'MyCaribbeanVacations' App, created by Virgin Islands resident Mr Andy O. Phillips, is available for free on App stores. Photo: VINO

For persons looking to take advantage of technology to promote their business, Mr Andy O. Phillips’ ‘MyCaribbeanVacations’ might very well be the App for them. Photo: VINO

“The main thing it’s all about Caribbean. That doesn’t mean that it excludes the world. It’s basically the Caribbean to the world.”

An App that has been “tried and tested in my own network… the response is somewhat slow but positive and picking up as time goes by,” said Mr Phillip.

The App is a platform designed specifically to promote what’s happening in the Caribbean. “It’s a platform to promote businesses in the Caribbean as well as people, the art, entertainment, sports, to bring breaking news, to book all your travel related matter, conducting business, just to name a few,” Mr Phillip explained in an exclusive interview with Virgin Islands News Online.

This was birthed with Phillip having a luxury limousine in St Lucia, which spurred his interest in the travel industry.

His extensive travelling experience also provided the opportunity for observing and critiquing what he saw. “So I just felt like the Caribbean needed something along the line of selling itself because currently the Caribbean is predominantly sold by people who are outside the Caribbean.”

He said as a Caribbean people we are guilty of not selling and marketing ourselves among ourselves. “In recent times, we have come to realise that the world is all in Apps so I realised that I just needed to embrace the future rather than just the present or even the immediate past.”

Visitors to the Caribbean as well as we the residents of the Caribbean could all find a place on the App to see what’s trending in every sector of the Caribbean and every walk of life.

“From the unfortunate crimes that we don’t like to hear about to the wonderful things that the Caribbean is known for.”

The ‘MyCaribbeanVacations’ App has been live online for over three weeks now and, according to Phillip, the traffic is gaining momentum and is available for free on App stores.

The ‘Caribbean Man’

While Mr Phillip was born in St Lucia, he sees himself as a man of the Caribbean, noting that the Caribbean is a ‘one family’ community. He has found the Virgin Islands (UK) as a place in the Caribbean where he enjoys residing while working on some other projects, especially in the area of engineering.

“When people ask, I say I am from the Caribbean… if you want to know where I live I could tell you but I am from the Caribbean, I am a Caribbean man.”

“I decided to stick around here more to work on this because I needed a fresh atmosphere, a different place to focus on and I have been here for just a year and change to get that done.”

Mr Phillip said that’s it is time all of the Caribbean show the world that we are one and not be a divided people. “I always think that we the people are one people but sometimes we do take things for granted. It’s just a case of awareness.. .We are together and we see it especially in times of disaster and other things. ”

The App currently has no boundaries for anyone that is doing a legal business but must all remember that it is a marketing platform and does not come totally free of a cost. “The businesses that are going to be on the App are going to be paying for the spots on the various menus and locations to broadcast and promote their products and services.”