Fellow Barbadians, as Senior Minister coordinating the Productive Sector, and Minister of Energy and Business, I welcome this opportunity to celebrate with you as we mark the start of Small Business Week, for the year 2022.

Read the full address - Ministers_Message.pdf

It is no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a deleterious impact on the global economy, resulting in a high increase in unemployment locally. To combat this financial difficulty, many persons have opened their own businesses in an attempt to make ends meet. However, this increase in small businesses has been met with a decline in consumer spending as the depressed state of the economy continues.

Business owners must now more than ever, find ways to separate themselves from the pack and stand out amongst their competitors. Here are a few tips to help you do just that:

• Reimagine your brand and reintroduce yourself in a fresh way – Consumers have become bored due to the slowing of activity caused by the pandemic. Refreshing your brand and your product offering can help to excite and intrigue the public to take note of your business. Be creative!
• Ensure your product fits the new market – Make sure there is demand for your product in the new COVID environment or find creative ways to ensure that your good or service can still be used in spite of the various restrictions in place. E.g. Event planners shifting to the hosting of online events
• Focus on solving a problem – Make sure your business is not just a passion project with no purpose. In these hard socio-economic times, all businesses need to ensure that they are helping consumers in some way. This could be by inter alia providing entertainment, information or health and safety supplies.
• Phenomenal Customer Service – Don’t just aim for satisfactory customer service. Train your team to always go the extra mile to help your customers. This will leave a great impression and will encourage customers to refer your business to their friends and family.
• Build a Strong Online Presence – In this digital era, it is imperative that you stay connected with your customers and the public online. Regular social media posts will ensure that your business remains top of mind.
• Reward Customer Loyalty – With so many options now available, you should be honored that your customers choose to shop with you. Show them that you appreciate it!
• Keep in touch with old customers – Reach out to old customers to find out what they may need at the present moment while keeping them up-to-date with upcoming sales or special items you have in stock.
• Offer discounts and incentives to new customers – This is not the time to charge full price on your goods or services – times are hard for everyone. Entice new customers to patronise your business by offering special discounts and incentives each month.
• Be active in your community and give back – Show your community that you genuinely care about its well-being and are not solely interested in profit-making by getting involved and helping where possible.

As the Christmas season approaches, many are planning the usual painting of the house, baking the ham and preparing the seasonal treats such as black cake, jug-jug and sorrel drink. Given the challenging 22 months we have experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Barbadians can definitely benefit from a refreshing season and a time to share with family and friends. Some have even posited that we are experiencing COVID fatigue. What better time for a paradigm shift mentally, than Christmas?

Yet in all the preparation, all the celebration and the opportunity for a “break”, let us not forget the reason for the season. What tends to be missing for most during Christmas is CHRIST!

It is therefore fitting to be reminded of our message from an earlier edition of the Outlook Newsletter. For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). In our march forward, we have somehow found time to do everything possible but remember Christ and the true meaning of Christmas. In our quest not to offend, even in our little Christian Barbados we are slowly replacing Merry Christmas with “Happy Holidays”. The true meaning of Christmas has been confused with materialism, greed and other pagan objectifications.

Christmas is not about the food, the clothes, the spruced-up surroundings, nor the gifts. It’s not about getting days off from work or school. It is in fact about celebrating the birth and life of Jesus Christ, and honouring in our lives the principles espoused by Christ through His various teachings.

This year 2021 is ending with more gloom than hope. This is not healthy for a developing nation. We have witnessed violence, high unemployment and the continued economic strain on households and businesses across our nation. Even our value system is being challenged. As we look back with mixed feelings on the year past, and look forward with hesitation, reservation or eagerness to what may lurk in the New Year, let us bring Christ back into our lives and in all that we do. Let us embrace our country in the spirit of the season – Love. And above all let us rededicate our lives to living for the honour and glory of His name.

Merry Christmas and all of God’s Blessings for the year to come!

Continuing the dialogue on globalisation started during Small Business Week 2021 at the State of the Sector Conference, the SBA held a recent webinar under the theme “Locally Developed Global Reach – A Discussion on Exporting your Business.”

This topic continues to be one of high value for members as the sector emerges from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The SBA posits that businesses can no longer hinge only on a strategy for the domestic market if they wish to thrive, but must include a focus on the internationalisation of their firms along with strategic partnerships with firms across the region and globe.

Co-founder of Think Global Brazil and presenter, Mr. Rafael Pinto, in his introduction of the session, encouraged members to think carefully if they were truly ready to go global. This notion of readiness, he posited, should be based on a number of factors including:

• The maturity of the business – can the business handle expansion at this time?
• Knowledge of other markets – has market research on potential international markets been conducted?
• Resources – does the business have sufficient resources to facilitate expansion without collapsing?
• Team – does the business have the right team to take it into international markets?
• Leadership – are the leaders of the company on board with the idea of globalisation?

Mr. Pinto proposed a starting guide on the path to internationalisation which included:

• Defining your target market
• Defining your target customer
• Defining your brand positioning
• Defining your unique selling proposition
• Defining your marketing channels and
• Creating your financial model

Finally, Mr. Pinto highlighted a number of ways that members could expand to international markets once they believed they were ready to do so. These included:

• Having a representative of the company in other markets
• Forming partnerships in other markets
• Taking business missions in person or online
• Attending in-person or online networking events and
• Joining acceleration programmes abroad.

To see the full video, click the following link: https://www.facebook.com/sbabarbados/videos/1542779386076520

While the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to negatively impact small businesses across the country, it’s important for business owners to be prepared for the Atlantic hurricane season, which by all indications will be very active. Here is a short checklist to help small business owners in their preparations:

• Establish an emergency communications plan.
• Install windstorm shutters or place plywood over windows and doors.
• Check that gutters and downspouts are clear of debris and drain away from the building.
• Secure furniture, trashcans, planters and other items that could become projectiles in heavy winds.
• Back up all computers and store the backups at another safe location.
• Implement a back-up power supply system.
• Remove papers and items easily damaged by water from the floor and all low-level locations.
• Take a video or photo inventory of each room/office, all collectibles, artworks, antiques and other irreplaceable items for insurance purposes
• Review insurance policies and know what is and is not covered for the business and enhance the policy where possible.
• Keep towels, mops and tarps on hand for flooding emergencies or roof leaks.

Have a question for Dr. Biz? Email it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

It will be years before we fully understand the full economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the world’s economies, but one thing is painfully clear right now; small businesses across the country are facing an existential threat.

A COVID-19 Business Impact Survey done by the International Trade Centre in April 2020 from 4467 companies in 132 countries, reported that almost 40% of business operations were facing a liquidity crisis due to clients not paying bills. Additionally, it was recorded that 75% of businesses faced reduced sales with micro and small firms being more impacted than larger businesses and over 20% of small businesses facing the risk of full closure. With lockdowns, curfews and other COVID-19 regulations still being enforced, it is safe to assume that these percentages have since risen significantly.

Locally, these challenges have been compounded this year alone by the volcanic ash fall which hindered regular business operations for weeks, and required untimely expenditure on cleaning and infrastructural damage. Adding to this is now the magnified fear surrounding the heightened activity predicted for the 2021 Hurricane Season. Our first brush with the category one hurricane, Elsa, left many businesses with structural damage and without electricity or water for days.

Further exacerbating the situation has been the rise in fuel costs and the levy on water prices, which is acting like a tightened noose around the neck of many small firms who have not been able to regain their footing in the midst of all that has occurred in the last year.

There is no doubt that many small businesses are drained and some practitioners are weary of what lies ahead. However, despite all that is happening around you, and though things may seem bleak at this time, I implore you to remain steady in your resolve to survive.

The one ‘silver lining’ in this cloud of uncertainty is that small firms have the propensity to bounce back – they are nimble and can adapt. Yes, we need a greater effort on the part of policymakers, financiers and development agencies, to do more to strengthen the business environment at this time. As such, the voice of the lobbyist and representative groups must be amplified, to ensure that the MSME sector is not overlooked in the country’s economic recovery efforts. We therefore cannot be daunted; we will make it through together. Stand firm. Stay focused. Do not be moved!