PRESIDENT of the St Elizabeth chapter of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce Howard Hendriks says Grand Market in the parish is expected to be a muted affair this year as businesses in its three major towns continue to struggle in the wake of Hurricane Melissa.

Hendriks noted that commercial activity in Black River remains at a standstill. At the same time, business in Santa Cruz has been slow, forcing many residents to rely on Junction as the primary hub for trade. Even so, he said it is unlikely that most businesses will be able to participate in the annual Christmas Eve event.

A cherished Jamaican tradition, Grand Market transforms town centres into vibrant, all-night street fairs on Christmas Eve, offering last-minute shopping alongside street food, music, and festivities that often spill over into Christmas morning. The tradition dates back to the colonial era when enslaved Africans were granted limited freedom during the Christmas season to sell surplus produce and handmade goods.

Hendriks pointed out that while St Elizabeth is known for hosting one of the island’s largest Grand Markets, Santa Cruz, in particular, typically attracts thousands of patrons each year. However, he said approximately 93 establishments in the area remain non-functional or are still recovering from the October 28 storm.

“The biggest Grand Market in Jamaica you can ever see is in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz is always [full] on Grand Market night, and I don’t [envision seeing] that capacity of crowd [for this year] because you need businesses to sustain it. Yes, vendors might come out, but unless vendors can drop their prices of goods, it won’t be the same,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

“Santa Cruz is not gonna have that royal celebration where you have all 40 sound systems along Main Street, Santa Cruz. I used to live in Santa Cruz, and because the crowd was so big and thick, I used to be afraid of Santa Cruz. It was like the whole of St Elizabeth and Westmoreland came to Santa Cruz [on] Grand Market night. I don’t see that this year.

A street in Black River, St Elizabeth is seen, just over a month after Hurricane Melissa devastated the major town and weeks before the festive season, with some of the debris from the storm cleared. (Photo: Karl Mclarty)

“It may be a minuscule version of Grand Market 2024 because people are going to want to get some things, but you have to have electricity to have the sound system going to build that party vibes so that a man can have his drink and feel good. Sometimes that’s the joy these people get, just being around the crowd and seeing people enjoy themselves and these things and go back home,” said the president.

Additionally, in Black River, which also typically hosts the celebration, there is “no functioning in the central business district of the town”. He stated that Junction is currently the main commerce hub in the parish, and the celebration, if held, is not expected to draw large crowds as people recover.

“The state of business in Junction is up because everybody is coming to Junction. This is where they have to be buying everything, so the wholesales are up. The town has been getting more attention than it has ever gotten before because, you would say, Junction is the third main city after Santa Cruz and Black River, but because it was cleared [of debris], people are coming,” said Hendriks.

He said parking lots that were once empty are now full, and commerce has picked up in the town centre. However, recovery has not been a smooth process for rural and small businesses, and he has had discussions with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) on how they can help businesses recover.

“The recovery for the small business sector is non-existent because most small businesses, and when I say small, I mean grocery shops, bars, et cetera [who] were just existing off of hand to mouth. These people don’t really go to the bank to borrow money to sustain their business. What they are normally involved in is round robin and partna draws, and when one partna draw get lick and the other, this informal money get disrupted and they have to get back on their feet, and they have to have something to get by,” said Hendriks.

He added that, “There is a perception problem, in that a lot of people in the urban setting or the Kingston Metropolitan [Area] don’t have the slightest idea of the suffering of the small business class out in Westmoreland or St Elizabeth. I have been assisting in my own way and directing people to help with giving out and recovery. When I travelled from Retirement, Elderslie, Maggotty, Siloah, Balaclava, Aberdeen, I saw, at this time of the day, none of the shops open.

“In Ginger Hill, the retail shops up there are basically suffering. They have to try and cut as many costs to transport things up into the hills, and some items are perishable, so they cannot sustain unless they have generators, and you know that is like $5,000 a night for gas for the generators, so the cost for energy without electricity is extremely high,” said the president.

He said businesses have mainly turned to non-perishable items so they can open their doors and stay afloat. However, electricity is needed for a more sustainable recovery.

“Commerce is basically totally ripped up, and we don’t know when it will return,” said Hendriks.

HENDRIKS…Santa Cruz is not gonna have that royal celebration where you have all 40 sound systems along Main Street, Santa Cruz