BASSETERRE St. Kitts – THE current economic downfall proves no match to some individuals who are finding more and more extra-ordinary pocket friendly ways of starting and running their businesses.
One such individual is Donald Vaughan, a 72 year old retiree who has a little, one-man business that surely catches the eyes of everyone when he rolls his wheel barrow through town.
Silver Girl is a wheel barrow, redesigned by Vaughan himself. The inside is spray-painted silver, the outside black with words of spirituality written in yellow. The wheel barrow is adorned with ornaments of different animals which Vaughan said was created by prison inmates.
Complete with horns and a large flashlight, Vaughan’s Silver Girl is his very unique means of transporting his creations from his Lime Kiln home into Basseterre where he ‘sets up’ on the side of the road and sells twice or three times per week.
Vaughan’s products include graters made from tins and pieces of board; coal pots made from drum barrels; fish cleaners made from a thin piece of board, nails and metal bottle caps; and pots and pot covers made from metal. This hobby turned small business is the septuagenarian’s way of not only making a living but staying fit and active.
“I used to make these things as a hobby – just for the love of doing it. Now I do it to make a living for myself. I also do it as a way of staying active.
When you start aging, you have to find ways of keeping active otherwise old age will catch up with you quick, and while you cannot outrun the aging process, you still have to exercise and try to stay fit, so using the wheel barrow to transport my stuff is just my way of exercising,” he explained.
Vaughan first started out in the 50’s working at the three and half century old Sugar Factory as a mechanic, it was there that he learnt and fell in love with the art of using scrap metal and tins to make different things.
After retiring from being a Security Guard at the Ocean Terrace Inn for some 15 years, Vaughan decided to go back to his original love of creating new things from old and thus, Silver Girl came to mind.
The septuagenarian said that the idea of making these items on a commercial basis came from people coming to him and asking him to make them. He said the idea was also inspired by Frasier, an old man with whom he spent a great deal of time; he used to make these items as well.
Vaughan said that after Frasier passed away, he decided to continue where he [Frasier] left off and make these items, which became an instant hit for him.
He went on to say that the wheel barrow design came from his love of seeing and having unique things.
When asked about the current recession and if it has any effect on his business, Vaughan stated that it has had some effect on his business as his customer flow has decreased.
Vaughan and his Silver Girl can be found every Friday and Saturday on the roadside in front of Delisle Walwyn & Co. or on Princes Street. His prices are inexpensive and vary for each item.
