up thousands of working Jamaicans pursuing side businesses and budding entrepreneurs across the island.

Named the Employees’ Side-Hustle and Entrepreneur Micro Loan Revolving Fund Programme, the new initiative is crafted to remove the most persistent barrier holding back income-generating ventures across Jamaica: limited access to affordable capital. By opening up financing to individuals looking to launch new side projects, scale existing small operations, or solidify their business foundations, the fund targets three core long-term goals: expanding financial independence for Jamaican households, increasing rates of local business ownership, and driving sustained, inclusive economic growth across the country, the company outlined in an official statement.

Jonalisa Brooks, Group General Manager of First Union Financial, explained that the program was directly shaped by shifting labor and economic trends across Jamaica. In recent years, the country has seen a sharp rise in full-time employees launching supplementary side businesses to boost their household income, a trend that created an unmet need for targeted financial support.

“We have watched a significant shift unfold: more and more Jamaicans are balancing full-time roles while building their own small business ventures on the side,” Brooks shared. “Countless people across the country are searching for actionable ways to add to their income, provide more stability for their families, and build a more secure financial future. We saw a clear gap: there was no dedicated financing program built specifically to support these ambitions, so we built one.”

Beyond supporting new side-hustle launches, the initiative also delivers much-needed working capital to established small business owners who are ready to scale their operations and grow their impact. Brooks emphasized that access to affordable capital has long been the single biggest challenge facing small and micro enterprise owners across Jamaica, and the fund is designed to directly close that gap.

“For emerging and established small business owners alike, limited access to financing remains the top barrier to growth,” Brooks noted. “Through this revolving fund, we are delivering practical, accessible funding solutions that meet entrepreneurs where they are. Our commitment to serving the people of Jamaica — working employees and aspiring business owners alike — has never been stronger.”

Qualified applicants will be able to access loans of up to J$2.5 million to support a broad range of viable income-generating activities. Eligible sectors include retail and wholesale trade, agriculture and agro-processing, local manufacturing, transportation and logistics, professional services, import and distribution, technology and digital businesses, along with other vetted profitable ventures.

A key innovative feature of the program is its revolving fund structure, which creates a self-sustaining model of financing for future generations of Jamaican entrepreneurs. As current borrowers repay their loans, those funds are cycled back into the pool to issue new loans, ensuring that capital remains available to support new business founders long into the future.

Brooks emphasized that the launch comes at a critical juncture for Jamaica’s economic recovery and long-term development, noting that many of the country’s most successful, industry-leading businesses started as small side projects run by hardworking founders. “Thousands of Jamaicans have the talent, the drive, and the game-changing ideas to build thriving, successful enterprises — but too often, they are held back simply because they can’t access the capital they need to get off the ground or grow,” she said. “This fund is built to unlock that untapped potential.”

“Jamaica needs more entrepreneurs, more local business owners, and more local job creators,” Brooks added. “By investing in hardworking people who are ready to invest in themselves and their ideas, we are building stronger local communities, more resilient small businesses, and ultimately a stronger, more prosperous Jamaican economy.”

First Union Financial is now encouraging all interested eligible Jamaicans to learn more about the program, reach out to company offices for detailed information on eligibility criteria and application processes, and take advantage of the new financing opportunity.