WHAT'S ON

Antiguanice.com usually focuses on their advertisers and nonprofit organizations to get the word out on a daily basis, but this week, allow us a moment of self indulgence as we celebrate our 10 years in the business.

The team behind Antiguanice.com, the leading web portal for Antigua and Barbuda, comes of age on September 1^st 2013 when they will have owned the site and the company Antigua Nice Ltd. for ten years.

Joint Managing Director Colin Adams says ‘The site itself was actually started in June 1998, we were just lucky enough to meet the original designer of the site, Wayne McCort and then partner Geoffrey Pidduck’. He continues, ‘It was the early days of internet in Antigua when we took over the site after relocating here and things haven’t stood still since.’

Along with wife and Managing Director Alison Sly-Adams the couple have worked their way through many changes in the online environment in the world let alone Antigua and Barbuda and have managed to stay competitive and relevant in an ever cluttered market place. Of the business Sly-Adams comments:

'I think our joint backgrounds in banking and retail at a senior management level in business in the UK, along with nearly 60 years in business in general continues to help sustain the business and help us to stay on track and move forward. One of the most challenging things about the online environment especially in 2013 is assessing the new innovations and technologies, what you should take notice of and what you should ignore and waste no time on’. It’s as much as challenge for them as it is for their clients but it seems that their longevity is testament to making some of the right decisions along the way.

The website, which is vacation, entertainment, yachting and real estate focused attracts more than 670,000 visits annually from around the world with more than 85% being from overseas has grown from a basic listing site to a website which includes listings of what’s on around the island, special deals and news. It especially features information about non-profit organizations as well as commercial operations and they also offer online marketing consultancy and website hosting, maintenance and creation.

Along with a weekly What’s On newsletter and regular Yachting and Real Estate newsletters it is now an invaluable research tool for people living on Antigua as well as hundreds of thousands of visitors and investors each year.

The Joint Managing Directors of their business say ‘Primarily we would like to thank our hundreds of very loyal customers, many whom have been with us from the beginning. Antigua Nice is just like any other community in Antigua, other than being online , it’s all about support, sharing information and working together’. Having the support and confidence of our advertisers means we have the information about Antigua and Barbuda to share with the world. That continues to be our team’s key objective and the guiding light with which we maintain our focus. They also want to thank all current and past employees who have or are playing such a pivotal role in the business. It’s been a tough ten years and as the economic recession has continued to stifle growth, very challenging, but they have always been in this for the long term.

Visit www.antiguanice.com  for more information.