JMMB Group to Invest J$1M to Top SME Accelerator Participants to Fast Track Growth

The JMMB Group Resource Centre partnered with the JMMB Joan Duncan Foundation to award J$1M to the top three small and medium-sized businesses that are a part of the two-year long Accelerator Programme, launched last September. 

The top three SMEs will be selected based on two-part criteria, consisting of a pitch competition where participants have an opportunity to showcase their businesses to a panel of judges and the assessment of their businesses growth based on the key performance indicators set out by the entrepreneurs at the start of the accelerator programme. 

The pitch competition was designed as a simulation exercise to enhance the business owner’s skill in presenting a pitch to attract funding to potential investors by sharing their vision, mission and the investment potential of his/her business to a wide cross-section of experts drawn from various fields. 

In explaining further about the structure of the competition, Shani Duncan-Falconer, senior corporate manager, JMMB Group SME Resource Centre outlined, “In addition to providing these SMEs with the necessary expertise, training and coaching, network and support services through the accelerator programme, to assist their businesses to scale and grow, JMMB wants to invest in these businesses so that they will have funding to further build out the strategic plans that they have formulated and have been executing since the start of the Programme.” She further shared, “We are excited about this pitch component, as these SMEs, have another practical way to act on their plans and are one step closer to taking their businesses to another level, as they share their ideas for buy-in, scrutiny and feedback.”  This exercise will auger well in refining the entrepreneurs’ skills as they seek to better position themselves not just to attract credit, but equity and grant funding. 

Fourteen entrepreneurs, with businesses from a range of sectors including manufacturing, consulting, professional services, education and distribution, opted in for the opportunity to win the prize money. 

JMMB Group Accelerator SMEs Sees Growth in Business
Duncan-Falconer, shared that over the last year we have seen tremendous growth from its 23- member cohort, especially in the areas of leadership development, capacity-building, revenue and expansion. Adding, “With the right support and partnership, more SMEs will be positioned to become more structured businesses and eventually household names. Adding, “At the end of the programme, we expect that with the skills and knowledge we provide to these entrepreneurs they will be better equipped to operate sustainable businesses and bolster their capacity, so that they can further scale and grow their businesses, as evidenced by increased revenue, better corporate governance structures in place and the ability to attract additional funding, through debt, equity or grant financing.”  

Over the year, the entrepreneurs in the Accelerator Programme, ran in partnership with the Joan Duncan School of Entrepreneurship, Ethics and Leadership (JDSEEL) at University of Technology (UTech), Jamaica, have had the opportunity to participate in workshops, quarterly coaching sessions, CEO Round Tables, and the Centre’s best practices bi-monthly workshops. 

Strategic Thrust to Support SMEs
Duncan-Falconer revealed, “In recognizing that the sustainable growth of companies takes time, JMMB Group sought to partner with these SMEs over the long-term and support them with initiatives and services, to allow them to implement measures, monitor them and evaluate the success, versus a short-term intervention.” 

This move is a strategic step by JMMB Group to add value to its SME clients, through the provision of financial partnership, resources, innovative financial solutions and a network, throughout these businesses’ life cycles, thereby, providing the necessary support for growth, and filling the gaps that currently exist in the financial services sector. 

At its recent annual general meeting, JMMB Group announced plans to further support SMEs along their life cycle, with the launch of its private equity investment vehicle - Vertex SME Holdings - through its subsidiary JMMB Securities Limited. The investment vehicle initially raised J$1.5 billion which will go towards providing equity funding for primarily high-growth potential, mid-sized companies in Jamaica and the Caribbean. 

This partnership with the Resource Centre is in keeping with the Foundation’s mandate to support entrepreneurship and empower individuals to tap into their greatness and pursue economic growth.