Sponsors of the highly successful Bahamas Carnival are singing the event’s praises, particularly as the now privatized event saw huge crowds at both the Road Fever March street parade and concert series, which they said is a good sign for the local Carnival moving forward.
“What this means right now, is that Bahamians now have the opportunity to become entrepreneurs. There are small businesses out there that benefitted from Carnival in the past, but now this takes things to another level,” said Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) Senior Manager for Advertising & Promotions, Event, Brand & Sponsorships Carol Barnett.
For the fourth consecutive year, BTC served as the title sponsor. BTC also supported five groups that participated in the Road Fever event.
“Hosting an event of this magnitude also means that our local producers have to step up their game and be able to ensure they produce an event that can compete on the international level,” she said.
“As it relates to creativity, you can look at the costumes on the parade and see that a lot of people just need a creative outlet, and this is what Bahamas Carnival provides. We at BTC love to support these events and enjoy seeing them come to fruition.”
Barnett said she’s confident that next year’s event will be bigger and better, seeing that planning for this year’s event began late, considering its magnitude.
“We know that if the planning starts very early, you can expect to see a phenomenal show next year,” Barnett added.
“You will see Bahamians that would have practiced and taken their time to get themselves in order to compete on a stage such as this. This is the premier concert-style event in The Bahamas and we want our local artists to start preparing themselves to perform in this stage.”
Kalik was another major sponsor of this year’s Bahamas Carnival. The beverage’s local Brand Manager Queswell Ferguson Jr. said, the company saw the three-day event as a perfect way to support Bahamian entrepreneurs.
“Kalik Light Platinum served as the official beer of carnival once again, and we are always pleased and proud to sponsor an event that showcases our local businesses and artists and allows them to be exposed on both a regional and global basis,” Fergsuon said.
“We are celebrating 30 years of Bahamian beer the Bahamian way, so we are doing whatever we can to support the sustenance, expansion and evolution of Bahamian culture.”
Ferguson also said that the massive turnout at each night of the concert series shows that Bahamians are beginning to gravitate toward the idea of carnival.
This year, D Mac, Dyson Knight, Wendi, Rick Carey and Sketch, represented The Bahamas on stage. International and regional acts included DJ Khaled, Machel Montano, Destra, Mr. Vegas, Ricardo Dru, Blaxx, Skinny Fabulous and Farmer Nappy.
