When Abdul Shabazz returned home to Tortola after a few years overseas, he opened a stand in Johns Hole to sell fresh fruit juice. And then one day he woke up late. Running out of his house with his blender, knives and fruit, he realised how he could expand his business: with smoothies.

More than 25 years later, the smoothies, which he began in a time crunch, are a best seller for his company Bazz Natural Juices, which has expanded to three juice stands in recent years.

Now Mr. Shabazz’s company is just one of several businesses around the territory that sell smoothies and fruit drinks.

At Mellow Moods Café, the drinks are among the most popular items on the menu, according to Art Christopher, manager of the restaurant. His café, which specialises in vegetarian dishes, began selling fruit drinks and smoothies when it was established in 2003, Mr. Christopher said.

“We sell more natural drinks than smoothies, “ he said. “We sell to a variety of people. People from all walks of life and ages come to get our drinks.”

Some customers purchase the drinks for the health benefits, but others simply enjoy the flavours, he said.

At Pusser’s Road Town Pub, smoothies continue to be popular with residents and tourists alike, said Stanley Powell, the restaurant’s general manager. “Our sellers are the banana, mango and strawberry smoothies,” Mr. Powell said. “We start serving smoothies from 11 a.m. and we close at 11 p.m.”

Smoothies remain popular no matter what the season, he said.

“It is very popular. We are in the Caribbean. It is tropical, and, I mean, every day is a good day for a smoothie,” Mr. Powell said. “It is a refreshing drink. It cools you down, especially on a hot summer day.”

The restaurant sometimes goes through a case of fruit each week to make smoothies, he added.

Mr. Shabazz said his business sees a similar constant demand for smoothies and juices, using as much as a hundred pounds of oranges, a hundred pounds of mangos, and a hundred of pounds of pineapples in a week, he said.

“We use a lot of fruits and right now I produce a fraction of the fruits we use,” Mr. Shabazz said.

The business has grown since it was founded, he added.

“My son was born in 1981 and now he is getting involved in the business,” Mr. Shabazz said. “He does a good job. He opens up at night for the young people and that gives me a lot of time to focus on the production of the fruits.”

Mr. Shabazz said he enjoys ensuring that the tourists and residents he serves enjoy his products.

“It is about service from the heart. You want their money, but you want people to walk away with so much more, something nice,” he said. “You want a good vibe and good service.”

{fcomment}

CategoriesUncategorized