Business View Caribbean | July 2022

30 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 9, ISSUE 7 there was a consistent flow of goods to each island, causing very little effect on supply. On the financial side of the operation, creative thinking was required to help reduce costs and find efficiencies, which Barrientos believes will benefit the company over the long term. He asserts, “The greatest success was to try to continue with those cost reductions now in the normal days. Overall, the COVID situation helped operators around the world to find alternatives, to adapt to the change. One of my favorite sayings is –When there is a crisis, some people will cry and others will sell handkerchiefs. It’s a matter of which side of the crisis you choose to be on.” With no staff layoffs during COVID, the Van den Tweel Caribbean Group worked to promote safety among employees, coordinating a vaccination campaign for staff members and installing shields in all areas where face-to-face contact would occur. “We gave our employees