NEW YORK, June 5, 2014 - Chairman of Sandals Resorts International, Hon. Gordon “Butch” Stewart, OJ, CD, Hon. LLD, was honored with the 2014 Invest Caribbean Now Leadership Award on June 4, 2014 at the Harvard Club in New York City. Invest Caribbean Now (ICN), the biggest global summit on the Caribbean outside the region, honored Stewart this year for his investment, commitment and dedication to the Caribbean.  Past ICN honourees have included Sir Richard Branson and Royal Caribbean Cruises International.

“It is an honour to be considered a leader among those serving and succeeding in the Caribbean,” said Stewart.  “My work here, the companies we have built, the jobs we have created and the people we have served are the best example of what is possible in the Caribbean and why we must continue to invest here at home.”

Over the last five years, Sandals Resorts International has invested over half a billion US dollars into product improvement and new development across the Caribbean. In the past year alone the resort company has celebrated the grand opening of Sandals LaSource Grenada and the Key West Luxury Village at Beaches Turks & Caicos; acquisition of properties under renovation and development in Antigua and Barbados; and announced the Caribbean’s first-ever over-the-water suites at Sandals Royal Caribbean.

“For hoteliers, so much of the focus is on the guest experience,” continued Stewart.  “And that is true for Sandals too. But we serve another audience too which is as critical to our mission, central to our values and one of the most fulfilling aspects of my job - and that is the promise of what resort development resort means to the people of the Caribbean. “

The celebration was emceed by news anchor ErnieAnastos of WNYW-TV and was attended by global professional investors, entrepreneurs, and business leaders including: a delegation of Chinese business leaders and dignitaries; Hollywood Actor Malik Yoba; Sergio Millian, President of the Russian American Chamber of Commerce; Colin Childress, CEO/Founder, Global MedChoices, Turks & Caicos; Paul Angelchik, M.D., Founder and CEO, American World Clinic - Barbados; Anthony A. L. Adjasse of the Allied African Nations Chamber Of Commerce; Hollywood fashion designer, Woody Wilson; Qahir Dhanani, private sector development specialist of the World Bank Group; Leigh Moran, manager, International Diaspora Engagement Alliance” or “IdEA,” a partnership of the US State Department and USAID; Brian Lilly, founder of One Caribbean Television and CEO of Lilly Broadcasting and executives from Sun Group Russia, Tia Properties, LLC, American CryoStem Corporation, LuganoGroup, Damoola, Merrill Lynch, Nomura, Aegis Capital, Island Global Yachting, Blocadi Capital, K&L Gates, True Value Building & Hardware Ltd & Emerald Vista and Sir Richard Branson’s Carbon War Room.

Additionally, Caribbean government ministers and dignitaries from across the region were in attendance, including Premier of Nevis, Vance Amory; Minister of Trade, Industry, Investment and Communications, Trinidad & Tobago Vasant Bharath; Minister of Agriculture of Barbados, Dr. David Estwick; Minister of Tourism & International Transport of St. Kitts, Ricky Skerritt; Jamaica’s Ambassador to the UN, Courtney Rattray; several CARICOM consuls general to New York and the Secretary General of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, Hugh Riley.