THE SURVIVAL of local businesses will depend primarily on the preparedness and ability of the operators of the entities to reform and modernise their businesses in keeping with the demands of the global marketplace, according to Michael Brooks, chairman of the Hardware Merchants Association (HMA).Mr. Brooks, in addressing a post-Annual General Meeting luncheon of the HMA at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston recently, pointed to immediate domestic challenges facing the body's membership.
"I believe there is need for new and radical thinking in the way small business people approach business here in Jamaica," said Mr. Brooks.
He pointed to matters like high interest rates, an unstable foreign exchange rate, increasing utility costs, hikes in taxation and high costs for accommodation, whether for office or warehousing space, which he described as really serious factors to contend with locally.
One possible solution for the smaller hardware operators, he said, was to develop arrangements with the larger hardware outfits, allowing for more bulk importation on behalf of numerous entities, on a more cost-effective basis.
"We are facing real challenges, which we have to address. There are serious questions affecting international trade which logically dictate that since we have businesses here with large warehousing capacities, it would be prudent for us to warehouse all we need through these entities and off-load to the small hardware operators," suggested Mr. Brooks.
He said there should similarly be a regional focus on bulk purchasing, which would better position the CARICOM region on the global stage. He noted that two years ago, only six per cent or less of the business done among Caribbean countries represented inter-regional trade, with the outside world accounting for 94 per cent. A year later, the inter-regional figure was down to five per cent and this year it is expected to be around six to seven per cent, noted the HMA chairman.
