Zaryah Delpesche, Develops Business and Social Media Marketing and Branding Plans

Zaryah Delpesche, a determined young woman from the beautiful island of Grenada, has always dreamed of starting her own soap-making business. Through the Caribbean Youth Livelihoods Internship Programme (CYLIP), she was finally provided with an opportunity to unleash her hidden entrepreneurial spirit.

Zaryah applied to the CYLIP being implemented by the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Strengthening Disaster and Climate Resilience in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean (SDCR) Project.After a rigorous selection process, Zaryah was one of nine interns chosen to participate in the programme.

Fascinated by the art of soap-making and its potential for creating natural and sustainable products, Zaryah set about turning her passion into a reality. With the support of the Caribbean Centre for Excellence for Sustainable Livelihoods (COESL) through CYLIP, over the course of six months, Zaryah received coaching and mentorship from experienced professionals who guided her in developing her business idea and social media marketing and branding acumen into solid plans for her budding start-up, New Era Organics. 

Under the mentorship of seasoned entrepreneur and Managing Director of Hello Naturalle and Irie Naturals Body Care Essentials Barbados/Jamaica, Cherry-Ann Boyce, Zaryah was introduced to the key components of the business model canvas, a strategic management template used for developing new business models. With her newfound knowledge, Zaryah developed a comprehensive business plan that outlined her vision and mission statements, goals, strategies, and projections.

To complement and add value to her new business plan, Zaryah also received coaching on the importance of branding and marketing in today’s digital age from Multimedia Journalist and Content Strategist, Janelle Husbands. Under Ms. Husband’s tutelage, Zaryah created a social media marketing and branding plan to promote her burgeoning soap business to a wider audience.

Armed with her new business and social media marketing and branding plans, Zaryah plans to take the next steps towards launching her soap-making business. These include registering her business, further developing her soap-making skills, quality assurance testing the products which New Era Organics will provide to customers, and market testing. 

Thanks to CYLIP, Zaryah’s dreams of starting her own small soap-making business providing high quality, sustainable soap products to persons affected by skin conditions such as eczema and acne are being realized. She is well on her way to turning her turn love for soap-making into a thriving small business, making a positive impact on her community, and creating a sustainable livelihood for herself, and hopefully others in future as her business grows.