‘Society must support young people’

Jean JohnnEy-Findlay, the founder of the 11-year- old Mije Personal Development and Advertising Agency has called on the society to support young people.

Findlay who was giving a report at the graduation and tea party held at Roy’s Inn on Sunday April 9, pointed out that the country is filled with an abundance of talent, which needed to be harnessed.{{more}}

She highlighted that many young people in the Caribbean, such as singers Kevin Lyttle and Rhianna and models Nadine Willis and Carla Campbell have taken over the world, and made a plea to especially parents, to support their children in their quest to face the world.

Johnney-Findlay recalled that she once had an opportunity to go to France after posing for a 1985 St.Vincent and the Grenadines poster, but declined because she felt that she wouldn’t have enough support in the foreign country.

Findlay however pointed out that because of the support in her homeland, she and Angenella Young formed this country’s first modeling Agency, House of Jeman Ltd. in 1989. The agency existed for five years.

She pointed out that after House of Jeman Ltd. became defunct, many models were left with a hunger for another agency, hence the formation of Mije in January 1995 and their first production called “Fashion Exposé” in February.

The businesswoman admitted that her goal has always been to offer top professional service and noted that she opted for models with unorthodox shapes and sizes which was a more realistic reflection of the ‘African/ Caribbean shape.”

In doing this Findlay helped to change the view of modeling, especially for male models who were often negatively stigmatized. She mentioned graduate of the agency, Kirk Cambridge as an example of success.

Findlay revealed that Cambridge first migrated to the USA to pursue accounting but however landed a job as a make up artiste with the giant company Mac Cosmetics because of his experience at Mije. He is now considered one of their top artistes at the cosmetic company. The proud teacher noted that Cambridge also writes articles for Oprah magazine and does makeup for the lead actresses in the Colour Purple Broadway production.

Emphasing that Mije has a track record of success, Findlay called on members to reflect on that history to move forward positively.

Findlay announced that the Mije logo has been redesigned and their motto “The Next Level” is an indication of the heights that they will be pursuing with revamped programmes, marketing skills and a fantastic website.

Unselfishly, Findlay also paid tribute to family, friends and supporters of Mije whom she confessed gave her the strength to continue despite financial struggles and a lack of training venues.