James Kennedy chats with Iberly Abreu, Purchasing Manager at South Bank (part of Grace Bay Resorts, Turks & Caicos). Iberly shares her path from FedEx and hotel operations to running purchasing for a luxury, guest-obsessed island resort. We dig into import-dependent supply chains, inventory discipline, and the realities of sourcing everything from linens to last-minute kosher items – plus how ProcurementExpress.com streamlines approvals, budgets, CapEx, and contingency spend in a fast-moving hospitality environment.
About Iberly Abreu
Born in the Dominican Republic and raised in Turks & Caicos, Iberly started in hospitality in 2018 (reservations), joined Grace Bay Resorts in 2022 as a Purchasing Coordinator, and now leads purchasing at South Bank. A fun fact: in high school she was a cadet in the Turks & Caicos Police Corps – and played trumpet in the band.
What You’ll Learn
- Island Supply Chains, Simplified: Managing imports (US/DR) and inventory to avoid stockouts across six properties.
- From Guest Wishes to Purchase Orders: How bespoke, “handmade” Caribbean experiences shape procurement – right down to specialty dietary needs.
- Spend Visibility that Actually Helps Ops: Real-time tracking, duplicate-prevention, and budget alignment without email ping-pong.
- Contingency & CapEx Control: Fast approval paths for urgent buys and transparent tracking for big-ticket FF&E.
- Team Adoption Without Training: Why ease-of-use matters in hospitality and how it drives compliance.
Episode Highlights
- “Every day is urgent in a resort – procurement has to keep pace with the guest experience.”
- “With ProcurementExpress.com, you always know what’s spent—and how.”
- “Inventory is protection on an island. Run it tight, or run out.”
- “Unique requests (like kosher) demand separate sourcing and handling – procurement makes that seamless.”
- “Approvals aren’t email threads anymore – they’re two taps.”
More About Iberly’s Role
At South Bank (within the Grace Bay Resorts umbrella: Grace Bay Club, West Bay Club, Point Grace, Rock House, Private Villa Collection, and South Bank), Iberly oversees:
- Sourcing & Vendor Management across Rooms and F&B
- Inventory Management to mitigate import risk
- Budget Stewardship with line-level visibility
- CapEx Purchasing and tracking for long-term assets
Tools & Resources Mentioned
- ProcurementExpress.com – approvals, budgets, real-time spend visibility, duplicate-prevention, contingency & CapEx tracking.
- Grace Bay Resorts / South Bank – luxury, guest-tailored “handmade” Caribbean experiences on Grace Bay and beyond.
Bonus for Listeners
Curious how fractional CFOs and hospitality teams pair QuickBooks + ProcurementExpress.com to lock down approvals and budgets? Check the webinar and case study at procurementexpress.com/partners.
