Private businesses on the island, such as restaurants, grocery stores, clothing shops, and souvenir stands seem to be ever-present on the island. Many of the businesses are family owned and have been passed down through generations.
The private businesses on the island are extensive and unique. Below are some of the businesses (shops, restaurants, etc.) that we visited on the island, along with a few people who had a large impact on our trip and helped us to further understand the role that private businesses play in Montserrat.
JiG Promotions Unique Gifts
The owner of JiG Promotions Unique Gifts has certainly faced difficulty as a business owner in Montserrat. She owned multiple businesses on the island before Hurricane Hugo wreaked havoc in 1989. She rebuilt in Plymouth, only to lose her various venues again during the volcanic crisis. Her shop is currently located near Gerald’s Hill in the safe zone.
Students with the owner of “Danny and Marguerite’s” and his daughter.
“Danny and Marguerite’s” is a small casual seafood restaurant on Old Road Beach in Old Towne, Montserrat. It seats approximately thirty people and is known for some of the best food on the island. The restaurant’s specialty is freshly caught fish and produce from the owner’s garden. The owner is a local celebrity; one of his favorite stories to tell is how he taught Sting how to windsurf. He also appeared on PBS’s Reading Rainbow in the 1980s.
Students at one of the owner’s businesses
The Bitter End and Monica’s Seafood are two establishments located in Carr’s Bay. Prior to the eruption, the owner (a former professional body-builder) had a waterfront restaurant in King’s Hill as well as several other business ventures including five bars, two restaurants, a music store, a supermarket, and a gym. In 1997, he and his family lost everything. However, the business owner bounced back, starting small by selling food and beer from the back of a truck and eventually purchasing property in the Safe Zone.
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