Headline Feb 20, 2018/ ''' CUBAN *INTERNET* CUBES '''

''' CUBAN *INTERNET* CUBES '''

*THE WORLD STUDENTS SOCIETY* - through its Master Global publication, Sam Daily Times : The Voice of the Voiceless, has-

The Honor to convey to every single student of Cuba, a great !WOW! - for every subject in the world, and that -

The World Students Society belongs to every single student of Cuba -......... ''One Share-Piece-Peace.''.......

Just as it belongs, to every single student of the world. Stop and join up and begin preparing for the Global Elections this very year.

All Financials, all revenues, all book-rights, all Film rights, all ad-revenues, all managed for you by your own elected members, with all operational heads, and all functional heads emanating from your elected nominees.

And then there are the Elected Members of the International Committee. All nominated and elected to the office by you all. Welcome then, to -

The World Students Society, the greatest of democratic organizations, Mankind could ever conceive.

And now, having said that too, let's stop and take a look and consider if the Students of Cuba can build great businesses without a *good Internet access*.

SO, THEY have moved into E-Commerce and built a website : ''We discovered when we launched the website that there are not only people in the States who are interested in us.''

Launching an online clothing site might not sound that innovative, but Cubans and visitors to Cuba know how complicated and costly it can be to get online, even for an hour........

If you had to chose a spot from which to set up an international brand, the chances are you wouldn't pick Old Havana.

The crumbling colonial heart of the Cuban capital is undoubtedly beautiful and its bustling streets might inspire creativity among your team.

But it is also loud, hectic and, most importantly, completely offline.

Still, a small shop on one of the old city's narrow streets is trying to do exactly that. Under a sign in the shape of a T-shirt, Clandestine design store began in early in 2015 with a simple idea.

''Design is not unique in Cuba, but what is maybe is unique to us is commercialising a space for  Cuban designers,'' explains Leire Fernandez, co-founder of the brand.

Often such shops are defined as ''art galleries'' or similar euphemisms in the complicated process of  obtaining a private business license in Cuba. Clandestine, however, is unabashedly a shop.

''I think timing for us was really important,'' explains Idania del Rio, the other business partner behind the venture.

''We opened only three months after Barrack Obama and Raul Castro announced the 'new era' in Cuba-US politics and I guess we benefited from that a bit.''

Business has been brisk, from almost day one. Their emblematic slogans including ''Actually, I'm in Havana'' and  ''99% design'' adorn T-shirts, handbags and posters. Their products have been selling fast and the small shop is often full of  free-spending tourists.

Thus far, the team at Clandestina have done almost everything by themselves and by hand.

They print their T-shirts using a silk-screen press at the back of the shop, for example,. It is slow and laborious work and at times it's been difficult to keep up with the demand.

Now though, the brand is expanding beyond the island.
   
Firstly, they've moved part of their production to the United States, Idanai displays videos of their T-shirts coming off a factory line in South Carolina.

Mechanising the process will produce many more units than last year - but reaching customers abroad, beyond the tourists who wander into the shop in Havana, has always been a challenge.

So, they've moved into e-commerce and built a website.

''We discovered when we launched the website that there are not only people in the States who are interest in us,'' says Leire Fernandez as she pores over the latest sales figures.

''There are people in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, you name it, who want to buy our products. So our focus now is to put Clandestina on a global stage.

Launching an online clothing site might not sound that innovative, but Cubans and visitors  to Cuba  know how complicated and costly it can be to get online, even for an hour.

Now try to imagine running a business that way.

The two entrepreneurs use the public access wi-fi in a nearby square, sitting with the laptops and  people walking their dogs or playing dominoes.

The Honor and Serving of the latest *Operational Research* on World, Prosperity and Development continues.

With respectful dedication to the Leaders, Grandparent, Parents, Students, Professors and Teachers of Cuba,  and then the world. See Ya all on !WOW! - the World Students Society and Twitter-!E-WOW! - the Ecosystem 2011:

''' The Students World '''

Good Night and God Bless

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless