The C’PRO incentive group poses on the Hotel Mercure beach. (Robert Luckockphoto)
President of C’PRO, Pieric Brenier, addresses the sales group at the start of the visit on Tuesday. (Robert Luckockphoto)
Vice President of the Collectivite Yawo Nyuiadzi welcomes the C’PRO incentive group to St. Martin. (Robert Luckockphoto)
MARIGOT–Some eighty top sales agents from French office equipment company C’PRO arrived on island Tuesday for a five-day visit hosted by Rising Sun Tours. The group is staying at Hotel Mercure in Baie Nettle.
The trip is the company’s reward to the sales agents and marks the first major group to be staying in one of the French-side hotels since Hurricane Irma. Mercure was the only hotel to recover quickly after Irma and in February announced it was fully operational with 120 out of 182 rooms available with renovation continuing.
C’PRO Informatique is a wholesale distributor of computer equipment, computer software, and business machines such as photocopiers, representing major brands, and was founded in 1991. It has 60 agencies in France with 1,100 employees and an annual turnover of 300 million euros.
President of C’PRO, Pieric Brenier, disclosed the decision to come to St. Martin for the incentive trip was made two days after Hurricane Irma struck the island.
“We had a lot of negative advice that it would be impossible to come here but we insisted on not abandoning St. Martin,” he said. “We said we must help the island. So, we are very happy to be here now. This is an important trip for teambuilding and motivation. This group of sales agents are from Lyons, Valences, Chambery and Annecy. Last year we were in Panama. Every year it is a different destination.”
Immediately after Irma passed the company supported St. Martin by sending 10 photocopiers and a container full of other supplies, such as bedspreads, food and water, to Maison St. Martin in Paris to be distributed on the island for schools and associations. In addition, all the C’PRO agencies collected donations.
The group was welcomed by Second Vice-President of the Collectivité Yawo Nyuiadzi standing in for President Daniel Gibbs, Bernice Richardson from the Chamber of Commerce, and President of Federation Inter-Professionel de la Collectivité de St. Martin FIPCOM Michel Vogel representing the business sector, who is also President of the Tribunal de Prudhommes de Basse-Terre.
Fabienne Bredin, the Canon representative from Normedia, also expressed her thanks to the company.
Nyuiadzi in his remarks gave an honest account of the situation on the island but encouraged the group to enjoy the beaches, restaurants and activities. He mentioned the tourism master plan for the French side and urged the group to return soon to “see the progress we have made.”
Vogel similarly talked of the difficulties the economy is facing and the fact that reconstruction aid was not of the amount the Collectivité was expecting.
Ali Laggoune from Rising Sun Tours noted of 28 bookings he had for this year, C’PRO was the only company that did not cancel.
“This group is very good for the island right now to give a lift to the economy,” he said. “They are going to be spending money on excursions, activities, restaurants, dining in villas, catamaran trips, shopping, nightlife, et cetera on both sides of the island. They will also go to St. Barths for one day.”
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/75114-c-pro-incentive-group-supports-st-martin-with-a-five-day-visit
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