Names such as “Tel-Aviv,” and others associated with communities in Central Kingston are not usually uttered in association with growth and success; however, a single entrepreneur, Andrea Spaulding, is currently operating a thriving business in “Tel-Aviv.”
The grocery shop, which Miss Spaulding developed nearly two decades ago, has grown based on the “needs” of her customers; and with some assistance from JN Small Business Loans Limited.
“Everybody supports me,” Miss Spaulding relates.
And, that is understandable, given that it is the only grocery shop in that section of the Tel-Aviv community; and thanks to the three years of peace in what was once a volatile community, residents are less stressed and business has been getting better.
“The community encourages me. Many people tell me how they are proud of me to start my operation from such a small thing and manage to grow and keep it at this level because many people start and fail.”
Miss Spaulding established her business some 19 years ago, starting with a tiny stall from which she sold necessities, such as “cake” soap, powdered detergent, and other small household items.
“I was working down at the Free Zone, and after I became pregnant I decided that I wasn’t going to go back there to work,” the mother of three daughters recounts. She was 19 years old at the time; and took a decision to set up a stall in a section of Rum Lane, Tel-Aviv, after moving into the community from the close by Southside area, also in Central Kingston, to live with her partner.
“I did that for a couple of years, but the business was growing and I needed a bigger space. I needed a shop,” therefore she approached her landlord to purchase the unoccupied shop in the yard.
“At first he did not want to sell me, but eventually he came back to me and asked me if I still wanted to buy it,” she stated. She bought the shop and made some extensions with funds she had turned over from her business; as well as money gained from her partner plan.
To expand her operation, Miss Spaulding added new stock including—snacks, juices and staple cooking ingredients, such as flour, cornmeal, sugar and oil; toiletries and floor polish; as well as, hair care products. She also obtained a spirit license to add liquor to her mix of products.
“In 2008, I needed some funds to re-stock the shop and I was not sure how I was going to get it, until a friend told me about JN Small Business Loans and I went to see them,” she said.
She went to the Duke Street office in downtown Kingston and met with a field officer. The loan process was easy, Miss Spaulding discovered. “In no time I was able to get the money to re-stock the shop,” she maintained. And, the field officer, Melissa Noyan, was very respectful and provided her with good advice.
“She helped me to understand the value of practices such as bookkeeping,” Miss Spaulding said, noting that she had become a stickler for such activities. “Every day I take stock of what goods are sold to ensure I maintain a good cash flow and I also take careful note of how much I paid for each item to make sure I know how much profit I’m actually making from what I sell,” she added while emphasising that her loan payments to JNSBL are carefully included in her costs.
Miss Spaulding has continued her relationship with JN Small Business Loans since 2008, benefiting from several loans, which have helped to expand her product offerings. A businesswoman who takes her customer service seriously, Miss Spaulding says she wants to add chicken and other meat products to her stock.
“I talk with my customers on a regular basis, and receive ideas about what they want; and I realise that there is a need for products such as meat items; because they have to go all the way to the wholesales in Parade and in the market to get their meat items,” she explained.
Committed to her customers and the community, Miss Spaulding is firm that she has no plan to uproot her growing business from Tel- Aviv. “I’ve bought a place just next door to the business and I’m building a little three bedroom house, so I’m not going to leave,” she said emphasising that business is good and growing.
