The Kingston Craft Market found at the end of the newly developed Downtown strip is again in operation, only, their main customers no longer can afford to patronize them.
They are therefore asking the authorities to divert some of the tourists from cruise ships to the Port Royal dock so that they too may benefit from foreigners like their counterparts on the other coasts of the island.
Craft markets, the place where Jamaica’s culture is manifested into various artifacts usually thrives off foreigners who desire to bring back a piece of Jamaica home.
However, the craft market in Downtown Kingston is different with their customers mostly being locals. After being closed for 1 and a half years due to the pandemic though, the locals spending power has drastically reduced.
Junior Williams, Vice President of the Kingston Craft Market Vendors Association, says he is appealing to the Minister of Tourism and the Tourist Board to look into bringing some of these cruise ships to the Port Royal dock to boost their business.
Velma Parker, a craft market vendor for over thirty years says they have long been promised by the Government that mechanisms would be implemented to ensure tourists visit the site. She says the time is rife for foreigners to visit the craft market, now that the post is active.
More in this CVM Live story from Paige Dixon:
