March 2017 | Business View Caribbean

90 91 For more than 25 years consumers have come to know and trust Rhino Linings ® sprayed-on truck bedliner product quality, strength and durability. Join our global applicator network of independently owned and operated retailers. JOIN THE BRAND LEADER. www.rhinolinings.com / join | 1-800-422-2603 Rhino Linings Corporation reserves the right to modify, adjust or terminate all pricing, sales, marketing and other programs. Businesses are independently owned and operated. ©2017 Rhino Linings Corporation. All rights reserved. RhinoLinings_BusinessView_QrtrPg2.qxp_Layout 1 3/2/17 2:18 PM Page 1 Belize Estate Company Limited ister their claims for shipping insurance.” BEC recently entered the car rental industry and is now a franchisee of Enterprise Holdings, the parent company of Enterprise Car Rental, Alamo Rent a Car, and National Car Rental. “We are a fledgling participant in the car rental industry,” says Vasquez, “but we have the rep- resentation of the best brand in the world.We may have just come in, but we have been able to position ourselves into the top two or three companies in the industry. I’m quite confident that in the next couple of years, we will be number one. Currently, we are at about 60 vehi- cles, and the potential is for us to be close to a hundred vehicles. But, we want to grow organ- ically; we don’t want to force the situation and have more fleet than we need.The local car rental market is not robust; we depend on tourists.” Vasquez believes that one of BEC’s compet- itive advantages is its close relationship with parent company, Bowen & Bowen, which pro- vides it with a country-wide infrastructure and network. “Although we are based in Belize City, we have a national reach,” he says. “So, we can offer services countrywide, where others may struggle to do so. That’s how we separate ourself. Our aim is to be in the top two or three position in every category that we participate in. That is our driving force.” In addition, despite its storied history, the modern BEC is a young and dynamic company that is al- ways looking for new opportunities: “For example, Belize does export oranges, citrus, sugar, bananas. The agricultural base needs a lot of transportation and we’re hoping to fill those gaps,”Vasquez posits. “There’s always the potential to take on new part- ners.”The company is also nimble.“The auto indus- try is constantlymoving, so we stay on top of the trends,”he states.“We have been able to sway with the economy and the trends in the market.” The days of British rule are long gone –Belize achieved its independence in 1981. And since that time, the Belize Estate Company, Ltd., heir to one of the oldest companies in the country, has established itself as a major force in the nation’s economy, employing over a hundred workers.“We are truly a Belizean company,”Vasquez states.“Our growth and development has mirrored and paral- leled the growth and development of the country. And we are part of one of the largest and strongest groups of companies in the country–the Bowen Group.We’ve been able to use that to help us grow and forge a strong foundation for our future. So, the sky’s the limit in what we can do.” Preferred vendor n Rhino Linings Corp. www.rhinolinings.com