The Value

Who are you?

Why are you here?

These were the questions posed to Akosua Edwards by a female-driven collective in rural Uganda, where she had gone to take her knowledge as a successful accountant to give advice and guidance to grow their business. Little did she know she would be the one who ended up learning the most, uncovering new truths about the meaning of success, purpose and self-love.

The answer, she found, was that “You are here to give out the gift the universe put into you.” Identifying her gift has taken Akosua on a journey from unemployed accountant to successful author and award-winning social entrepreneur. Tune in (LINK IN BIO) to hear Akosua speak powerfully about the impact of a strong community, the freedom that comes from releasing those things that do not drive your purpose, and the role that business can play in creating not only commercial success, but also significant social change.

Aldwyn Wayne is the Founder and CEO of WiPay which provides innovative solutions for e-commerce, online payments and facilitating digital transactions for the unbanked.

In this episode, Aldwyn speaks about the need for challenge and competition in the technology space, and the need for input and innovation to elevate the industry in the Caribbean and beyond.

Tune in to hear the challenges faced when making his place in the financial space, the power of knowing your worth, making your own path and always working toward and expecting success and excellence. Don’t miss Aldwyn’s take on leveraging the potential of the Internet for wealth creation, and his inspiring, practical advice for all aspiring entrepreneurs who may see obstacles instead of opportunities.

Keron Rose returns to Caribbean Power Lunch to share his journey from mobile expert to digital entrepreneur and talks with Kevin about why he was driven to start keronrose.com and where his vision will take him next. Keron pulls no punches as he lays out the reasons why many entrepreneurs are not seeing success, the key steps to building the right brand partnerships, and reveals the systems he uses to find his passions and figure out his next moves as a solopreneur.

Learn about the power of “niching down”, getting specific and being consistent. Do you how to identify the correct online platforms to grow your business and the reason why everyone, even students, should and can have a website? Get ready to take notes for this class on building a digital business, making money while you sleep, and making a business idea a reality in the Caribbean.

"Appreciate people", these are the sentiments echoed by Gabriel Martino - a phrase he often heard growing up from his father, a tradesman.

On this episode of Caribbean Power Lunch, we hear how an immigrant investment banker bought a granite company in Maryland after flipping houses in then-distressed Baltimore. Gabriel used his storytelling abilities and his most unique attributes as a means of setting himself apart from competitors to win contract negotiations with top hotel chains across America.

His message is "shoot your shot; you can't hit if you don't shoot". Gabriel shares stories of some of the shots he took (business ventures he pursued) and how they worked out for him. He defied all odds and stuck to his guns. His investment strategy when it comes to real estate: buy low in distressed communities, remodel, refurbish then resell high. As he puts it "where people see crisis, I see opportunity".

Charles Bobb-Semple is the man behind FUSION ADVENTURE RACE.

FUSION ADVENTURE RACE is an annual physical and intellectually challenging sporting event that demands courage, commitment, fortitude, stamina, and teamwork.

The event, which recognizes three categories, namely Male, Female and Mixed, takes competitors through mountain trails and other terrains, offering the opportunity for persons to discover the veiled treasures of the island from a unique perspective.

Fusion has earned its place as the premier adventure race in Trinidad & Tobago and takes competitors through mountain trails, offering the opportunity for athletes to discover the veiled treasures of the island from a unique perspective. Additionally, it offers intrigue as participants are only informed of what is required of them at each successive stage; emphasis is placed on teamwork, rather than individual achievement.

Who is Toni Thorne?

• Entrepreneur who started her first business at age 7.
• Self-starter: “If I say I’m going to do something, I find a way I get it done.”
• “The hardest thing is to start.”
• Pursue what you are interested in and what will energize you: “You have to be very clear in what you want from life.”
• Motto: “Be true to yourself.” – you are your own biggest obstacle.

Experience of Business

• Pursue Your Interests:
• Know Your Business Inside Out
• Believe in Yourself
• Align Your Interests
• Finding a Mentor
• Understand and Embrace Failure
• Favourite Failure Story.

Black Entrepreneurship

• There is a mindset issue which is keeping Caribbean businesses, particularly Black businesses, from growing as they should: “People would rather own 0% of nothing than 5% of something.” – instead of collaborating and supporting one another, they would rather compete.
• The Black experience in Barbados, a predominantly Black country, is one in which Black people are treated as minorities and racism is an endemic issue
  • Upper financial class does not reflect the racial composition of the country, which affects the level of entrepreneurship and business entry
• Experiences of being Black worldwide are unique experiences
  • A study on the business loan process conducted by Harvard University revealed Black entrepreneurs in the USA have to deal with much more stringent policies and procedures than White entrepreneurs with similar or lesser qualifying requirements. This experience of different rules for Black business owners and Black entrepreneurs is also true in Barbados and serves as an obstacle which Black entrepreneurs have to determine how to overcome.
• Black parents have until recently tended to be more conservative, encouraging children to follow a more secure, traditional path and may not have supported entrepreneurship as it seemed too risky
  • This stems partly from a historical experience of oppression and disadvantage which has caused them to be more risk-averse.
  • That mindset is slowly changing, which is necessary to spur on generational wealth and generational business growth
  • White peers may have a different upbringing and exposure to family businesses and business mindset earlier on
• Black entrepreneurs must recognize that although social structures may cause them to be at a disadvantage, they can and must then make their own paths to success, be creative in how they pursue structuring and financing their businesses and set their own goals for measuring success.

Ms. McKenzie is the founder and managing consultant of the Caribbean Mindfulness Institute (CMI). She received her mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) training from the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine (UCSD), widely considered to be one of the preeminent thought and research leaders in the field of Mindfulness Studies. MBSR uses a combination of mindfulness meditation, body awareness, and yoga to help people calm their mind and body to better cope with stress, illness, and pain.

• Makeda's Journey to Mindfulness;
• Meditation;
• The Science of Happiness;
• The Power of the Pause;
• Class: 5 Weeks to Peace;
• Mental Body Scanning & Self-Awareness;
• Making Mindfulness a Business;
• Winning Business: Turning "NO" into "YES"; and
• Next Steps for the Caribbean Mindfulness Institute.

Learn more at:

• Makeda McKenzie on LinkedIn
• Caribbean Mindfulness Institute on Facebook
• Caribbean Mindfulness Institute on Instagram
• Insight Timer: Free Meditation App
• Much More than a Host with Hans Des Vignes
• Doing What You MUST with Nicole Greene

In this episode, we talk to Kerwyn Valley; CEO and majority owner of KCL Capital Market Brokers Limited, and Founder and  Managing Director of Aspire Fund Management  Company  Limited. Aspire is a small-cap private equity management company focused on growth-stage private sector investments throughout the Caribbean. 

In  2004,  Kerwyn joined  AIC  Financial Group in Trinidad and Tobago to develop the Group’s regional Trade  Finance  Division.  In  2008, Kerwyn became CEO  of AIC  Finance Limited and in  2010 he was also appointed CEO  of  AIC  Capital Market  Brokers  Limited.    In  February  2011,  he led the successful management buy-out of  AIC  Capital  Market Brokers which has been rebranded as KCL  Capital Market  Brokers  Limited.

Episode Flow:

1. Moving from Employee to Owner
2. Weighing the Risks
3. Building Generational Wealth
4. Creating Wealth in the Caribbean
5. Overcoming Fear
6. How to Identify a Good Business
7. The Importance of Providing the Money in the Middle (Putting Professional Capital to Work)
8. Questions From Social Media

• The concept of Social Innovation;
• Why Social?;
• The vision, creation and production process, and impact of the film "Positive and Pregnant";
• Rollywood;
• Location Management;
• "Our Ethiopia" short film series;
• Building awareness of local creative projects; and
• The Caribbean's role in Global Diversity.

• Candice's Production Reel - on YouTube.
• Trailers for "Our Ethiopia" Series
• Candice's thesis on Behavior Change
• Candice on LinkedIn
• Candice on Twitter
• Candice on Instagram

• Listen to Social Entrepreneurship with Sian Cuffy-Young
• Listen to Rankin Morgan - Dazzle Magazine

• Sponsorship Manager for the Caribbean Premier League (CPL);
• Marketing Manager for the Local Organising Committee for the FIFA Women’s U17 World Cup 2010;
• Program Coordinator for the DC Scores, Washington, D.C.; and
• Sport Marketing Officer for Digital Sports DC/Kimsey Foundation, Washington DC.

• The origin of Beach Football (Soccer) in Trinidad and Tobago
• The Sports Tourism model and its impact on a country's athletics
• The transition into Cheerleading - Cheer in the Sun
• Finding opportunities in Sports Entertainment
• A lesson in Resilience - how Kyle acquired the World of Dance Franchise; and
• What you learn from managing a Sports Bar

• Lequay Edge on Facebook

• Listen to Episode 001: Osei Wright-Alexis - Why Not Try?
• Listen to Episode 003: You Have to be "All In" with Kerrie-Kim Kirton
• Listen to Episode 010: Make It POP! Event Management 101 with Brendon Braithwaite
• Listen to Episode 022: Proper Talent Management with Andre Jeffers