Realising her creative soul

Four years ago, Simone Brown wanted more out of life.

Some would say that she was already living the dream as she was successfully running an advertising company. But for her, there was a bigger purpose. “I’ve always loved art, since I was a little girl around five or so. And that led to me becoming a graphic designer.” But even though she made her mark in that industry, it was her art camps for children, hosted over vacation periods, that truly made her happy.

“I started to do art and craft camps for kids and it was an absolute joy to see these children discover their creativity through the activities we did together.”

Then she began to think of doing art with adults. “I started to think about the concept of doing sip and paint parties for adults here in TT, where you could bring your wine and together we do some art. At the time, there was no-one doing it here, so I jumped at the opportunity and CSpot was born.”

CSpot Sip N Paint is based in Port of Spain and offers a full suite of sip and paint events for all ages and even the corporate market. “The corporate market was a target for me from day one. Because of my experience in the advertising industry and all things brand, I knew exactly where my product would be attractive to the corporate market.”

“The brand and culture of any company is important and we understand the objective of bringing stakeholders together. Whether it be the employees, customers and any other stakeholders, we work together with each company to create unique experiences that foster team building and networking so that a company can further cement its relationships”

CSpot’s corporate events include training activities, administrative professionals’ day, team building activities, customer appreciation, long service awards and more. “We have activities that we have conceptualised but we can work with any company to create bespoke events for its team.” To date, Brown has worked with several corporate brands including Massy Stores, Sagicor, Trinidad Weddings, Ask Leadership Ltd, the National Museum & Art Gallery, I Event Ltd for bpTT’s family day, CAMPARI ‘Come Together’ launch and its finale, and TGIFridays, to name a few.

Each CSpot session is designed to cater to intimate groups, parties clubs and more. Brown says experience in art and painting is not required as all sessions encourage creative spontaneity. “We cater to your every need during the time you spend with us, all you need is the willingness to have fun. Hors d’oeuvres are provided along with all the necessary art materials, even your art aprons. The best part is each guest get to take home their individual masterpiece.”

Brown says her aim is to always create unique and memorable paint experiences for all ages. “We have many different type of events now and we continue to connect with people through art while unleashing the creative soul. We do bachelorette parties, baby showers, date nights, birthday parties for all ages, anniversary celebrations for individuals and businesses, family reunions, creativity camps for kids and more.”

When it comes to kids, Brown knows exactly how challenging it can be as a mother in TT to find unique activities for the children. “That’s the reason I came up with the art camps in the first place, so that I could engage my child in activities that were creative. My son studied computer animation at university and is successfully pursuing a career in that area, so it paid off. I go to the cinema now for films such as the Avengers and watch the credits knowing one day, I will see my son’s name there. I am speaking it into the universe.”

CSpot now has several different activities for children such as its Creative Kids Camp that takes place during the various school vacation periods. “We know that during these times, parents are on the hunt for activities that not only keep the kids occupied during the holidays but activities that are engaging and constructive. Our Creative Kids Camp is exactly that as it combines fun with art and painting for the kids, with a myriad of creative activities planned.” CSpot also does kids’ birthday parties and school field trips.

As for what’s next for CSpot, Brown says it is difficult for her to source materials at the frequency she needs for her events. “I have events happening every week and the art shops in TT cannot satisfy my demand. So I have a vision of having an art supplies store here at CSpot not only to serve the market but to encourage people to embrace creative activities in the privacy of their home.”