Curaçao: A “Cultural Hybrid” For Growth In The Caribbean

Curaçao is ready to meet your business needs with multicultural talent and a bevy of economic free zones.

From the July/August 2019 Issue

The face of the world economy is constantly changing, a fact that everyone who wants to be successful in international trade must recognize and embrace. Nowadays, business growth almost unavoidably entails expansion beyond your own borders, and that is where the real work begins.

Curaçao
Curaçao has two Free Economic Zones (entrance pictured above), located adjacent to its seaport and international airport. (Photo: Curinde N.V. / Curaçao)

The concepts of economy, production and consumption are not the same everywhere. Specific traits of each culture determine how people view such things as supply and demand, pricing and quality. What is very important to a consumer in the U.S. or Europe can be totally insignificant to someone in the Caribbean. But perhaps even more importantly, a poor understanding of the applicable cultural ethics and linguistic sensitivities could seriously threaten your chances of success in an unfamiliar market.

Expanding across borders means not only responding quickly to ever-changing global markets, but also adopting and embracing cultures alien to your own. Understanding and doing business in another culture is more than just speaking the language. It means gaining knowledge of the local market but also having the ability to attune to the cultural nuances.

“A poor understanding of a culture’s business ethics and linguistic sensitivities can threaten your chances of success.”

Sure, you could choose to focus on your existing market and possibly the neighboring ones, but time has shown that there is only so much you can do in product differentiation and finding new niches. If you are looking for real growth, expansion to new markets is pretty much the way to go. This is a challenge, but not one that is impossible to overcome. As a matter of fact, it can be an exciting and rewarding one, if you tackle it properly.

When growth is the way to go, pick a business location that gives you a cultural advantage.

In-house development or acquisition of expertise that understands all multicultural complexities comes at a high cost. So, it pays off to pick a location that gives you both the advantage of favorable export conditions and a substantial pool of multicultural and multilingual experts with inherited experience.

What are some of the things to look for? Availability of knowledge and expertise with multicultural issues; possibilities to export making use of favorable business treaties; infrastructure that facilitates your start and the growth of your business.

Meet the “Cultural Hybrid” with real inherited experience: Curaçao, Dutch Caribbean.

In Curaçao around 40 different cultures have for centuries lived and worked together to create a hybrid culture with diversity in unity. Most of the population speaks at least three languages and understands four: Dutch, English, Spanish and the native language Papiamentu, a Portuguese-based creole that makes it easy for them to also comprehend and feel other creoles like Pidgin and Patois.

With a long tradition in trade and international service, Curaçao has created a service environment and infrastructure very well suited for dealing with multicultural complexities.

In addition to this great cultural advantage, the government of Curaçao offers attractive incentives to businesses established in the Free Economic Zones. The strong trinity of favorable economic conditions designed for international trade, proven expertise in dealing with different cultures around the globe and Free Economic Zones with turnkey facilities to jumpstart your business, make Curaçao an excellent choice for business expansion.

Curaçao, through the centuries, has built a tradition in banking and international financial services, renown all over the world. As to renewable and durable energy, Curaçao is doing good since 40 percent of its energy is produced with renewable and durable resources, while it is holding the reputation high of producing one of the world’s cleanest water out of the sea. Curaçao, thanks to the various submarine telecommunication cables connecting the island, hosts a tier IV data center, underwriting the quality of internet service available on the island. But it’s the quality of life, the sophistication in a Caribbean ambiance and the diversity of cultures living in harmony on 444 km² that truly make Curaçao, next to the perfect destination to do business, also the place to call home.

Contact us today to find out more about all the other benefits and incentives we offer. Curinde’s professionals are ready to assist with the establishment process of a company in one of their business parks.

For more information, please contact us via e-mail: info@curinde.com or visit our webpage.