IN 2020, many of the malls in the country faced significant challenges including slow foot traffic and low sales, however there has been a recent turnaround. Business Day spoke to several businesses in in Grand Bazaar, Valpark and Tunapuna about their day-to-day operations and challenges. THE "city" of Grand Bazaar has become the epicentre of a growing and flourishing business hub in eastern Trinidad and Tobago. In the Valsayn-based mall itself, one can see a wide variety of businesses including bakeries, clothing stores, restaurants and bars making the mall one of the premier shopping experiences in TT. But outside of the mall there are still several businesses that are growing and evolving. To the east of the mall, in St Augustine and Tunapuna, food stores, bars and restaurants are also propping up, making those areas key for entertainment, food and family gatherings. South of the mall is the ever-popular Bamboo, with parts places and businesses that specialise in servicing automobiles. Despite the challenges and setbacks that come with all business, each of these businesses make up an evolving network which supplies goods and services to the people in Valsayn and beyond. The Grand Bazaar Nicole Valere-Grimes, owner of a bakery called Sugar Box, has been in Grand Bazaar off and on since 2021. She came in at a time where businesses were struggling along with the rest of the world, amid the covid19 pandemic. During the pandemic, similar to many of the malls in the country, businesses in Grand Bazaar experienced slow foot traffic and low sales. Landlords Ansa Mc Al reduced rent in the mall by 25 to 100 per cent for many stores, but, Valere-Grimes said, businesses were still leaving as the rental arrangements were not in line with the revenues they were getting at the time. “A lot of the businesses were leaving the mall at that time,” she said. “That is how we managed to get the first store. We took the opportunity to go in there and things worked out well for us. But even two years after covid19 the economy wasn’t doing too well. A lot of shops apparently were still closing its doors. I noticed that even Francis Fashions left. “That whole side became very empty.” She said businesses are now making their way back to the mall with management opening its doors and arms to businesses. One of those businesses belongs to Josephine Soleyn, owner of Flourish Boutique. Soleyn told Business Day that she has been in the mall for a little over a year, but has been in the flower arrangement business for seven years. She said over the past year, several business in the mall have not only recovered but began expanding. “I have seen businesses open second stores in the mall,” she said. She however noted that there are still challenges for businesses in the mall. “Some of the challenges may be parking and the weather would have a lot to do with the community and getting access to the mall. There is a lot of competition there as well.” Valere-Grimes, who also has a branch in Valpark, said with the refurbishing of Valpark mall, Grand Bazaar is facing stiff competition for tenants. “Valpark is old, but is considered one of TT’s first malls,” she said. “Because they are refurbishing the mall, that is moving attention away from Grand Bazaar.” She however noted that Grand Bazaar has been tried and tested but has survived tough economic times. “They seem to know how to run the mall.” With regard to Valpark Shopping Centre, Valere-Grimes said the renovations has been able to bring in new tenants that in some ways compete with Grand Bazaar and in others seem to complement it. “The mall itself is like an entertainment centre because there are several restaurants and nightclubs. It is a different mall to Grand Bazaar,” she said. “I am seeing Valpark as improving from what it was because of renovations. When you look at an economy in any country people want to entertain themselves. They will always want to lime, take a drink or something like that. Because of that I think Valpark will grow.” She noted the competition from other malls and shopping centres could pose a challenge for Grand Bazaar. The Bamboo machine South of Grand Bazaar, the auto parts and machine hub of TT, the Bamboo, continues to grow with more auto parts businesses showing up in the area over the years. However Vidya (last name withheld), one of the managers in Double B auto, said traffic is slowing down in the area, making things all the more difficult for an already struggling industry. “Things have just gotten slower, I think with prices going up,” she said. “There are a lot of other places to get parts. Remember, long time ago, the Bamboo was the place for foreign-used parts but now you can go almost anywhere and get parts. “A lot of people might import the parts themselves. That would be another sale lost for us.” She said the Bamboo used to be a place with heavy traffic, but now, people can drive freely through the village. “That is how slow it has become.” She said for the company where she works, does a lot of advertising online to raise awareness for customers. “We would go on Facebook and things like that. We have marketing strategies and things like that.” She said getting the required foreign exchange to import car parts has increased significantly and that has put a strain on the car parts industry. She said shipping costs have almost doubled over the years. “We have a new government so we are hoping that things will change. A lot of the payments we have to pay in US currency, which is something that is hard to get at this time. As the years went by, clearing things at the port, customs duty, all of these things went up. If you can’t make the amount of money, you can’t clear the container and without goods, you cannot sell. Sometimes if you have a container at the port and you don’t have the money to clear it you would have to wait until you make the money.” A place for fun and family Megan (last name withheld), a manager at Bisou’s Bistro and Cakery in Tunapuna, which has been in operation for eight years, said the biggest challenges for them is crime and access to foreign exchange. She told Business Day that after their business was robbed in 2019, it is always a factor that is in the back of the minds of employees, managers and owners. “I think it is something that we always remember, so we are always more careful because that is something that has happened before. But we put a lot of security measures in place, so it has given us a little peace of mind.” She added that to grapple with the foreign exchange crunch, they have sought out alternatives for their products. “We were able to adapt and do alternatives based on that.” Megan said, like many businesses in the area, their business has become a place for family to get together and for students to come by for a treat. “I would say our main attraction is our brunch menu. We have all-day breakfast, but people really think of us as a brunch spot. They do come for our cakery items. We do cakes by order and we have cakes and pastries on sale in our showcase. “We are very close to UWI so there are a lot of university students and it is also very close to other high schools and primary schools. “It is a big spot for family. Parents drop their kids off and then they come for breakfast. A lot of our clients are repeat customers so we developed a very strong bond with them. Our business kind of just evolved over the years. We did a lot of work on social media and our clientèle grew over the last three years because of social media.” She said that while the Tunapuna and St Augustine area has become saturated with businesses such as Bisnu’s, it has not affected their sales or their traffic. She said through conversations with other businesses she has noticed that several businesses are seeing success in the area, despite the fact that many are in the food and beverage industry. “I think everyone kind of found their own niche within the area. I generally don’t see other businesses doing poorly. If anything the market keeps growing, which I think is great.” Like Valpark Shopping Plaza, Megan said she believed the area will grow to become one of TT’s many entertainment hubs, with restaurants, bars and nightclubs attracting customers for the nightlife. “There is a growing demand for places where people could just go and lime and enjoy stuff and have good-quality products and services while they are there. Tunapuna is definitely experiencing that so I am excited to see where it goes.”