Hopeton Morrison, Business Columnist

Dear Hopeton,

I am currently in business for myself making ceramic products. I did it all from own pocket but need some funding right now to grow this venture by direct marketing. Not only do I manufacture but I also have a store from where my retailing is carried out.

My manufacturing facility is located in my home so all this has kept my overhead at a minimum for the time being. The store has been open for six months now and it is a bit slow which is attributed to the back-to-school period as many who stop in make a note of what they will come back to buy once things improve for them.

'Ceramic Entrepreneur,'

Montego Bay.

Dear 'Ceramic Entrepreneur,'

Many financial institutions have now opened special windows for entrepreneurs like yourself in the small and micro enterprise (SME) sector: National Commercial Bank; Scotiabank has been lending for some time now and recently advertised for a senior functionary to lead a new SME division within the bank; many of the credit unions, including the two largest ones, COK and Churches; JN Small Business and the National Development Foundation of Jamaica.

Because ceramics is not a consumer necessity, persons will normally take care of other necessities first. You can seek to develop a distribution network in addition to retailing. Your margin will be significantly less but you will be moving your goods in which case you push to cover your costs through volume rather than mark-up.

Finding adequate collateral is always a problem for most new entrepreneurs. It is better to bring in partners and end up owning 10 per cent of a larger business than hold on to 100 per cent of a struggling startup.

JAMPRO and the Jamaica Business Development Centre are two excellent institutions for you to visit. Both institutions have specialists that can give you vital insights on targeting the domestic and export markets. Try to access some funds under the EU/JAMPRO/PSOJ sponsored Private Sector Development Programme. There are grant funds available up to euro40,000.

Policeman in agriculture

Dear Hopeton,

I am a police officer with entrepreneurial intentions. As a business-minded person, one of my goals is to operate my own business. Over the past four years, I have come up with several business ideas, one of which is an agricultural store in a rural community.

I have thought about approaching the Small Business Development Association (SBDA) with my idea. I have also thought about doing a course in business administration but this appears to be time consuming (four to five years) and the opportunity might just be taken away by then.

E.D.

Dear E.D.,

Be careful about the type of business that you chose. If the economy is not there to support your agricultural store you could find yourself in a problem. At the same time, most capitals in rural Jamaica do accommodate thriving farm stores. But try to keep it simple. Identify a business whether grocery, supermarket or hardware and buy at the lowest price and then resell at a margin.

Don't worry about anyone stealing your idea. There are several other persons thinking about the very thing that you are planning. Usually it comes down to who executes best.

It is always a good idea to engage in formal business training. The leading cause of failure in entrepreneurial start-ups is management deficiency. Eliminate that threat by training.

There is no harm in visiting the SBDA, but you can also be guided by some of the institutions that we recommended to 'Ceramic Entrepreneur' above.

The 'Money Adviser' is a new advisory column to help you understand the intricacies of financial transactions, markets, credit card management, bank fees, and the every-day things that everyone else pretends they know about, but never really quite understood. Write to Hopeton Morrison by email hmorrison@stccu.com, or fax to 922-6223.