Bartley’s, Ettenio join forces to package J’can luxury

WESTERN BUREAU:

Two female-led Jamaican companies are betting that collaboration, local ingredients and a strong sense of place can give home-grown manufacturers a bigger slice of the lucrative tourism and corporate markets.

Manchester-based Bartley’s All in Wood and natural self-care brand Ettenio have joined forces to create curated Jamaican experience boxes, marrying locally made wooden packaging with Jamaican-made skin, body and wellness products.

The first offering from the partnership is a luxury spa box, unveiled at the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX), bringing together Bartley’s craftsmanship and Ettenio’s range of products made from natural Jamaican ingredients.

For Lacy Ann Bartley, managing director of Bartley’s All in Wood, the partnership represents something Jamaican small businesses need to do more often, combine their strengths rather than attempt to compete in large markets alone.

“No man is an island. No man stands alone,” Bartley told The Gleaner at the ongoing Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) trade event, in St. Ann. “It’s a big world out there, and it’s a globally competitive space. We have limited resources as third-world countries and small micro enterprises, so we need to pull together and band together so that we can strengthen our reach.”

The collaboration has its roots in rural Jamaica, with both businesses operating out of Manchester and building brands around Jamaican raw materials, craftsmanship and identity.

Bartley’s All in Wood has a history stretching back approximately 60 years. The business was started by Bartley’s father, Stanford Bartley, who learned woodworking from local craftsmen in Manchester.

His daughter subsequently joined the operation and began formalising the family enterprise, introducing corporate governance structures, registering the business and taking its products to a wider market.

Ettenio, meanwhile, has developed a Jamaican self-care line encompassing hair, skin, face and spa products, drawing heavily on natural ingredients traditionally used in Jamaican households.

SHARED CONNECTION

Bartley said it was that shared connection to Jamaica that made the collaboration an obvious one.

“We had synergies. We had similar values. We came from the same place, and of course, we were also using all-natural Jamaican ingredients and inputs,” she explained.

The companies first connected through National Baking Company’s Bold Ones initiative and had been exploring opportunities to collaborate for some time.

Bartley said she was already an Ettenio customer and the two companies had supported each other by purchasing products over the years.

The idea eventually evolved into what she describes as an “experience box.”

Bartley’s produces the wooden container while Ettenio provides the products that transform it from packaging into an experience.

“We make wooden items to hold items,” Bartley said, explaining the thinking behind the partnership. “A chair holds a body, a table holds food. We make foodware. Wood is something that requires something to partner with to make the experience happen.”

The luxury spa box contains a selection of Ettenio body and skincare products, including body oil, mist, soap, scrub, lotion and body tallow.

But the companies are not limiting the concept to wellness.

Bartley’s is also developing curated Taste of Jamaica boxes featuring products such as Jamaican coffee, spices and sauces, accompanied by story cards designed to tell consumers more about Jamaica and the products they are experiencing.

The boxes can also be white-labelled or private-labelled, opening another potential market among hotels and corporate companies seeking customised gifts for guests, employees or clients.

Bartley believes tourism remains particularly important to the survival and growth of Jamaican manufacturers.

“The tourism industry has been good to us,” she said, singling out hotel brands that have maintained a commitment to sourcing locally even during difficult periods.

“Even post-Melissa and post-COVID, they have been insistent on buying local. Those companies, those tourists and resort brands that have been insistent on buying local have helped to keep us small local manufacturers alive.”

The corporate market is another target, particularly companies committed to local procurement and fair-trade products.

For Bartley, however, the significance of the Ettenio relationship goes beyond selling another product.

It demonstrates how Jamaican micro and small enterprises can use collaboration to overcome some of the limitations created by their size.

“Nobody reaches where they want to go by themselves,” she said. “One of the P’s in Bartley’s 7Ps is partnership.”

At JAPEX, Bartley’s was also showcasing its custom-made cedar tea boxes, signature pineapple boards, engraved round coasters, spa salt jars and personalised wooden photo plaques.

The latter demonstrates how the traditional woodworking company is incorporating technology into its products. Images can be burned into the wooden plaques and QR codes added, allowing a recipient to scan the plaque and, for example, play a selected song.

“We at Bartley’s believe in integrating technology,” Bartley said. “Even though we are a wood-solutions company, we integrate technology in every aspect of our business.”

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com