A chance meeting over 50 years ago has borne great dividends for Barbados’ tourism industry and has started a long relationship with Sweden. It was through this meeting that the now defunct Swedish nightclub Alexandra’s was established in 1971 at Erin Plantation, Bishop’s Court Hill, St. Michael.
The owner, Alexandra Charles von Hofsten, who has been the Honorary Consul for Barbados in Sweden since 2018, was recently on island for her annual visit, and spoke to the Barbados Government Information Service (BGIS) about the nightclub and the special sentiment this country holds for her and her family.
Mrs. von Hofsten, a Swedish national, recalled how the Barbados-based nightclub came to be. Having already invested in a nightclub in Stockholm in 1968 with her then husband, Noel Charles, Mrs. von Hofsten revealed how their lives were changed after a visit from former Prime Minister and National Hero, The Right Excellent Errol Walton Barrow; Minister of Tourism at the time, Peter Morgan, and hotelier Frank Odle.
This chance meeting came about as a result of the Scandinavian Airline System bringing the Barbados delegation to her establishment, Alexandra‘s nightclub, disco and restaurant.
She fondly recalled during the visit how Mr. Barrow approached her and stated that Barbados had many tourists and suggested that “a nice place like this” would do well on the island. He then enquired whether she would consider visiting the country and opening a similar establishment.
Two months later, the couple visited Barbados; met with people in the tourism and restaurant industry and made the decision to open the nightclub with a local partner, Nicolas Hudson.
Mrs. von Hofsten noted that the major difference between the two establishments was that for the Barbados location, “upstairs was created with a plantation atmosphere with open doors to the park, with a view overlooking the sea in the distance”, and it had rattan furniture.
Excitedly describing the downstairs part of the nightclub and restaurant, she said it was retrofitted with air condition, sofas covered in velvet, carpets, a long bar, and the interior was furnished with velvet drapes, chandeliers, flossed velvet wallpaper, and a great sound system, all of which, she recalled, were imported from Sweden.
“We brought a great hotel and restaurant man from Stockholm to Barbados to teach how we ran the first Alexandra’s, and we hired famous DJs. We served fantastic Caribbean food with local ingredients and spices, and drinks. Our specialty in the restaurant was fondue with meat, seafood and cheese. It was a success!” she proudly stated.
Her husband, Mr. Charles, stayed in Barbados to run Alexandra’s, while she commuted between Sweden and Barbados, as she continued to oversee the establishment there.
The guests were a mixture of young and older persons from all categories in society, just like in Sweden. “We had celebrity guests, including Tom Jones; Elton John; Engelbert Humperdinck; Princess Margaret; Mick Jagger; Oliver Reed; Omar Sharif; many ministers from other islands; the owners of many of the luxury villas in Sandy Lane, such as the owners of Atlantic Records, The Erteguns; as well as well-known local personalities, like cricketer Everton Weekes,” Mrs. von Hofsten shared.
Having opened the nightclub and restaurant here, Mrs. Von Hofsten invited her family and friends to visit Barbados. She smiled as she recalled how the Swedish press visited and gave her the name “nightclub queen” and “wrote a lot about the club”. This led to her organising trips for persons between Sweden and Barbados.
“We had celebrity guests, including Tom Jones; Elton John; Engelbert Humperdinck; Princess Margaret; Mick Jagger; Oliver Reed; Omar Sharif; many ministers from other islands; the owners of many of the luxury villas in Sandy Lane, such as the owners of Atlantic Records, The Erteguns; as well as well-known local personalities, like cricketer Everton Weekes.”
Alexandra Charles von Hofsten speaking about the now defunct Swedish nightclub Alexandra’s
Mrs. von Hofsten gleefully recounted: “One of my sisters, Titti Kerr, met Willie Kerr from the Merrymen and they became a couple. Titti moved to Barbados to study at The University of the West Indies. She graduated in 1979, and years later, she started West Indian International Tours, a tourism-based company, and in 2009, she became the Honorary Consul of Sweden to Barbados.”
Their mother, Ingrid Gefvert, started spending the winter season in Barbados because of some health issues, and her dad, Stig Gefvert, who was a dentist, moved to Barbados and lived and worked here for 15 years. Her other siblings visited frequently during that period.
In 1986, Alexandra’s nightclub and restaurant in Barbados closed its doors, and after being in the nightclub business for over 20 years, Mrs. von Hofsten decided “it was time for me to stop the nightlife and start living in the daylight”.
“I started my NGO non-profit organisation for women’s health in 1998 called the 1.6 Million Club. The name stems from the number of women 45 plus age wise in Sweden in those days,” she said.
Through the non-profit organisation, which has members from Sweden and Norway, women are educated through seminars, magazines, books, webinars, workshops and health days.
“We inspire and we inform all women, but men are also welcome as members. We organise trips now and then for people to come to Barbados, and always with a nice health content, and we visit all the beautiful sites on the island,” Mrs. von Hofsten stated. The group is expected to visit Barbados next year.
Over the years, she and her sister, Titti, continued to invite journalists to visit Barbados to help promote the island. In January this year, a television crew from Sweden came to the island and filmed a documentary about Mrs. von Hofsten and interviewed people from Barbados who frequented the nightclub. The documentary is scheduled to be televised in December 2023.
Alexandra Charles von Hofsten and her present husband, Bengt von Hofsten, come to the island frequently for their vacation, and this she does because as she fondly says “I love your country Barbados very much”.
So, from starting Alexandra’s here over 50 years ago, Mrs. Von Hofsten continues to maintain a special connection with this island and contributes to many tourists from Sweden visiting our shores.