Randy Lafontaine, owner of Saint Lucia Travel and Tours, is the 2018 recipient of the Invest Saint Lucia Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

The 26-year old resident of Choiseul was honored during the Annual Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce Awards in January.

Randy, like his father who has been a farmer since his teenage years, learned to be self-sufficient from an early age. Working from home, he uses his knowledge of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to market his tours online.

“About 95 percent of my bookings come from my online marketing. The other 5 percent comes from a guest house and a tour operator that I’ve partnered with,” he said. “My goal is to partner with one major resort at a time, and this latest award will help me pitch to these high-end resorts. I also want to focus on getting additional luxury vehicles to expand my tours.”

Randy recently recruited two tour guides. He explained that one of his primary areas of focus is to provide long term employment.

Randy founded Saint Lucia Travel and Tours in 2016 to provide private airport transfers and taxi services for cruise ship and stay-over visitors. Today, he owns two cars and plans to expand his fleet in the short term. His company works with other drivers who meet the high standards that Saint Lucia Travel and Tours is known for.

Randy, an accomplished photographer, continues to receive rave reviews from ratings’ agencies such as TripAdvisor.

“It really is an honor to receive that kind of recognition for my work,” he said. “While 2017 was a challenging year, I'm excited for 2018.”

Invest Saint Lucia sponsored the ‘Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award’ which was presented at the annual ceremony hosted by the Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture.

The Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognizes an outstanding individual between the ages of 18 to 35 who demonstrates pioneering vision, innovation, and leadership, as it relates to a new idea, new investment, new product, new markets and/or a new aspect of a new or existing business that has strong potential for growth.