Start-Up Jamaica - Desmond Mitchell

Jamaica’s entrepreneurship sector has been growing at a much faster pace over the years. A lot of people are looking into starting their own business. Many of the young individuals are going into starting technological online based companies. Due to the fast increase in online companies in Jamaica, Government sectors partnered with young entrepreneurs to establish the Start-up Jamaica Company.

According to Desmond Mitchell the Interim Managing Director, “The idea of Start-up Jamaica has been around for a couple years. They have put on a variety of different events focusing on young entrepreneurs over the past few years. There was Digital Jamz 1-3 where they focused on bringing entrepreneurs together and challenging them to come up with ideas and have competitions at the end of the day. ” The company was however officially started in September 2014 with a boot camp after which they acquired a floor on the Jamaica National Building Society on Duke street Kingston. This area provides a place for all the young entrepreneurs to grow their business by themselves with the guidance of Mr Mitchell and other mentors.

The Role

The idea of the company came from the influx of very talented entrepreneurs, which led to the idea of providing funding, Resources, mentorship and education to these individuals. The company focus on the different sectors and different areas of entrepreneurship. There is logistics that focuses on deliveries, connecting formers with consumers, applications, gamification, and much more. The teams currently focus and the Caribbean. Most of the companies under the start up Jamaica roof start with their main target market being Jamaica and then they eventually start to branch into other Caribbean islands.  Currently the company host different boot camps including their major one week long booth camp which is held in partnership with Oasis 500.

Start Up

In order to become a part of the Start-up Jamaica network companies have to complete the application cycle on the website after which they are selected to attend the booth camp. Last year approximately 30 teams entered, three were selected to enter the Oasis 500 booth camp. Those three teams are currently in Jordon attending a 100 day acceleration program

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Start-up Jamaica currently focuses on Web and Mobile application companies, but is looking towards growing from there and helping other small business. Currently they are actively working with 26 teams mostly stationed in Jamaica but there are about three teams from different Caribbean islands.

No matter what it is that you are doing you have to expect that there will be challenges. One the biggest challenges that Start-up Jamaica faces is bringing together the entire entrepreneurship society. Bringing everyone together in the different forms can be a bit challenging at times. However there have also been some great achievements for the company.  According to Mr Mitchell this include “Seeing some of the teams grow and start to take on capacity by employing others, seeing them driving revenue, and also seeing those three teams in Jordon who have receive US $30000 in cash and kind.

As it relates to the online community in relations to web and mobile entrepreneurs this sector  is growing at a very high rate, but not only growing in terms of ideas but also growing in terms of finding ways to drive revenue to drive profit and make sustainable business that would make a larger, far reaching impact. Due to its accessibility more people are starting online companies, having online company gives you the opportunity to have a greater impact and to reach more people. Working with technology opens up a whole new door.

On the other hand Brick and Mortar companies can be limiting, and it can be very difficult to get in to. There is high coast of entrance, from finding a certain amount of capital in order to get a place to rent and acquire certain permits. Whereas web and mobile barriers of entry are different, thou it’s not necessarily easier but they are different. A lot of times you just need a computer and team to start this company.

 For the young entrepreneurs in Start-up Jamaica, demographics are an average 22-24 years old. However anyone can be an entrepreneur, they just have to develop the right mind set. “A good entrepreneur should be willing to learn to and take advice, be proactive ask questions and take suggests. Develop the emotional capacity to understand that entrepreneurship is a roller coaster it has its highs and lows.  A good entrepreneur also has to be willing to take chances and expect changes,” States Mr Mitchell.

Every company has to have a dream in order to grow and expand into different areas of life. For start up Jamaica in the next 5 year they want to be a vibrant environment in the Caribbean that people looks to for guidance for mentorship and for support. They also want to see people working with each other cross the national borders so each company can be successful and continue to grow.

“Every opportunity is a chance to learn something new” is the motto that Mr Desmond Mitchell the 26 year old lives by on a daily basis. Thou he too is spreading his wings to new territories he is expecting great things from each individual company under the roof of Start-up Jamaica and also from Start-up Jamaica themselves. 

Real Jamaica- Johannes Maier

Jamaica is a small island however it is know right across the world for different things. Johannes Maier  a German native visited Jamaica some years ago and fell in love with the island and decided to launch on online website and feature different sections of Jamaica that are not known by tourist.

He started his company Real Jamaica roughly 1 and half years ago in 2013. The reasons behind this company was because of his love for the island which was developed from his first visit when he stayed for 2 weeks and travelled around the island. On his trip to Jamaica he travelled by bus to the different parishes and visited guest houses. He realized most of them were empty because they could not afford to advertise and the tourist board only focused on major hotels and resort areas. That’s how he came up with the idea to find away to make people know about these different guest houses.

Johannes always had a passion for doing something that would help people and would be of a benefit to others. So after returning to his homeland he decided that he wanted to start Real Jamaica so that people would know about the different sides of Jamaica. Starting any business has its challenges for Johannes his problem stemmed from the fact that he was working alone. Hence he had to dedicate a lot of time and energy in ensuring that everything went well. Eventually Valentina came across the website and wrote him telling him she wanted to join and they started to work together over Skype. They finally met each other in March 2014 after working together for 1 year.

The role of the website is to connect local with travels. It tells visitors about where to go and what to see. It also provides helpful travel advice and gives tips on what to know. They currently list most guest houses on the island. The motto of Real Jamaica is travel local spend local because they want the tourist to spend with people who actually live on the island. Currently it’s a non profit organization. However they are planning to make an App and an online store to help support the organization.

For individuals looking to start their own business whether it is non profit or otherwise, Joannes felt they should be very serious about it. Do the research to see if it works and if it makes sense. Get as much critique as possible so you can fix everything before you start. If you are sure about your idea then just keep working on it because after all the ups and downs you will peak. Joannes lives by the bible verse, Treat others as you will have them treat you.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Start-up Robot - Winston Wilkins

Starting your own business can be a bit challenging especially when dealing with all the paper work to get it registered. Well thankfully Start-up Robot will help you with this process as well as other things.

Winston Wilkins is the Founder and CEO of the start up Robot company. A young man in his mid 30’s a graduate of the University of Technology, Jamaica and The University College of the Caribbean.  After doing his first job he realize he never like it and decided to do something he was good at. He was then approached by friends from school who wanted to start a company. Even though they had no idea what they wanted the company to be about or what problem the wanted to solve. There key performance indicator was that they wanted the company to be awesome. They spend a couple years trying to develop products and find customers. Winston felt like he was doing all the work and eventually went and started his own company right after being fired from his day job.

His first business was a freelance Graphic designer. From this he learned valuable lessons about filing customers, marketing and finding scalable solutions to problems. He then developed into video production which he survived on for approximately 10 years. After which he went to UCC and did a degree in social entrepreneurship. At the end of the course he no longer had an interest in social entrepreneurship. He then started looking into technology, by looking at servers and automation, which led to start up Robot.

The team of three identified a problem that start up Robot could potentially solve; which was the level of difficulty that companies had to register in Jamaica. They set out on a task of trying to get more companies registered in a day in Jamaica. Thou the company just started in the summer of 2014 they have had their challenges and success. They have also seen the problems they are there in the society and are working daily to come up with solutions.  Their main challenge currently is that they are not getting as much customers as they would like. However they are marketing there company through social media and through attending social events.

For upcoming entrepreneurs Mr Wilkins had much advice for them. However one of his main ones was “don’t quit or quit if it’s boring. Don’t be afraid to fail and if you do, learn how to get up quickly. If you are afraid to fail then go and get a job.” As it relates to starting an online company in this day and age, Mr Wilkins sees it as being much easier and it is more scalable and easier to enter new territories. “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do,” is the quote that he lives by.  

Stephen Wiliamson - Pandosoft

Game is something that average human being plays on a daily basis. Some games can be very addicting; others can just be for fun, whilst some are for learning. Guess what else you can use games for? Well Pandosoft is using games for marketing and campaigning for different companies across Jamaica. They don’t just do Games but also other animations.

We had the opportunity of meeting with Mr Stephen Williamson the C.E.O of the company, for on interview to learn more about him and their fast growing online company.  Mr Williamson is a 25 year old past student of Ardenne High School and graduate of the University of Technology where he studied Electrical Engineering.

He always had a dream of inspiring people and went into the music industry after college, after which he did productions and animation before launching his first company Island Interactive which he started with his girlfriend in 2011. In January 2014 he partnered with Stefan Keane, JoWayne McFarlene and Carlton Gordon and came up with the idea to start a gamification company by rebranding Island Interactive into Pandosoft. The name Pandosoft came about from their love of nature; the name is derived from the Panda tree.

“Pandosoft is specialized in the gamification of marketing. We provide companies with the opportunity to market their product or brand through the utilization of games,” stated Stephen Williamson.  Pandosoft sees this form of marketing as building a relationship where the company natures the consumer whilst the consumer natures the brand. Thus far Pandosoft has been getting a lot of positive feedback from the marketers they work with. The main challenge they fast now is the cash flow as it takes a while to finish a project so it takes a while to get paid. Nonetheless Pandosoft has been working with major brands which have been helping to build and establish the company.

The four member company has been working well with each other to ensure the success of the company. Each individual has their area that they focus on; Carlton, a graphic artist, Joewane a 2D operator, Stefan a Programmer and Stephen an animator and programmer.  They each balance and support each other in the company. They choose to start an online company because of its scalability and ability to penetrate other markets. They now have the opportunity to top into many other developing countries and grow into other developed nations. On the other hand they felt that a brick and mortar services company would be limited to Jamaica and the Caribbean.

For other upcoming entrepreneurs Stephen felt that if they have enough passion, the right team and engineering then anything is possible. “A path like entrepreneurship it is a slightly more rebellious path or rough road because it is not the paved way of lawyer, doctor or teacher. Once you are making that journey you have to be very passionate and determined. You have to understand that it doesn’t happen overnight, it never happens overnight, and if you are not willing to persist through out all of it and stick with it until you make it then you are going to give up. So start with a problem that affects a large amount of people and build a business model around it,” was the advice Stephen gave to young entrepreneurs. Like everyone else I asked Stephen what was his favourite quote was. His response, “if you think it can be done you are probably right and if you think it can’t be done you are probably right.”

Akua Walters- Errand Boy JA

Have you ever heard of some very interesting companies and wonder where did that person get that idea from? Well when we heard of Errand boy founded by Akua Walters that is exactly what we taught. For me personally the name alone reminds me of growing up in the country and my Grand Ma sending me to shop 50 times per day. Not necessarily 50 but she is always asking you do something for her, the only difference is that I wasn’t getting paid. I guess that’s what Mr Walters was thinking when he decided to start this company; that since people are always asking you to do something for them then why not get paid for it.  Brilliant right!  Well at least that’s what I taught.

Akua Walters a 24 year old alumni of St Georges College and The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, where he majored in History and minored Political Science. The company Errand Boy came about while working with his second start up team Outtrail Logistic, where they were building a smart taxi App. After 8 months working on the App and marking this company the team decided to take a break.

Mr Walters had a lot of free time on his hands and decided he needed to come up with something to do. He decided to follow the same line up and do something with logistics. Since outtrial logistics was dealing with taxis he decided to focus on deliveries and that’s how Errand Boy came. It was also started because of a problem that he saw with shipping and shopping locally. So he started to think of ways he could connect local merchants to customers and customers to local merchants to make it easier to purchase goods and have it delivered to them. So it wasn't because his grandmother was always sending him out.

Interestingly, thou the name of the company is Errand Boy, they don’t personally do deliveries. According to Mr Walters “What we do, do, is we partner with others who actually do the deliveries. We facilitate that process where customers can come on our platform and order what they want and we take care of handling the when, the who, the what and the how much.

Currently Errand Boy just focuses on the Kingston metropolitan area. However they are currently looking at beta for their intra island deliveries and trying to find other courier partners for very competitive prices. They are looking at Cayman Islands, Trinidad and Barbados market as well as partnering with Panama in a few weeks. Thou this will be a great opportunity it also come with its challenges, of trying to focus on so many different countries. None the less the errand boy team is looking forward to this as they see the great potential in partnering with these islands.

They currently have one courier company working with them as well as individuals who come on board from time to time to earn a few extra by doing some delivery.

Web and Mobile vs. Brick and Mortar

More and more we are seeing entrepreneurs drifting form the traditional Brick and Mortar Company to web and mobile companies.  So why did Akua also decide to start an online company? “It has to do with the grand vision. The grand vision is to connect the Caribbean. Connect Kingston first, then connect Montego Bay then connect the Caribbean. To create are inter connected Caribbean which will inevitable be more profitably,” states Akua Walters.

 In order to get people to know about the services that are offered Errand Boy is mainly marketed through social media and direct marketing. In addition they are currently working hard to finish the App. The company is looking forward to getting investments through the start up Jamaica program and from Oasis 500 as well as to benefit from their trip to Panama to see if they can acquire any venture capital from outside investments.

Currently according to Akua Walters one of the major challenges that he faces as a young entrepreneur is building and sustaining relationships with both family and friends. However he continues to work hard and sustain his company, living by his inspirational quote “an entrepreneur makes meaning before they make a profit.”

Managing two companies; Project Grapevine and The Vinelist

Sometimes in life we make bold steps in order to decide what is it that we want to do. Some individuals work better by themselves whilst others are more comfortable working in groups. Whatever the case, it all depends on your dreams, your goals and your aspirations, knowing where you stand today and where you want to be tomorrow. In the case of these young entrepreneurs who have taken major steps in starting their own online businesses.

Whilst sitting and talking to three of the young people from the Project Grapevine / The Vinelist team, I realize the importance of friendship when working as a team. The owners of this young online company are Mannin Marsh, Dean Morris, Alesha Aris, Tahj Laidley, Kavaughn Lawerence, Horace Grant and Laiken Williams. I only had the pleasure of speaking with three of the members of the team; Mannin, Alesha and Dean.  

Despite  Project Grapevine being only a few months older than The Vinelist, the idea of The Vinelist started before Project Grapevine. Project Grapevine was first pitched at Start Up Jamaica in Nov 2014. The aim of the company is to build brands for other companies by forming websites, social media platforms and using different interactive media in order to promote these companies. The team was influenced to form this online based company mainly for personal reasons; they could combine their developing and designing skills.

In January 2015 the opportunity presented itself for the team to start their initial company The Vinelist and they pitched their idea at the Start Up Jamaica event. The Vinelist is a virtual mall where instead of customers spending hours driving around to stores in order to find a product. The Vinelist website would search and find the product for you; upon locating the product they would then relay this information to the consumer. 

The difference between Project Grapevine and The Vinelist is that one is more consumer oriented where it’s a business to business organisation and is more focused on making a profit whilst the other is a business to consumer organisation and is more individual  or customer driven.

Aris, Morris and Marsh all agreed that it was 99% coincidental meeting and 1% genius that led to the development of this demand driven company.  Currently only three of seven members are dedicated full time to the development of both their companies. Even though it is not at a stage to support them financially, they are currently being supported by funds from Project Grapevine, which also helps to support The Vinelist which is not yet in its profit stages. They are looking forward to seeing both companies expanding within their current niche market, Kingston Jamaica, to the wider Jamaica and the Caribbean.

This ‘E’ over that ‘e’

There are many benefits in working for one’s self as well as there are challenges. Some people however feel safer being an employee than an Entrepreneur.  For this group of young people it is definitely something they are looking forward to, leaving their jobs and joining the other members to work full time for their companies. For the three that are currently working full time for their business, when asked why they choose to be an entrepreneur instead of getting a ‘safe’ job they quickly elaborated on the reasons:

  “For us choosing to be an entrepreneur was never difficult, we already had the mind set and the drive to establish something for our self, because you do not want the structured mindset of a 9-5. You also gain freedom and you don’t feel as restricted and confined.  You learn to make better decisions as you do not want to do anything that would jeopardize your company; hence you build a strong work ethic.  For us working together as a team is a stronger entity, so we would suggest people to find others that compliments them if they are going to be working as a team.

 In any thing you do, one will find that there are challenges as it can be difficult when starting a new company and trying to cope with others. Every company has their down times as not everyone will agree on everything. For the Project Grapevine and The Vinelist team, their main challenges include lack of communication as messages are often wrongly interpreted by members of the group which may result in conflicts therefore hindering work process. Decision making is also a major challenge the company faces as it takes a much longer time to arrive at conclusion as every member wants to give their input on what is taking place.

Message to Aspiring Entrepreneurs

The world of entrepreneurship is growing at a faster pace as more and more people are shifting to become entrepreneurs starting their own business. When asked what advice they would give to someone looking to become an entrepreneur, all three individuals agreed on the following:

Ø  Starting early is very important as in ‘start today.

Ø   “Get use to failing; get advice from experts, do a test run or survey to see how great of a need your company is and make sure you learn as much as possible.”

 They were then asked if they thought that starting an online business is easier than starting a brick mortar company since they own two online companies. Their reply was and I quote “For us it was easier to start an online business, however we think it is all base on the type of company that you are starting whether it is a product or service company. For us it was a service and we were adept, therefore the decision was to build a website in order to showcase our service.”

Every successful individual has a motto, mantra or inspiration quote that they live by. For Alesha Aris her philosophy is just two words “stay hungry,” which to her this means that you will never be finish as you will always be working hard to ensure that you eat. “One thing that makes a dream impossible is fear of failure,” is the quote that Mannin Marsh lives by.  For Dean Morris he had a lot to share but eventually decided to use this one as his favourite; “Excellence is commitment to details, by Vola Ashfar.”

Gordon Swaby - Edufocal

Gordon Swaby a very well known young entrepreneur in Jamaica, listed amongst Jamaica’s 50 under 50 in November 2012, as a business leader who, through his contributions to the business community, has advanced the cause of entrepreneurship. He is the founder of the most innovative learning platform in the Caribbean, Edufocal, which provides students with the opportunity to learn and develop in the different subject areas in preparation for CXC and GSAT examinations. Though Mr Swaby is probably most known for this particular company, it was not his first business.

Hailing from the cool hills of Manchester Gordon was always a child who had great dreams of working for himself and owning his own company. Whilst attending high school at the age of 13 Gordon started his very first company Roms2U.com. Though this company did not have much success this never deterred him as he went on to create his first successful company called Advance Gamers.Com at the age of 15. This was the first on-line gaming website in the Caribbean.

Gordon describes these years of running his business difficult, especially since it was a sole proprietorship which he started with US $1000 and employed 3 persons into a non-profit organization. The company lasted for three years and he eventually had to close it down due to lack of funds amongst other things. During this time however, whilst trying to manage a company Swaby also design websites for different companies and institutions in both Jamaica and Canada. He went on to start his first programming and designing company called Iconic Touch.

All of these experiences then led him to his very successful company Edufocal. The idea of this company came about after having a conversation with his cousin. His cousin however backed out after a while, leaving Gordon to pursue Edufocal on his own.  He worked assiduously to ensure that this company never failed as he could see the great need it could fulfill for the students across Jamaica.

This social learning platform has grown immensely, in light of the economic constrains this country has been facing. The website was first launched in March 2010.  According to Swaby, he decided to start this platform in order for him to change the way that students learn and interact. The website now caters for hundreds of students; for both GSAT and CXC.

How it works

“The way Edufocal works is that students pay a monthly or yearly fee to join. They set up their profiles on the websites where they can get the opportunity to answer thousands of questions. These questions are set by different teachers across the island who receives monthly stipends for uploading new questions. The students are also encouraged to do their best as they too receive prizes and tokens for doing well. This is based on the fact that the website utilize a Gamification platform where top achieving students can be seen on the leader boards , their current points standing is also shown. The site is currently widely used by GSAT students than students doing CXC. ”

Success and Challenges

Success doesn't only come through gaining financial stability, but also through realizing you have an impact on someone’s life as well as others are recognizing your work.  For Swaby one of the greatest achievements from his company is seeing where four out of every five students in the GSAT group on the website receive the school of their choice upon sitting their examinations. Though Swaby states that he has never felt like giving up, that doesn’t mean there aren’t challenges, has he faced challenges from the beginning of launching his business like any other young entrepreneur. Despite these challenges Swaby continues to press forward and his looking forward to the future of Edufocal. He is hoping to form more partnerships and grow into other countries in the Caribbean and Latin America. He is also looking forward to the launch of the Edufocal App amongst other things.

Advice to other Entrepreneurs

There are a lot of different ways to launch a company, other entrepreneur may give you different advice as to steps you should take and the Do’s and the Don’ts of the industry. According to Swaby “if you are looking to start your own business, it must not be because you want to be your own boss but because you want to be a change. You must also do your own research, have smart goals and you most definitely have to be realistic. It’s also important to understand that growing is not all about capital. In addition to that there are certain qualities that a good entrepreneur must possess.”  Swaby stated, “I think it is important for you to be these things; you must be innovative, determine, resilient, industrious and nimble”. As his favourite quote says always an employer never an employee.