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Young entrepreneurs celebrated at Junior Achievement awards

17 June 2026

Junior _2173 (20) — The winner of the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce Junior Achievement Company of the Year award, Carry the Culture, receive their award. The company president Adonai Rochez, fourth from left, also won President of the Year, for the second consecutive year. - Photos: Norma Connolly

Young entrepreneurs and business people, all still in their teens, were celebrated on Sunday night at the annual Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce Junior Achievement Awards ceremony.

The Company of the Year was awarded to Carry the Culture, which makes corporate-branded and sponsored tote bags. The company made the most revenue ever recorded in the 25 years of Junior Achievement in Cayman, netting $14,500.

The company’s president, Adonai Rochez, was awarded President of the Year for the second consecutive year. Under his leadership last year, Tote_AllyKY, another tote bag maker, won Company of the Year.

Rochez said he and the Carry the Culture team had come together to accelerate what had been achieved the previous year. He described the bags as being “perfect for carrying stuff to the beach, shopping, whatever it may be, it’s the perfect fit”.

Chamber of Commerce officials with the winners of the Young Achievers’ Product of the Year, Fuzz.ky.

Several local companies and hotels signed up to have their names on the Carry the Culture bags over a two-month period during the entrepreneurial challenge, and the team created more than 600 custom tote bags.

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The Carry the Culture eight-member team came from several schools, including Clifton Hunter High School, Triple C, Cayman International School, Grace Christian Academy and the University College of the Cayman Islands.

The bags, sourced from manufacturers in Madagascar, China and the US, proved popular.

One of Carry the Culture’s tote bags. The company made almost $15,000 in revenue, a record-breaking amount for a Junior Achievement company. – Photo: Supplied

Rochez says he plans to build on the success of his Junior Achievement success, having already incorporated his own company, called Blue Zone Media Limited, and intends to get into other promotional items, like cups and pens.

The winner of Product of the Year was handcrafted floral arrangements made of colourful pipe cleaners, called Fuzz.ky. That product netted around $2,000 in revenue.

The company’s president Sophie Bush said the objective was to create a beautiful crafted product that, unlike fresh bouquets, would not die, but could be held on to for their sentimental value.

“We wanted something that would really resonate with our consumers. We thought, what is something that really catches the eye, but is something we can do easily, as well as manufacture a lot of,” she said.

The team constructed the flowers themselves, creating bouquets that they marketed mostly through Instagram, as well as at a Christmas market stall.

One of Fuzz.ky’s handcrafted floral bouquets, made from pipe cleaners. – Photo: Supplied

She explained that Fuzz.ky was chosen as the flowers’ name “because pipe cleaners are generally fuzzy, they’re soft, and it was also aimed at being a safe product”.

Other companies recognised during the awards ceremony were Cayman Brac’s 345 Exclusive Ltd., which produced a wide range of locally inspired customised tumblers, T-shirts, bracelets and keychains; IslanYards, which created custom-designed lanyards; Sea Grape Collective Limited which made handcrafted wauri boards from local materials; and Isla Kay Designz, which sold Caymanian-themed trucker baseball hats that celebrated island pride..

The Chamber’s Junior Achievement Company Programme, which has been running since 1991, offers high school students, aged from 15 to 17, the chance to form and run real businesses – from product development and marketing to sales and finance.

Each team is sponsored by a local company, with volunteer mentors assisting them with advice on marketing, finance and distribution.

Lianna Gifford and Adonai Rochez were the MCs for the evening.

Garth Arch, president elect of the Chamber of Commerce, congratulated the students on their “commitment, creativity, teamwork and determination”, telling them they should be proud of their many achievements.

“I have been impressed by the innovation, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit demonstrated by our students. The products and services developed in the companies are often unique, practical and reflective of the talent within our schools and community,” he said.

Arch added, “More importantly, the programme provides a real-world learning environment that helps prepare students for the transition from school to higher education, the workforce, and even future business ownership. The lessons learned from Junior Achievement extends far beyond the classroom.”

He told the students, “Participants developed leadership, financial literacy, communication, problem solving, and the confidence to take initiative. These are skills that will serve you for the rest of your lives and careers, regardless of the path you ultimately choose.”