Sharella Riedel

Interview April 2021

Could you tell us what has happened since we interviewed you on the 22nd November 2020 in regard to Made In Curaçao as platform? Did the platform grow in terms of the number of entrepreneurs that has decided to join the platform? And in terms of the number of people buying products locally and internationally?
After our interview and our Sustainable Trade Expo we had a big push and a lot of reactions. But the online sale did not pick up as expected. Many people still want to see, touch the products. Some are waiting to travel to Curaçao to purchase the products and services. There is also an ‘adjustment fatigue’. Rules are changing continuously for sellers and customers thus, plans and ideas are constantly changing and we have noted the ‘disappointments’. This cuts both ways: clients lose their enthusiasm to buy and sellers are getting tired of having to find a new way to push. This does not mean that nothing is happening. What is developing now are: change, adaptation and resilience.

And what are you doing exactly to help these entrepreneurs out?
I am doing a lot of coaching. I am a coach for entrepreneurs in both Curaçao and The Netherlands. Brainstorming and new perspective are needed at the moment. Our platform alone is not enough for most entrepreneurs. Iammadein.com is a big step forward as a client will have all their contact details in one place plus any other outlet of the platform they want to use. May it be through the use of the digital magazine, virtual showcase, webshop, blog or video expression on www.iammadein.com.

We are assisting companies to go digital, convert their product to what is sellable at this moment, creating new ideas and sometimes we are just a listing ear.