Pennywise Cosmetics

Putting its Best Face Forward

A Legacy of Value, Growth, and Giving Back

From its humble beginnings, Pennywise Cosmetics has grown into the largest health and beauty retailer in Trinidad. With ten stores and a reputation for the widest range of products at the lowest prices, Pennywise is a household name on the island.

“We offer anything that makes people feel happy and beautiful,” describes Director, Dr. Shivum Paladee. “We’re not a supermarket, but we’re also not just a pharmacy. Anything that people will use on themselves to make them feel better, look better, or just give them some confidence, that’s the type of product we offer.”

A Family-Driven Journey to Success

The story of Pennywise began with Mr. Lall Pall Paladee, Shivum’s grandfather, who started selling goods door-to-door on a bicycle he won in a raffle. “He would buy items in Port of Spain and then ride to the rural part of Trinidad to sell items you would buy in the city,” Paladee recounts. Over time, this enterprising spirit led to successful market stalls in Chaguanas, and Tunapuna, which his five sons would help at after school.

Carrying on the tradition of entrepreneurship, Shivum’s father, Dalvi Paladee, left university to open the first Pennywise store. “He encouraged all of his brothers to work together with him as well,” he explains. “They put everything together. They worked for years and years without taking a salary. Everything was reinvested back into the business, and over time, with that type of dedication and cooperation, they opened another branch and another branch.”

Today, the company owns the properties in seven of its ten locations, including two malls, where Pennywise is the anchor store. “It has been quite a rapid growth over the past 35 years or so. We have been blessed to have this type of success. I think it’s because of what we offer, which is the best prices and the widest range of items,” says Paladee.

The Pennywise Advantage

The Pennywise business model focuses on high sales volume and minimal markup, offering a range of premium to affordable options. Along with this, the company puts an emphasis on staying ahead of beauty trends, recognizing that the industry is always changing.

To further enhance customer engagement, Pennywise locations feature individual booths, which act as “stores within a store.” These spaces are rented out to suppliers and feature major international brands like Revlon, Maybelline, and L’Oréal, as well as beloved local brands such as Sacha, creating an opportunity for promotions and a personalized experience. Pennywise also ensures that employees stay current on the latest products and trends. From certified makeup artists to perfume experts, Paladee says customers can be confident they will receive the most knowledgeable advice.

Another advantage for Pennywise is its strong relationships with global companies such as Procter & Gamble (P&G), Pennywise’s largest supplier. “P&G has told us that we are their number one retailer in the region, and they visit us regularly, at least a couple of times a year,” Paladee relays. “They bring a lot of the innovation that they see worldwide, and we try to implement these things into the stores. We are lucky to have access to that type of information.”

Supporting Local Businesses and Building Careers

The company also supports local manufacturers by purchasing their products and providing opportunities to showcase their offerings. “We try to give them a chance to have space in the stores, give them preferred spaces, and help to build smaller local businesses in Trinidad,” notes Paladee. He adds that the company contributes substantially to the nation’s economy by paying taxes and complying with all financial obligations. “We pay everything that is due to the country, because we think it’s very important for Trinidad to have businesses doing their part,” he acknowledges.

With a workforce of 1,600 employees spread across its ten stores and warehouse operations, Pennywise is one of the largest employers in the region. Upcoming plans to expand a warehouse and a store will further increase this number. “It is very important to us to have lots of staff. We think it’s important to give customers the best service so that they always have someone that you can ask questions to,” says Paladee.

What sets Pennywise apart is its approach to career development. The company hires staff for entry-level roles and promotes from within for management positions. Paladee details, “Out of the hundreds of employees that come, we try to find the persons that are really motivated, driven and honest, and those are the people that we try to help to move upwards in the company. This company has unlimited room for upward growth, you just have to be serious about what you’re doing and love what you’re doing, because then it reflects in your work.”

Giving Back

At the heart of Pennywise Cosmetics lies a commitment to making a difference, a value deeply rooted in the company’s history. Paladee highlights, “Our goal is to make Trinidad, and by extension the world, a better place.”  One of Pennywise’s most impactful initiatives is its weekly home-building program, a project rooted in compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to the community. AP Scott, one of Pennywise’s close business partners whose director is also a part of the house building team, acquired specialized machinery that enables the construction of prefabricated homes for needy families. These are built entirely by volunteers. Every week, a group of 60 to 100 volunteers, led by Dalvi and his brother Satnarine, come together to build a house which is a transformative experience for all involved. “This is our blessing, that we are able to do these things. A lot of the people that we assist, they’re in a position where they can’t help themselves. They’re trying their best, but a breadwinner passed away, somebody’s ill, something happened, and they are just in a position where they can’t go anywhere,” Paladee reflects. Constructed with prefabricated materials, the process has been refined to take just 90 minutes per house.

What makes this initiative even more remarkable is its anonymity. Pennywise is careful not to boast or promote its philanthropy. “We don’t talk about it. The recipients are not even aware that Pennywise is funding these homes. This is part of what we do, and we try to encourage the other companies that we work with,” Paladee portrays. “The core group of our team is actually volunteers from our employees. Without them it would be impossible to do what we do. They show up week after week, they’re very dedicated. It gives them a lot more pride in working for Pennywise, because they see where the profits go.”

The program’s reach has expanded beyond Trinidad to other Caribbean nations in times of crisis. “We finished a project to build 27 homes in Grenada after the hurricane that flattened parts of the island. This project is completed and we have handed over the homes to families in Carriacou that had lost their homes,”

We’ve done similar projects in Dominica, Saint Vincent, Haiti, and Curacao, often at the request of local governments. Whenever we get the call to help, and we have the funds, we do it,” stresses Paladee.” The company also provides other forms of aid, such as providing wheelchairs to those in need. “If we find out that somebody needs a wheelchair, we get the information, and we just show up with it. They don’t know where we came from. They didn’t even request it, but we just found out that there’s a case, and they get it, and we never look back,” he discloses.

“It’s only a matter of time before people start finding out,” Paladee admits. “But we don’t want it to be that we do this for any benefit financially. We just think it’s our grace that God chose us to do this type of work, and we are the instrument that he is using to do these things.”

Looking Ahead

As Pennywise continues to expand, plans include a new warehouse and a potential third mall in northern Trinidad. “People have been asking us to open Pennywise stores throughout the Caribbean, because it’s a brand that’s known, even though we only have a footprint in Trinidad,” says Paladee. “Probably our biggest challenge right now in doing business in Trinidad is there’s a massive foreign exchange shortage, so looking elsewhere in the Caribbean might be able to help ease that a bit. The thing is, we want to make sure that we are stable here first.”

Whatever lies ahead, Pennywise Cosmetics is poised to continue offering affordable products and exceptional customer service, while contributing to a bright future in Trinidad.

AT A GLANCE

Pennywise Cosmetics

What: A family-owned retailer of health and beauty products, with 10 locations

Where: Macoya, Trinidad

Website: www.pennywisecosmetics.com