CaribPR Wire

Panelists at the 2012 Invest Caribbean Now forum in NYC in June 2012. (Sharon Bennett image)

CaribPR Wire, NEW YORK, NY, Jan. 25, 2013:  Investment opportunities in the last emerging market on earth will again take the spotlight this June 5^th as luxury real estate company, Avalon Partners, presents the third edition of the Invest Caribbean Now Power Forum, ICN 2013, during Caribbean Week in New York City.

The event, organized since 2011 by award-winning digital media solutions company, Hard Beat Communications, in conjunction with the governmental regional tourism grouping, the Caribbean Tourism Organization, has attracted a high caliber of delegates in the past two years, including over 600 investment bankers, private equity investors, ministers’ of governments, hotel developers, tourism officials, architects, real estate developers, financial advisers, entrepreneurs and the media.

In 2013, the Avalon-presented forum will be more expansive, with a longer event and broader focus on the Caribbean and investment opportunities there through invited exhibitors from the regional arms of the various investment agencies as well as other companies.

A stellar agenda is already being developed that will include spotlighting the investment opportunities in the economically viable territory of  The Turks & Caicos Islands, with attendance slated from a cadre of government and business leaders. Additionally, the forum will feature an address on The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, (FATCA) & The Caribbean, by a deputy secretary in the U.S. Department of the Treasury; Investing In The Caribbean Stock Exchanges – The Case Of Jamaica, by head of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, Mrs. Marlene Street, as well as opportunities in luxury real estate and marina development.

Invest Caribbean Now founder and Hard Beat Communications, CEO, Felicia Persaud, welcomed the partnership with Avalon for 2013.

“We are very excited to welcome Avalon as presenters this year in a forum that is definitively dedicated to connecting U.S. investors with opportunities in what is truly the last emerging market on earth – the Caribbean,” said Persaud. “Avalon Partners attended this event in our inaugural year and this year they are our lead sponsor – which shows we are doing something right.”

Grace Lappin, managing partner of Avalon Partners, Ltd., and Tropical Destinations Expert for The Language of Luxury, said the company’s marquee sponsorship of ICN 2013 marks Avalon’s commitment and dedication to promoting the region through the Invest Caribbean Now Forum.

“As someone who has worked in the Caribbean real estate market for many years, I feel it is critical to support this important event. ICN is a groundbreaking forum that spotlights the economic viability of this region, a region often overlooked even by savvy investors. We hope our emphasis and outreach will encourage investors to revisit this region’s rich potential and support its rightful placement in the global economy.” said Lappin.

Additional partners for ICN 2013 are One Caribbean Television, The PR Newswire, CaribPR Wire and News Americas Now.  For partnership and special sponsorship/branding opportunities log on to here or email Joe Bernstein at [email protected].

About Invest Caribbean Now:

The Invest Caribbean Now forum is the brainchild of Persaud, whose goal is to boost U.S. investors’ interest and investment in the region of her birth. Since its inaugural year, the event has earned rave reviews  and secured significant media coverage for its high powered attendees and presentations from top panelists, including: Wendell Dave Dowrich, vice president, Goldman Sachs; David Brillembourg, founder, chairman & chief executive officer, Brilla Group; Martin Mohabeer, managing director, Spackman Group and CEO of Spackman Capital; President and co-founder of Solamon Energy Corp, Jay Yeo; Chairman and Managing Director of Blue Equity, LLC., Jonathan S. Blue and Lisa Lake, head of The Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship – Caribbean.

Supplementary information on the event can be found at InvestCaribbeanNow.com, the event’s pages on Facebook and on Twitter. When tweeting about this event, use #InvestCarib.

About Avalon Partners

Avalon Partners is a luxury boutique firm specializing in incomparable personalized service. Its client base spans the globe and seeks out Avalon because of the company’s integrity, experience, and dedication, as well as its reputation for excellence. The company represents owners, financiers, and developers of unique properties, luxurious villas, ocean front estates, exceptional homes, and investment and commercial properties.

David Brillembourg

CaribPR Newswire, NEW YORK, NY, May 2, 2011: “

The Caribbean is, now more than ever, a unique investment opportunity!”

That’s the assessment of one top investor, who insists he lives and breathes the Caribbean. David Brillembourg, founder, chairman & chief executive officer of private equity real estate firm, Brilla Group, is adamant that the region is ripe for investment.

Brillembourg will bring this outlook to the 2011 Invest Caribbean Power Breakfast, presented by Hard Beat Communications and The Caribbean Tourism Organization, in collaboration with the Caribbean American Chamber of Industry & Commerce, and set for June 9, 2011 from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.

 Brillembourg is among the top speakers, who include Vice President at Goldman Sachs, W. Dave Dowrich and will feature top Caribbean ministers of government, investors and entrepreneurs and key sponsors including WSEE TV and OneCaribbean Weather.

 Brilla’s investments are focused primarily on luxury beachfront hotels and resorts in the Caribbean even as foreign direct investment in the Caribbean and Latin American region grew strongly last year, jumping from US$5.5 billion in the first semester of 2009 to US$20.8 billion in the same period of 2010 according to The Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC).

 China’s Ministry of Commerce alone reported that foreign direct investment in Caribbean countries by Chinese firms totaled nearly $7 billion in 2009, a more than 300 percent increase from the 2004 foreign direct investment of $1.7 billion.

 Brillembourg sees the opportunity. “The Caribbean is a unique and long-lasting investment,” he added, insisting that anyone serious about investment should get on board.

 He reiterated that the region looks solid throughout with lots of opportunities out there.

 “For example, Turks and Caicos is coming out of the crisis well. But there is more than one location to look out for; all are maturing and diversifying. This is a wonderful time to be in the Caribbean,” said the seasoned entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in investing also in South Florida, Mexico, Central America and Colombia. “As a result of the global financial crisis and dislocation of real estate markets, the hotel sector was seriously affected due to the lack of funds and financing available for this sector. This macroeconomic situation caused the expected supply for new luxury coastal properties in the Caribbean, which were at different development or building stages, to rapidly drop (approximately 72%).”

Sponsors of Invest Caribbean 2011 include silver sponsor, WSEE TV and OneCaribbeanWeather.com; the PR Newswire, CaribPR Wire, The Bahamas Weekly, and News Americas Now.

For additional sponsorship opportunities and breakfast tickets log on to: http://investcaribbeannow.com/ or call 646-820-5694.

 CaribPR Wire, NEW YORK, Jan. 14, 2010: CaribPR Wire today announced it will join with partner, PR Newswire, in waiving all fees for all news releases relating to aid in rescue and recovery efforts for the Haiti earthquake crisis.

The fee waiver will be in effect through midnight on Sunday, January 17 for U.S. organizations submitting releases through the PR Newswire that communicates their efforts of assistance to media and public audiences in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean.

“Our hearts are broken by the January 12th catastrophe in Haiti,” said CaribPR Wire founder, Felicia Persaud. “As Caribbean nationals we feel it is imperative to give back in any way we can to help our brothers and sisters in Haiti in this time of need and to assist all those angels on earth who are pitching in their own time and resources to help.”

Organizations seeking to distribute their releases can do so through https://portal.prnewswire.com/.

About CaribPR Wire

CaribPR Wire is the official Caribbean wire service of the PR Newswire. It was established in 2005 by journalist Felicia Persaud to serve the Caribbean niche market in the U.S./UK, Canada and the Caribbean region. CaribPR Wire offers over three dozen guaranteed placements for clients seeking to reach the media in this niche and also a full service comprehensive PR campaign arm in the Caribbean American marketplace. CaribPR wire is owned by Hard Beat Communications, the minority-certified news, PR and Advertising agency serving the Caribbean markets.

About PR Newswire

PR Newswire is the global leader in innovative communications and marketing services, enabling organizations to connect and engage with their target audiences worldwide. Through its multi-channel distribution network, audience intelligence, targeting, and measurement services, PR Newswire helps corporations and organizations conduct rich, timely and dynamic dialogues with the media, consumers, policymakers, investors and the general public, in support of building brands, generating awareness, impacting public policy, driving sales, and raising capital. Pioneering the commercial news distribution industry 55 years ago, PR Newswire connects customers with audiences in more than 170 countries and in over 40 languages through an unparalleled network of offices in 16 countries across North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, and via unique affiliations with the leading news agencies across the globe. PR Newswire is a subsidiary of United Business Media Limited (UBM.L), a leading global business media company that serves professional commercial communities around the world. For more information, go to www.UBM.com.