PR and Life in the Virgin Islands

On an island 13 miles long and only three miles wide, as a territory rarely recognized as the United States, resides Norita Lee, a self-employed public relations practitioner of 20 years.

Eager to tell her story, Norita offered the opportunity to showcase a very different side of public relations. For the past 12 years, Norita has been working in the U.S. Virgin Islands - where rich culture flourishes and business as usual doesn't seem to apply. Just how did Norita end up moving from her hometown of Boston to working in the Virgin Islands - a fragile economy where the number one industry is tourism? What type of clients does she work with? Workinpr.com wanted some answers - and wanted a better idea of just what working in the islands was like. Here is what we found...

1. What prompted you to make the move from Boston to the Virgin Islands?
   My husband was in broadcasting with CBS Radio for years. I was always busy with my own PR firm in Boston and also hosted a TV interview program. We visited the Virgin Islands many times on cruises and one year decided to stay for another week to see the island. We were hooked! We bought a condo and soon the vacation time got longer and longer. Then came the day we didnšt want to leave and go back to the fast track.

2. How did you get involved in public relations in the Virgin Islands?
   One of the first people I met with was the editor of the local Business Journal. He needed someone who could write and asked if I'd be interested in a job. Of course I said yes. This gave me the opportunity to meet and interview a number of interesting people in all professions. And it gave me the opportunity to ask our public officials the questions no one else would ever ask. I joined the Ad Club of the Virgin Islands before I moved down. I'm still a member of the Ad Club and have just completed two years as president. This was an ideal opportunity to learn the market and those involved in the creative side of business.

3. What types of clients do you work with as a sole PR practitioner?
   I work with organizers of major regattas, major fundraisers for non-profit organizations, but I still work with corporate clients. The firms are smaller than in the states, but very high profile down here. These are the necessary firms like food distributors, moving and storage firms, tourist publications, local retailers, art galleries and restaurants. The opportunities are there to stay busy all the time. And it's just demanding enough for me to go off island for a few weeks whenever necessary.

4. How was the transition moving from Boston to the Virgin Islands?
   It was like hitting a brick wall. The lifestyle is very comfortable. The hardest thing I had to adjust to was my first meeting with a Board of Directors. They weren't in Armani suits. They were in t-shirts, shorts and sandals. But the atmosphere was still very professional. It took a while to learn you can be both professional and laid-back.

5. What is different about PR in the Virgin Islands?
   The USVI is located in a region with eleven different nations. There are independent island nations as well as French, Dutch, and British islands. The cultures that share a common language or regional proximity do not necessarily share a common market. These nations are all geographically close but the cultural differences are world apart. In-depth advertising and media statistics are not readily available; source books can be costly and gathering statistics can be time consuming.

6. What is a typical day like?
   There is no such thing as a typical day here. We're always prepared for the unexpected incidents that occur when the cruise ships pull into port in the morning and suddenly the island is teeming with up to 30,000 extra people. This can slow down traffic or crowd the down town area but when they all go back to the ship at sunset it's lonely without them.

7. What is the best part about being located in the islands? What could you do without?
   I could do without devastating hurricanes like the one we had in 1995. Hurricane Marilyn ravaged the island for three days. The island was virtually destroyed. We were without power and water, telephones, radio, TV, etc. for almost a year. But we survived it and I'm sure we will again.

   The only thing I could want is more seminars to stay current with public relations changes. I usually have to travel great distances for that but it also gives me the opportunity to visit family in Boston.

   One of the perks of working here is that some of my clients have offices down-island. In order to visit these locations I hop on a cruise ship stopping at those ports. Can't beat a business trip like that.

8. Do you ever see yourself returning to the states to work/live?
   I don't want to return to the cold weather, nor does my husband. The island lacks so many essentials (hospital and general medical care, reasonable prices since everything must be shipped in, for example) but it isn't enough to drive us out.