Our Story
Gina Empson
Founder and Director, Nevis Vanilla Paradise
From Financial statements to hand-pollinating vanilla plants, how an entrepreneur followed her dream.
With an entrepreneurial spirit and after a successful career as a Chartered Accountant in both the United Kingdom and Switzerland, where she established her own accounting firm and a payroll company, Gina has decided to pursue her long-standing passion for botany.
Fate led Gina to the picturesque tropical island of Nevis, where she recognized that the climate and terrain are perfect for cultivating vanilla, a plant that may have even been brought to the Caribbean at the time of the Conquistadores, in early 16th century. Gina decided to take the leap and embark on a new venture. In 2022, she bought land and established Vanilla Paradise in Nevis Ltd, an organic vanilla farm with a strong emphasis on sustainability as the foundation of the business. In early 2023, the farm was officially granted a Business and Occupation License by the Nevis Island administration.
Growing premium quality vanilla is an arduous and time-consuming process, with hand-pollination being a vital step. Despite the challenges, Gina's determination has led to an early sample harvest in February 2023, marking a significant milestone for the farm. She is now busy planting several thousand beautiful vanilla orchids to be able to increase production and put Nevis firmly on the world's vanilla production map.
Book a Tour
Delve into the incredible world of vanilla orchids and find out how we grow organic and sustainable vanilla on the beautiful island of Nevis.
Our tours take place on Tuesday mornings between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM and are available by appointment only.
The tours should take 2 hours approximately and will be led by our farm's founder, Gina Empson or her colleague, John Wedderburn.
You will enter the fascinating world of vanilla, inhale the fragrant perfume of vanilla as well as share insights about its origins and specifically on Nevis.
You will also meet the farming assistants who look after the 1,500 plants currently growing, as well as Toni, the canine vanilla connoisseur!