Unleash your creativity – Burgess

Participants in this year’s Barbados Entrepreneurship Foundation’s (BEF) $20 Challenge are expected to face a steeper climb in starting and operating a successful business.

With this in mind, Andrea Burgess, Acting Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Export Barbados (BIDC), is urging participants to be realistic, innovative and creative, as they take part in the annual competition over the coming months and at a time of rising inflation.

In spite of the economic conditions, officials of the $20 Challenge have indicated that there were no immediate plans to adjust the amount of money being loaned to the secondary school students in the challenge.

The competition, which will run until January next year, will see participating individuals and groups given $20 as seed capital, which must be returned at the end of the competition period.

“According to the Central Bank of Barbados, ten years ago in 2012, when this challenge started, national prices were 57.6 per cent lower than they are today. This means that goods and services that you would have paid $20 for in 2012, now cost $31.34,” Burgess told Thursday’s official launching ceremony of this year’s competition at the Sagicor School of Business and Management.

“As such, the inflation rate has negatively impacted the purchasing power of the seed capital of $20 to be provided to participants in this current cycle, when compared to the first year of this challenge. That means, participants must now be smarter, more creative, more innovative and invest in design thinking in order to bring to bear the types of solutions the market needs,” she said.

Up to the end of June this year, inflation more than doubled that for the same period the year prior. Inflation refers to the general increase in prices and the drop in the purchasing value.

Burgess, who used the metaphor of a pride of lions hunting for their survival, to explain the kind of tenacity and design thinking that was required by entrepreneurs to succeed, said similar to how the lions are able to bring down an elephant, she believed entrepreneurs are able to overcome the myriad of challenges when they employ certain characteristics.

“These [challenges] include the negative impacts of climate change, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the disruption to global supply chains and rising prices,” she said.

Stressing the importance of design thinking and innovation, Burgess said “Innovation is in fact seen as the driver of economic growth and development in countries like ours.

“Participants, as you design your solutions, design with reality in mind – analyse whether the results will be worth the efforts as extended and whether you can dominate the market as the lions dominate the jungle. Do not settle for less,” she said, as she urged them to come up with sustainable solutions.

Both Director of the BEF Dr Jeannine Comma and Executive Chairman Celeste Foster indicated that there were no immediate plans to increase the amount of money being given to the students for the competition despite rising inflation.

In fact, they said they were satisfied that the participants were being more innovative with the kinds of business ventures they were undertaking.

“We are going to continue with the $20. The marvellous thing about it is that the students are able to draw on their families, on their communities, on their friends to get more money than $20, but they are definitely smarter, creative and innovative in designing and thinking about what they will do,” said Comma.

Foster added that a lot of the young people were now “starting with things they have around the house and . . . building out from there, and as they make sales, they scale up”.

Registration for the BEF $20 Challenge is being facilitated online this year and will close on October 31. Up to Thursday, 18 schools had signed up for the competition.

Businesses will be adjudged on logo and packaging, product and service quality, innovation and teamwork. The winning team will receive an injection of $100 prize money. A number of other prizes and awards are up for grabs. Final judging will take place in February.