The Covid-19 pandemic brought many challenges to the Cook Islands, but also many opportunities. Some challenges meant cultural aspects of our lives were forced to adapt, while other challenges opened doors for businesses as they responded to the new economic environment with new products, methods or markets. Denied the usual steady flow of visitors into this island paradise through the halt on air travel into the country, many businesses reliant on tourism were jolted into action. A small family operated black pearl jewelry shop in the heart of Avarua on the main island of Rarotonga was one of those businesses, Fisher’s Black Pearl Jewelry, owned by Annie and Brent Fisher.

With the large majority of their customer base made up of visitors to the island, and difficulty initially accessing Government business support, Annie and Brent had to act fast to supplement their income to support their family while continuing the community work they each do.

“We had no tourists coming in, so between us we had to look at our skill sets and adjust to our market,” reflects Brent. As a qualified jeweler, he was able to continue repairing jewelry for their local customers, but for Annie, affectionately known as Mama Annie, it seemed obvious. “I could sell my baking!” she recalled.

From there, Mama Annie’s Treats was born. A small-scale home-based baking business offering delicious cakes, cookies and other treats, at an affordable price. The island of Rarotonga was no stranger to Annie’s treats; she had often baked for family and friends and the occasional event, usually only charging enough to cover the cost of the ingredients. A labor of love that would soon help support their family. Starting small, Annie sold her cookies through Facebook with the help of her husband and children, but soon her orders outgrew the capacity of her domestic kitchen.

With limited cash flow to invest in their new business idea, Brent made use of what they did have – time. “We had always planned on moving our jewelry shop location, so we decided to use the downtime we had to move to a more central location. I was able to build a portion of the shop that was dedicated to my wife’s baking and fit it with a more industrial oven,” he said.

Building materials were expensive, however, and the same issue plagued them again, cash flow. When Brent came across a post on the Cook Islands Chamber of Commerce Facebook page advertising Business Link Pacific, namely the Business Advisor Network and the Adaptation Grant, he acted fast. “I made an appointment as soon as I saw the post, went in and spoke to the in-country manager and eventually was successful in receiving $5,000 towards our business, or rather, towards a better oven!” said Brent.

Brent is frank about his experience in applying for the grant. “We had some difficulties during the process and lapses in communication but eventually we were contacted and given the good news. It made it all worthwhile,” he said. The grant has been the catalyst to scale up production and has cemented Mama Annie’s Treats as a permanent addition to the family business. With no need to tap into the BLP Advisor Network himself, Brent still encourages other small to medium-sized enterprises to do their research.

“During my initial meeting with the Chamber, I was taken through the Network and was very impressed with the caliber of skills available to us. If I do ever need professional help within the available service areas, I’ve no doubt the first place I will search for that help will be the BLP website.”

For more information about BLP in the Cook Islands, businesses can send an enquiry to [email protected], call +682 20925 to meet with the Chamber team or visit www.businesslinkpacific.com to access BLP’s the free SME Toolkit.