A Bermudaful gem in the middle of the Atlantic

Bermuda: WOW. Have you been to Bermuda?  

Bermuda isn’t in the Caribbean (and they don’t particularly like it when you group them in with the Caribbean islands).  It’s an island about 600 miles off the coast of North Carolina in the middle of the Atlantic.  It’s a British territory, and I can describe it as a small, cute English town –with palm trees.  It is so well-kept and pretty and perfect that you feel like you’ve stepped into a postcard!  The landscaping EVERYWHERE is perfect: flawlessly-edged sidewalks, trimmed shrubs, beautiful flowers.  It’s an extremely expensive island, so it’s a good thing I go on my company’s dime.  I’ve now been there 3 times since October—my co-worker had Bermuda under his territory for most of 2011 until they made changes and I acquired it in October.  On my first trip, I landed on a Tuesday evening and had to take a taxi.  Like I’ve written before, some of my islands require you to be 25 years old to rent a car (I’m 24), so I have to take taxis, but in Bermuda it doesn’t matter if you’re 58 years old—there are no rental cars!  They don’t have any on-island.  You have to cab it or rent a mo-ped.  They do this to keep the traffic under control.  Even residents who live in Bermuda can only have one car per family.  So, I took a taxi from the airport.  And speaking of the roads, here’s an interesting fact...well let me back up by saying ALL roads on all islands I travel to are extremely lean and rarely have curbs or shoulders or ditches.  I’ve learned that the vehicle I’m driving, whatever it is, is skinnier than you think and you really don’t need 8-foot wide lanes for a 4-foot wide vehicle.  Anyway, the roads in Bermuda seem even leaner because many don’t have curbs, shoulders, or ditches –they’re built into rock cliffs sometimes so that the sides of the roads have 8-foot tall cliffs you don’t want to swerve into!  And the roads were originally built for horse & buggy, so while they’ve tried to widen them out, you can only carve into the hard aggregate of the cliff so much.  Where I stay on the island is a hotel called Rosemont Guest Suites, and it’s close to the capital town (Hamilton) and also within a mile of 2 of my 3 hardware store accounts on the island.  My other account is out in the parish (parish = little town/district/area) of Warwick.  Now, Americans, this is pronounced “warrick.”  I made a fool of myself pronouncing it the typical Yankee way, so now you know not to imitate my erroneous pronunciation when you visit Bermuda.  To get to that hardware store in Warwick, I’ve only so far taken taxis.  I have every intention of renting a mo-ped and driving one (for my first time ever!), but the 3 times I’ve been in Bermuda it has rained substantially, which isn’t conducive to learning to drive a mo-ped.  I’m back there in 2 weeks, so I hope to rent one then.  Don’t worry, Mother, they require helmets and I don’t think I’ll get over 25mph!  Even when I rent a mo-ped, though, I will still have to take taxis a couple of times, to and from the airport with my luggage, etc.  Sam is my usual taxi driver who I met on my 2^nd trip.  He’s Bermudian and loves his job and boasts in the satellite radio he has in his taxi van.  I chose him out of a line of taxis at the airport because he was dressed as any stereotypical Bermudian picking up tourists should be dressed – in Bermuda shorts!  Yes, people, Bermuda shorts ARE really worn in Bermuda.  They were actually declared official business formal attire for business men on the island.  They’re typically worn 2 inches above the knee, shorts pink or navy blue in color, with navy blue socks and a suit-coat if it’s cold enough.  And yes, it does get cold enough for suit-coats.  As I mentioned, Bermuda is off the coast of N. Carolina, and because of its location far enough north and in the middle of the cold Atlantic, it is not a tropical but a sub-tropical island.  If it weren’t for the warm Gulf Stream coming up from the Caribbean, the island could quite easily get snow!  It is also very susceptible to hurricanes.  So anyway, back to Bermuda shorts, here is a picture of Sam and I upon our first meeting at the airport.   

Sam and I at the airport when I met him.

My last time in Bermuda was early January, and the temperature was in the 50’s, so he picked me up wearing PANTS!  When I questioned where the shorts were, he said he KNEW I would say something and assured me that he had them on earlier in the day and that it just got too cold (my flight landed at 8pm). 

I’ve only been to Bermuda 3 times and feel like I could go on for hours about it because I really enjoy the island—my customers, the atmosphere, the friends I’ve met, and the natural beauty.  Click on the below link for a Youtube video promoting travel to Bermuda.  It's a bit cheesy and goes through all of the ritzy hotel options, but I like the aerial views it shows.  I've seen a lot of blue water in my island travels, but Bermuda gets the prize for clearest, blue water:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX9nd3xM_MY

To touch on the friends I’ve made in Bermuda.  I’m friends with my hardware store guys/gals on all the islands, of course, but I’ve met some people in Bermuda more in my age group who are single and who I can hang out with and not have to talk to about drills and batteries and Milwaukee’s 5-year warranty.  I met Chris, a Bermudian, through one of my accounts called Conrad’s Ltd.  Jeff, the Conrad’s owner, is on a cycling team and the day I first met him, he invited me to meet up with him and his team after their usual Wednesday evening ride and grab a beer and hang out.  I had computer work to do and almost just stayed in my hotel room by myself as usual, working on emails and PowerPoints, but simply because Jeff seemed like a cool guy and I knew it was actually safe for me to walk the 10 minutes into Hamilton, I decided to go.  The cycling team was fun to talk to, there were some Bermudians, some guys from England (lots of English peeps in Bermuda because it’s a British territory), and maybe even a Canadian or two.  I met who I now call the Spandex guys (they correct me and say it’s Lycra) and learned about the island, the people, cycling, etc.  So Chris was in that mix of guys, and when the older guys went home to their families, I went and hung out with people my age!  At one point in our conversation Steubenville, Ohio, came up, and that’s where my Miami roommate, Ashley is from.  It’s a tiny town that’s slightly ghetto (Ashley will admit) that has a prominent Catholic college – Franciscan University.  Chris used to go to youth conferences there, and no offense Ashley because I’m from a small town too, but I couldn’t believe I met someone on an island who had been to Steubenville, Ohio!  It’s a small world.  On my 2nd trip to Bermuda back in December, Chris and I got lunch at this restaurant called the Green Lantern.  On my flight in, I sat by a Bermudian lawyer and when we got to talking, he recommended that I check out this restaurant for real Bermudian cuisine and really good fish.  The restaurant was right next door to Conrad's Ltd. and when I told Chris that we should meet there, he couldn't believe that's where I was recommended, as he hadn't been there since he was 12.  Anyway, we went there for lunch and the food was OK, but it was kind of a greasy little place with wooden booths and not where I would think a lawyer would send someone to embrace Bermudian cuisine.  I didn't finish my fish sandwich and so when the stoic waitress asked me if I liked it and I said "Yes it was really good!", she sarcastically replied "Ya right it sure looks that way" and rolled her eyes.  I know before we left, though, she cracked a smile from something we had said, so I hope she wasn't too insulted that I didn't finish the famous Green Lantern Fish Sandwich.  I also rode my first EVER mo-ped when Chris brought me to my next appointment so I didn't have to walk a mile in the rain.  

My first time ever on a mo-ped!  That's Bermudian Chris.

Through Chris I met Lisa, a super intelligent and funny girl from Sweden who lives in Bermuda as an ex-pat and works in the re-insurance business.  (Re-insurance companies, which I’ve recently learned, assess and take on some of the risk of insurance companies…it’s pretty interesting.)  Lisa and I talk a lot, and she actually just booked a weekend trip to Miami to visit me in March!  She’s taught me a bit about Swedish culture and has lived in London for her job, so we have great conversation about the world, living abroad, etc.  My brothers and mom and maybe a couple other friends who enjoy watching the animated kids’ show Arthur will appreciate that the only thing I was able to say that I knew about Swedish culture is that they eat lutefisk (from the movie I watch EVERY YEAR, Arthur’s Perfect Christmas), pickled fish in a tin, and that there’s a queen of lights, Santa Lucia, who is celebrated during Christmas for some reason.  Clearly, you can see I don’t know much about Swedish culture and me bringing up these facts I got from Arthur didn’t make me much more credible, right Lisa?! And apart from Chris and Lisa I’ve met Milton the Bermudian prodigy musician, James the English meteorologist, and Alba the Spaniard who I’m going to go salsa dancing with in Bermuda the next time I’m there.

Lisa and me, before running a 10K (more on the 10K below...)

Here are some random photos:

Meet Sammy, the Malaysian sushi master...this is a salmon that he cut up right in front of us.  Talk about fresh sashimi!

This is Martin, he's on the cycling team and is a HUGE Packers fan!  He's been to Lambeau Field a few times and keeps the Green Bay spirit alive in Bermuda.

This was taken at my customer, Sacha's, house.  She invited me over for Sunday brunch.  Not too shabby of a backyard view!

Flatts Village in the background.

The pic is dark, but this is Chris picking a loquat or a kumquat (I forgot which one!) fresh from the tree.  They're tangy, little citrus fruits.  Cultural, indeed.

In all honesty I have not yet REALLY explored the island and had a ton of cultural experiences. With that said, I know I’ll have more cultural, non-work-related stuff to blog about in another post,  but for the remainder of this post I want to focus on an event that I did for my job that was way more than just setting up a table and demo-ing tools.  

I worked with my biggest account on the island, Gorham’s Home Center, to hold a Milwaukee Race & Demo Weekend.  Henry, the purchasing manager of Gorham’s, mentioned to me that he liked to run when he found out that I was a runner, and he brought up Bermuda International Race Weekend, which happens every January.  On Friday night there’s a 1 mile race down Front Street, on Saturday morning there’s a 10k through the rolling roads of the island, and on Sunday there’s a marathon/half marathon.  You can sign up for all three and conquer the Bermuda Triangle!  Well, I brought up the idea to incorporate the 10K race into a Milwaukee weekend where I’d come to the island and run the race with Henry, we could wear Milwaukee shirts, and then in the afternoon I’d go to Gorham’s and do my usual demo day.  Henry liked the idea, and after getting approval from my manager and after LOTS of planning and emailing and networking, the event WAS AWESOME!  I bought Henry and myself red running shirts, had both of our logos screen-printed on them when I was home in Wisconsin for Christmas, made sure Gorham’s was stocked up on enough product, booked my travel, and trained for the race!  We also worked together to make a flyer that went in the Bermuda Royal Gazette, sent out emails blasts, got the store staff pumped up, etc.  We wanted to advertise “Catch Us If You Can,” and have people catch our bib numbers during the race and then bring them into the store in the afternoon to get put into a raffle to win a free drill, but we decided to just advertise the event that would happen in the store and then blaze through part of the island on foot by running the 10K and sporting our shirts.  See photos.

Henry, of Gorham's, and myself...prepping for the race!

Employee training in Gorham's

My demo table, complete with 2x4s, concrete blocks, and a rocking radio!

The raffle bucket.  We raffled off an M18 Combo Kit and a Contractor Radio.

Charlie's Power Tool Angels.  This was the first time I had EVER had a good, solid tool conversation with women.  These women knew their stuff!

A customer trying out the M18 Impact Driver and realizing it's the best one on the market.  C'mon...1400 inch-pounds of torque on that bad boy.

 

The race itself: WHEW!  Now Bermuda isn’t the most mountainous terrain that I’ve seen out of an island, but a good way to describe it is ‘rolling.’ There were 3 or 4 significant hills in the race, BUT ALSO it was rolling….I don’t think there were many long periods where I was running on flat ground…it was either gradually up or gradually down.  In the end the race went well for both Henry and I.  He reached his goal of breaking an hour, and I reached my goal of breaking 48 minutes and beating my other customer’s (Jeff’s) time – 48:04—from 2 years ago when he ran it.  Jeff now owes me either dinner or a cycling shirt.  It is not my best 10K time ever, but considering the terrain and also the headwind and rain, it was a workout, to say the least.  My friends Lisa and James also ran it (see photos), and Milton came out to support.

Henry sprinting it in at the end.

Me, just trying to survive the hilliest course I'd ever ran.

Post-race...me, James the English meteorologist, and Lisa.  Awesome race, guys!

 

Later on, in Gorham’s, sales were ROCKING!  A little history of Bermuda and Gorham’s in relation to power tools: it’s an island that’s historically Makita-loyal (my competitor), but only because it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks.  If it’s not broke don’t fix it, but what if Milwaukee simply has a superior product with better technology and more benefits?  This event, I hope, was the start of a mindset change in Bermuda.  I’m not saying my competitor’s product is bad, but I really believe in my product, and Bermuda is one island where I don’t have to deal with the “Well Milwaukee is just too expensive”  and just need to get the brand awareness covering the island, get some sample tools in contractors’ hands, and convince them that my product is superior and will perform just as well or better than what they’ve been using all these years.  We sold more cordless 18 volt (M18) tools at this Saturday event than we did all of last year at Gorham’s!!  Now, the huge 30% off discount that we gave really helped, but doing the run, the advertising, and simply building up the hype of the brand will pay off long-term. 

Outside the store.

Another sale!

Team Milwaukee at Gorham's! 

This grassroots event was outstanding in a number of ways.  It has started Milwaukee hype in Bermuda.  It has given my manager more confidence in me and my creativity ability to take an idea and run with it (pun intended), driving results.  I truly see immense potential of growing the business in Bermuda, working alongside of my 3 accounts.  Just yesterday I sent my manager proposals for 2 more events Milwaukee will be a part of in the coming months, and he approved them!  We are going to be corporate sponsors for the annual Bermuda Contractors’ Golf Tournament in April, where Milwaukee Tool will have flags on some tees and greens of the golf course, red t-shirts in the goody bags, and I will be possibly participating in the tournament with one of my accounts.  Lord, help me.  I golf about twice per year, and while I love all sports, this one frustrates me to no end.  It sounds fun, though (it’s a 4-man team scramble), and it will make me dust off the old ladies left-handed clubs and get to the Miami driving range a couple times before April.  

The other event I’m planning for May is another running event.  Two of my accounts (one of them Gorham’s again) are involved on a running squad from the Bermuda Rugby Club, and Milwaukee Tool is going to sponsor their shirts and shorts.  Bermuda Day (their independence day) is on May 24^th and every year there is a half marathon that takes place, starting on one end of the island and ending in Hamilton.   I’m currently working on getting a Milwaukee tent shipped to Bermuda so that we can also have a Milwaukee Hydration Station!  My vision is to have it in a location toward the end of the race (Henry keeps telling me that we can put it by the Birdcage on Front Street in Hamilton, whatever that means…I trust it’s prime location) and we’ll hand out RED Gatorade, have volunteers from the runners’ families, and then also be blasting some motivational tunes from a Milwaukee radio with its superior sound.  Of course, I need to not lose sight of the fact that I’m selling power tools and while we need to build brand awareness, I need to sell tools to my accounts, so there will be product orders and promotions as well.  Exciting stuff! 

Final note: I’ll be honest—I’m extremely used to this traveling-to-an-island-every-week-thing.  I’ve mastered making travel reservations, coordinating meetings, reading island maps, airport security, everything.  I'm writing this post as I sit 30,000 feet in the air on a flight back to Miami.  It’s been 14 months, and I thought I’d be pulling my hair out after 12, but I’m not!  The fact that I look forward to going to the island of Bermuda every time, enjoy my customers there and appreciate their willingness to work with me and be creative with sales and events, is almost essential to my sanity with this job at this point.  I like my other islands and have many other cultural experiences and a few other island friends, but Bermuda keeps me motivated for the mixture of reasons I stated above.  KNOCK ON WOOD that we don’t re-organize the territory and I have to leave it!    ….Thanks for reading…I clearly didn’t keep this one short, but I hope you liked it.  My next post will probably be some funny stories from my last trip to USVI, and then I’ll be back in Bermuda in 2 weeks and plan on doing some more cultural stuff since I’ll be there the weekend, so look for that.  Love you guys, happy weekend.  Cheers!

-Anna Banana