BASSTERRE, St. Kitts - KITTITIAN-BRED entrepreneur Kelvin Christopher is definitely on the path of becoming a force to be reckoned with in the business world.
At age 29, he is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of a newly-established company called Viva Caribbean Media Group which is based in Antigua, his country of birth.
Notably, he had been living in St. Kitts from since the age of nine.
SKNVibes had an exclusive interview with Christopher who disclosed that the company has been operating in Antigua and Barbuda since October of 2012 with staff members originating from Antigua, St. Kitts and St. Martin.
“I just started a regional company by the name of Viva Caribbean Media Group. We are a production, media and marketing company based in Antigua,” he shared.
He informed that his team recently finished producing its “first major project” for the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Channel which was launched in February of this year.
“According to the Hotel and Tourist Association President here in Antigua, Neil Forrester, at the video launch he said that that production was the best tourism video Antigua has had for years,” Christopher said.
“The production is in full HD and airs on local TV, the airport monitors and online at www.thetourismchannel.com,” he added.
Christopher talked about some of the projects that the company has produced.
“We have produced commercials and infomercials for a number of companies here in Antigua, which include stores, major hotels, restaurants, real estate, telecommunication companies, automotive, catamaran cruises and even commercials for helicopters.”
Commendably, Viva Caribbean Media Group landed the top spot after contesting a bid against production companies from the United Kingdom, United States of America and across the Caribbean region.
The bid was hosted by a private company from Antigua and Barbuda named Karib Cable, which is the Executive Producer of the tourism channel there.
Christopher was questioned as to how he got about embarking on such a business project.
“When I was in St. Kitts and sent the cable company here the proposal to produce their new channel, we bid for the job against UK, US and other regional production companies.
“We were chosen because of the level of quality work that I've produced in the past was great to them. I was also able to produce a corporate advert for them in two days and they were very impressed with what we were able to produce in the time of delivery. Let's just say we deliver.”
Asked what the objectives of the company are pertaining to the tourist destination branding, he stated: “Our objective is to create a more appealing product via video and audio and also prove that countries no longer have to outsource work outside the Caribbean.”
He added: “We plan to travel to different islands producing top quality videos that would surely attract people to our islands.”
When questioned if Antigua and Barbuda and St. Kitts and Nevis are the only countries his company currently does production for, Christopher replied in the affirmative.
“Yes…for now! I would like to appeal to St. Kitts’ businesses and tourism authority that they need to utilise their own talents there. I had no choice but to leave St. Kitts because not many businesses were using my talent or willing to give me a chance to prove that I'm as good as or even better than production companies overseas.”
For Christopher, he feels that his talent is being recognised now that he is working outside of St. Kitts, which has allowed for more opportunities.
“I feel more appreciated outside of St. Kitts. My talent has been noticed here and has opened more doors for my company.”
SKNVibes got a glimpse into future projects to be undertaken by Viva Caribbean Media Group.
“We’re going to be shooting a series for Tempo TV here in Antigua very soon as well. They have also put us on their list of teams they call upon to film around the region. So another part of the venture is building partnerships with other major companies.”
The company has received endorsement from Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, Carib Kable, Tempo Networks, Carib Vision and St. Kitts and Nevis Tourism Authority.
Most persons in St. Kitts and Nevis would be familiar with Christopher as a radio personality and producer by the name DJ Kells. Additionally, he is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of SKN Entertainment.
