Ma Pau to bring Port Zante to life

By VonDez Phipps
Reporter-SKNVibes.com

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – Ma Pau Inc. CEO John Wallis has said that the new entertainment centre opened Tuesday (Nov. 25) is intended to redefine entertainment in St. Kitts by creating a unique Port Zante experience.

DURING a recent interview with SKNVibes Wallis revealed that although the entertainment centre was just officially opened, the parent company was established on the island over a decade ago under the name Caribbean Education Company, selling reference books and encyclopaedia.

He added that over time the business expanded rapidly to be recognized in countries including Barbados, Trinidad, Europe and Africa, and was appropriately renamed ‘Ma Pau’ which means ‘Double up’ in Chinese.

“What we want to do is bring Port Zante to life because there’s very little to do here in the evenings. We want to be the leader in entertainment in the area to set an example for other entertainment agencies to follow. We would like to see Port Zante like a

New Orleans with live music and action which may even encourage cruise ships to stay overnight.
“Port Zante is one of the best ports for cruise ships in the Caribbean. If you look throughout the space, almost all the upstairs spaces of the building are empty.

There is nothing to do with all that space except make entertainment areas, and we feel that we should take the lead in attracting foreigners to get the St. Kitts experience.

“We have invested over EC $11 million in the St. Kitts Experience which includes the Sweet Lime Restaurant and Ma Pau worldwide casino chain. For this kind of investment, we are definitely here to stay. We need to make sure that our investment stays alive.”~~Adz:Left~~

Wallis acknowledged that tourism is the number one industry in the world and stressed that a major interest of many tourists is having top-quality entertainment, a product his company is committed to offering.

He mentioned that the entertainment centre, which houses bars, restaurants, a casino and a theatre, is expected to provide a different social atmosphere which allows for “a decent lime”.

The CEO emphasised that one of the business’ initial aim is to gain enough revenue in order to maintain the staff during the slow season, an objective Wallis views as an “indication that we are obviously here for the long run”.