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Karl H. Menzies Company Limited
tend to have the same quality focus that we
do and an interest in being a top brand–not
because of price, but because the consumer will
enjoy the relationship with the brand.”
Menzies elaborates on the importance of
dealing fairly and openly in all aspects of the
business: “One of the things we like to stress
is relationships: relationships within the team,
relationships with customers, relationships with
suppliers. If you’re going to be uninterested in
who you’re dealing with, you’re not going to
get very far for very long.What we try to do is
focus on the long term. It’s worked for us, so far,
and we would advise any business starting out:
that’s the way to go.”
Menzies is also cognizant about the need to
be a good corporate citizen in a relatively small
marketplace. “Dealing in a small country, we try
to find ways not to compete with local produc-
ers, but rather to complement what they’re do-
ing,” she says. “So, the products that we provide
in both divisions tend to be products that are
not readily available, locally. Certainly, nobody
is producing wine or whiskey here. And paint
isn’t produced in Belize.
But these are quality
products that the local craftsman, the tourism
provider, the folks who are trying to make a
better life for everybody around them, can use
to assist them in what they do.We look at our-
selves as part of the productive team, in that
respect, and we end up working quite a bit with
local service providers.”
As for the future, Menzies says that expan-
sion plans are on the front burner. “For most of
our existence, we operated from one location
and we do our wholesale distribution from
there. Now, our Beverage Division through its
Wine Cellars is branching out into the rest of
the country.We’ve opened a Wine Cellar in San
Pedro, Ambergris Caye, which is the largest
resort island in the country, and we are hoping
to open at least two other branch locations in
other parts of the country over the next year
or two. For Surface Solutions, because of the
technical aspects of what we do, we distribute
only out of our Belize City headquarters, at the
moment.”