pple aficionados were no doubt a bit upset when the highly anticipated iPhone 4S de-buted as (seemingly) a mere touch-up of the

iPhone 4. Until they discovered that they could talk to the device – and it could talk back!

The iPhone 4S comes with Siri, a voice-controlled app that acts as your personal assistant. Siri replaces the tra-ditional input method of keying in information – what-ever you want to do, just say it and Siri will comply:

• Set important reminderS – Tell Siri to remind you make an important call or even pick up your dry cleaning and at what time you wish to do so. When the time comes, Siri will alert you.

• arrange your Schedule – Simply tell Siri to the dates and times of your meetings and other events and they will automatically be logged in and invitations sent out.

• Send email – Simply say “Email (contact’s name)” and dictate the message. Siri will write the email and then ask your permission to send it.

• take noteS – Instead of typing, tap the micro-phone icon and start speaking. Siri will convert your words into text.

• convert currency – This is especially help-ful if you handle a lot of foreign currency. Tell Siri what you need converted and into which currency, and it will be done.

Now you can really multitask! And Siri is only one of a number of cool features. Other plusses include a dual core A5 processor; an 8-megapixel camera with advanced color accuracy, face detection, and reduced motion blur; HD video recording; and iCloud, which wirelessly pushes all your apps, mail, contacts, docu-ments and more to all your Apple devices.

And Siri isn’t all business all the time. Ask her a fun question and hear what she says!

Siri SaySMakE LIfE EaSIEr WITh appLE’S VIrTuaL pa

tech now

A

yourmoney ezine

s the founder and manag-ing director of XS Capital Management Ltd., 25-year-

old Adrian Reynolds is used to helping new businesses get off the ground. He carried this same philosophy into the Building Alternative Bridges for Success (B.A.B.S.) Foundation, which helps resi-dents of low-income communities get on their feet through life empowerment and entrepreneurship.

Reynolds’ motivation to give back is in-spired by his mother who was constant-ly sharing and helping others. The Foun-dation is even named after her, as Babs was her nickname while growing up in St. James. “I got started through follow-ing her example, but once I got started, I realised how rewarding it can be to help people without any expectation of getting something back in return,” said Reynolds, who has been involved in charitable initiatives since high school.

how does the B.a.B.S. Foundation work?B.A.B.S is a dynamic, creative, innova-tive, and purpose-driven organization committed to transforming and em-powering people… Our strategy in-corporates broad-based collaborative community initiatives, fostering social re-integration, providing entrepreneurial training, apprenticeship placement; life skills coaching; mentoring and other pro-grammes to inculcate good work ethics, positive self-esteem and moral values on which to build a successful life. We [also] provide… Second Chance seed muster-

ing for individuals in inner-city and rural communities.

What are the specific services you provide and who do you partner with?B.A.B.S., in partnership with Global Missions, provides community involve-ment in terms of mentorship, camps for young people ages eight to 16. Our aim at these camps is to provide computer literacy skills, but also life skills training through the dissemination of informa-tion as it pertains to healthy lifestyles, with emphasis on sexual practices and the awareness of STD’s. Additionally, we are involved in promoting a move to desensitize the stigma of HIV, as well as other health issues. how can Jamaicans get involved with the B.a.B.S. Foundation? We will be launching our website in November (babsfoundation.com), and people can also contact us at any of our numbers or even visit us at our location. We are currently looking for computers and other learning instruments to roll out our Entrepreneurship Skills Training and Development programme, and are always looking for individuals and com-

panies that can provide time and help in the form of teaching, training [and] men-toring (for individuals), as well as dona-tions, support and, later on, internship placement (for companies).

in your opinion, why should busi-nesses and those involved in busi-ness give back to the society?Well most importantly, a rising tide lifts all boats. The more we can educate in-dividuals in basic skills as well as wealth creation, and the more we can alleviate poverty, the more businesses will be able to profit. Furthermore, I have al-ways felt it my civic duty as a company owner to give back to society. And from what I am seeing, many companies and individuals are embracing this responsi-bility and really are looking to invest in Jamaica’s social development.

b.a.b.S. FoundationbuILdIng brIdgES WIh ThE

PhilanthroPyin action

A

“ I have always felt it my civic duty as a

company owner to give back to society. ”

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adrian reynoldsFounder and Managing Director of XS capital Management ltd.

B.a.B.S. Foundationaddress: the People’s church,74 Maxfield avenue, Kgn 13babsfoundation@gmail.com

adrian reynolds (876) 891-1417Matthew reynolds (876) 326-3949neville wright (876) 322-6233

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Levi in theDragon’S DenHow £50,000 Created a Caribbean Food SuperStar By tracey-ann WiSdom

PHOTOGRAPHS TAkEN AT THE Wyndham kingSton hotel By Warren Buckle

ive years ago, Levi Roots (nee keith Graham), stood at a crossroads in

his life. The Clarendon native had dreams of making it big as a reggae singer, but al-though his music had a following, he was not to be the next Bob Marley. He also loved to cook and had a thriving ‘side job’ making and selling his popular jerk sauce, particularly at the Notting Hill Carnival, for 15 years. But neither venture was bringing in enough money to sustain his family of seven children. Should he de-vote more of his time to fulfilling his mu-sical ambitions or focus on marketing his sauce?

“I’d been attending the carnival from way back when and serving jerk chicken with music, so that was the original inspiration [behind] using sauces,” Levi said. “In 2005-2006, I just wanted to work with the two things I was most passionate about, which are food and music… I thought, maybe I shouldn’t give up the music but what I should do instead is put [them] together. I gave it the name Reggae Reggae Sauce because of my background in music and really took it to the public.”

Almost like a sign, Levi was spotted at the 2006 World Food Market in London by a BBC researcher and was invited to appear on its programme dragon’s den, where nervous entrepreneurs pitch their busi-ness plans to a panel of venture capitalists with the power and money to make or break them. Come January 2007, in true Jamaican fashion, Levi went in singing and after a rough patch in the middle which almost saw his plan rejected outright, walked away with a £50,000 investment from Dragons Peter Jones and Richard Farleigh, to expand his operations.

putting muSic in your Food“I’d never seen the show. I didn’t know

what it was. I don’t know why I got ap-proached. I think it’s because I was trying to sell my sauce differently than how oth-

ers were doing it, writing songs and turn-ing up at fairs and singing about food and Jamaica and really expressing my ‘Jamai-can-ness’,” he laughed.

Levi used the same approach on the show and immediately won over the notori-ously fierce Dragons with his jingle. But a flaw in his calculations saw three Dragons refusing to invest.

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F

levi roots surrounded by his plethora of reggae reggae sauces.

“I just wanted to work with the two things I was most passionate about,

which are food and music”

One Dragon, Duncan Bannatyne, even told him, “There’s no business in this.” Jones and Farleigh, however, saw po-tential and each offered him £25,000 in exchange for a 20 per cent share of the business, which is 20 per cent more than Levi had initially planned to relinquish.

“At the time, a lot of people were say-ing to me that maybe I’d given away too much, but I really knew [that] what I was doing was a long term journey… Now, five years down the line, it doesn’t really matter because I bought my shares back,” Levi stated. “The only thing that matters is that I didn’t overprice myself by mak-ing the demand that I wouldn’t accept the change when I got into the corner where I knew I had to give more.” Levi was able to buy back Farleigh’s shares within 18 months of the initial investment, but has maintained a good relationship with Jones, who was instrumental in securing a distribution deal with major supermar-ket chain Sainsbury’s, which saw Reggae Reggae Sauce on shelves within six weeks of being on the show. “I will not be buy-ing back my shares from Peter Jones be-cause he has become much more than an investor. He is my mentor and a very good friend as well,” Levi pointed out. “I rely on him mostly because he has been there, done that and worn the t-shirt. If I can have somebody like him to look up to, as a guru, then I think my path can only go smoother, so I’ll always have him there. He’s my ‘pet dragon’.”

Building an empireToday, contrary to Bannatyne’s predic-tion, Levi Roots/reggae reggae is a burgeoning empire, with a product line containing award-winning, best-selling sauces, packaged and frozen meals,

drinks and snacks, five cookbooks, his own series of shows and recurrent guest spots on top cooking shows in the United

kingdom, making him the first Caribbean national to be elevated to this capacity. All this has been a real coup because Levi has not had any formal culinary training.

Naturally, it took some work to make Reggae Reggae the top-selling brand of sauces across the Uk, especially as Levi, the head of the company, had no busi-ness training. However, he has since built up quite a formidable team that has made Levi Roots/Reggae Reggae a li-censing company, optioning the brand to major manufacturing companies to make namesake products – the sauces are made by AB Foods and the soft drink line is made by Vimto. Other major compa-nies licensed to use the Levi Roots/Reg-gae Reggae brand include Subway and Domino’s Pizza.

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“I don’t know why I got approached. I think it’s because I was trying to sell my sauce differently than how others were doing it, writing songs and turning up at fairs and singing about food and Jamaica and really expressing my ‘Jamai-

can-ness’.”

Of course, music is also integral to the brand and is used as a major market-ing tool, as the company sponsors sev-eral music events. Levi is also a MObO award-nominated musician. He uses his story to promote the brand on his moti-vational speaking tours to various schools and institutions across the Uk. “[This] is not only for the business but also for the entrepreneurial movement which I do in the Uk. Shah [khan, Brand Manager] is instrumental in [ensuring] that the brand is seen as more than the food, but as a lifestyle,” Levi explained, adding that they focus so much attention on the youth be-cause this is their largest customer base.

The leverage that his Dragon’s Den ex-perience has provided is also monumen-tal as many people remember his pre-sentation. He is the show’s most famous alum and one of the most successful, and he has become somewhat synonymous with the programme.

coming homeNow that he has made his name abroad, Levi has come home to Jamaica to ‘put some music in our food’, partnering with Loshusan Progressive Food Group to market and distribute his Reggae Reggae products across the island. “I think if you use Rastafari, reggae and Jamaica and you don’t ‘buss’ in Jamaica, then you don’t buss at all, no matter how you big up yourself all over the place,” he laughed. “It’s fantastic that [Loshusan] has given us this support. We started small with a company we feel we can grow with.” Of course, it will not be as easy for Reggae Reggae products to dominate the Jamai-can market as it does in the Uk. Many major local brands have already claimed their shares of the market in sauces, pack-aged foods and soft drinks and Jamaicans love to stick with what they know. But

Levi is confident he can replicate his suc-cess here, based on the strength of his brand and the variety of choices it offers customers.

Having realized his initial five year plan of dominating the Uk market and preparing to take his first steps locally, Levi is look-ing towards the next five years, which he hopes will include success in the North American market. “That’s the Holy Grail for any business. If you can get there it’s fantastic. We know it’s gonna be difficult because there wasn’t a Dragon’s Den there with Levi Roots a sing him song; it’s a whole new thing, but I’m looking for-ward to it,” he said. “I think what we’ve [achieved] from doing the five year plan in the Uk is a big armoury to take with us there. We know a lot – we know what people expect of the brand, we know why people like it, we know how to push it.”

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t’s no secret that at 33 1/3 per cent, Jamaicans pay the highest corporate tax rate in the Caribbean. But there

are other taxes that businesses pay from time to time, like transfer tax and general consumption tax. Tax breaks are few and far between, but there are some deduc-tions that allow you to get back a little of your income or avoid paying altogether – legally, of course!

Speaking at the October Mayberry Inves-tor Forum at the knutsford Hotel, Allison Peart, partner at Ernst and young Carib-bean, gave investors a rundown on several profit-saving measures that are, at pres-ent, under-utilized.

• Set up an international business company (IBC) or CARICOM Holding Company – An IBC, which is an untaxed company located in another country, cannot get you out of paying income taxes in Jamaica, but it does get you out of paying transfer tax and stamp duty. However, the ‘mind and management’ rule applies: “you can’t just

set up a St. Lucia IBC and never go there. Where the mind and the management is, that’s where the company is. If you incor-porate a company in St. Lucia and you sit down in Jamaica and… you don’t go and do anything [there], you have another Ja-maican company in St. Lucia,” Peart ex-plained.

• Deduction for employee top-up of con-tributions – Employees who top up their companies’ contributions to their statu-tory deductions are eligible for a rebate of the amount they pay. “know what your employer is contributing on your behalf and top it up… There is no reason for anybody to not take the full 20 per cent,” Peart said.

• Withholding tax – Make sure you keep your withholding tax certificate in a safe place where you can easily find it to com-plete your tax returns. “One of the things that is under-utilized from a deduction perspective is the credit from the with-holding tax. Remember, it is not a deduc-tion: every dollar that the financial institu-tion takes off reduces your income tax, so you’re saving that money. If you lose the certificate, you’re paying twice,” Peart warned.

• Foreign tax credit – If you receive returns on your investments in foreign countries, you are eligible for a tax credit locally since taxes would have already been deducted overseas. you only need to file a claim. t

• Long-term savings accounts – Most finan-cial institutions have long-term accounts that offer tax free saving as well as me-dium to high interest rates. But before you sign up, make sure your bank’s scheme has been approved by the tax authorities.

• Invest in qualified unit trusts and publicly listed companies – Under the Income Tax Act, money earned from qualified trusts are exempt from taxation. If you invest in listed companies, you get out of paying transfer tax while trading securities.

• Invest in Barbados and Trinidad – “If you are investing in a Barbados mutual fund and they give you a distribution (divi-dends), you pay no tax on it in Barbados and you pay no tax on it in Jamaica,” Peart said. Trinidad has a similar unit trust struc-ture to Jamaica, which is not taxable for residents of CARICOM countries.

• Make charitable donations – “If you are making a donation to an approved chari-table organization and you do it person-ally, keep track of it because you really can get a tax deduction if you file a return,” Peart advised.

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Tax breaks are few and far between, but there are some deductions that allow you to

get back a little of your income or avoid paying altogether –

legally, of course!

ITax breaks for invesTorsTOp undEr-uTILIzEd

allison Peart, partner at ernst and young caribbean, speaks at the october Mayberry investor Forum.

hat started as a rela-tively small gathering in the Wall Street financial

district in New york City has spiralled into one of the most widespread pro-tests the world has ever seen. In cities across the United States, hundreds of persons have taken to the streets to occupy public locations in protest of the vast inequality in the distribution of wealth in the country. It’s what the pro-testors captured in their slogan ‘We are the 99%’, highlighting the fact that one per cent of the population controls and owns the majority of wealth.

Since then, cities in Canada, the United kingdom, other European countries and even here in Jamaica, have all joined in with their own protests. With seemingly no organized or specific demands, par-ticipants will tell you that the protests have been a long time coming. In New york, protestors say they are showing discontent with government bailout of banks in 2008, which they argue ensured huge profits for corporations but unem-ployment and job insecurity for the av-erage American. Despite the criticisms, there are lessons that businesses can learn from the protests.

The people are rightfully frustrated. Ac-cording to Bloomberg Businessweek, “protestors want more and better jobs, more equal distribution of income, bank reform, and a reduction of the influence that corporations wield in politics.” We hope that the protests will at least have an impact on the way corporations re-spond to future financial problems, es-pecially as it relates to job security for workers. The idea of mass layoffs as a first response must not be allowed to continue.

Undoubtedly, corporations need to practice corporate responsibility. Banks, especially, received bailout with the ex-

plicit intention that they wouldn’t need to downsize in order to stay afloat. However, these corporations still sent thousands of staff members to the un-employment line, while their head hon-chos received bonuses. That, for many protestors, is unacceptable. The protes-tors are angry and US President, Barack Obama, understands why.

During an October 6 news conference, President Obama said, “I think it express-es the frustrations the American people feel, that we had the biggest financial cri-sis since the Great Depression, huge col-lateral damage all throughout the coun-try... and yet you’re still seeing some of the same folks who acted irresponsibly trying to fight efforts to crack down on the abusive practices that got us into this in the first place.” One of these “efforts”

is a proposal to tax the rich - the one per cent protestors are speaking out against.Reactions to the protests have been split with some persons calling it a waste of time. Republican presidential hope-ful Herman Cain called the movement anti-capitalist and tersely argued: “Don’t blame Wall Street, don’t blame the big banks, if you don’t have a job and you’re not rich, blame yourself !” What Mr. Cain seems to forget, however, is that it’s hard to “blame yourself ” when you’ve served a company for many years and were made redundant on the basis that the company is cash-strapped, yet top managers and executives continue to receive bonuses, still live the high life and refuse to be taxed.

Ultimately, even if all their demands aren’t met, the protestors would’ve been able to call public attention to their plight and send a very strong message to corporations that enough is enough. Importantly, it shows what can happen when the masses are truly united. We hope corporations are taking note.

The ‘occupy’ proTesTsWhaT buSInESSES Can LEarn frOM

inSightS

W

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In New York, protestors say they are showing discontent with government bailout of banks in 2008, which they

argue ensured huge profits for corporations but unemploy-

ment and job insecurity for the average American.

yourmoney ezine

n our last article, we discussed the importance of budgeting and cash

flow for small businesses. Without a cash flow and a budget, you are operating your business blindly. This month, we will look at why it is important to have an ac-countant. The importance of an accountant cannot be over-emphasized. As small business owners, we oftentimes have a hard time dealing with the financial aspect of our businesses. Accountants cannot guar-antee your success, but they are an im-portant aspect of your business and can surely contribute to its prosperity.

dutieS oF an accountantThe basic services an accountant pro-vides include keeping track of how much your business owes and how much it is owed by:

• Creating a budget

• Creating cashflow projections and finan-cial statements

• Handling taxes

• Doing payroll

• Handling audits

• Providing financial advice

• Preparing profit and loss statements

• Supervising the input and handling of fi-nancial data and reports.

• Your financial reports should show wheth-er or not you are making a profit or suffer-ing a loss.

1. recordSAccounting is one of the primary driv-ers of record keeping. Data are gathered from their various sources, collated, or-ganized, analysed, interpreted and com-municated to the end users for an in-formed business decision.

2. deciSion-makingAll of our business decisions are based on the sound analysis of financial statements, which are produced by an accountant. Without properly kept accounts, current or prospective investors would have no

interest in our businesses. Information on profitability and liquidity are all obtained from whatever information is provided by the accountant.

3. oBtaining a loanyou cannot get a loan from a financial institution if you cannot present your fi-nancial affairs in an acceptable manner. Financial institutions must have a good understanding of your current and your projected financial status. They will use your financials as a basis for measuring the risk of your business.

coluMn

I

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Threehire an accounTanT

rEaSOnS TO

tUMPeD!get

Start uPS

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aS tolD toTracey-ann Wisdom

PhotograPhy By Warren BuckLe

”

ne year ago, five friends were looking for post-dinner en-tertainment on a Friday night. ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we

could just find a list of events?’ they thought. Well, today, thanks to their forward thinking, there’s an app for that! Tump! (http://www.tumpit.com/index.html) is a BlackBerry app that locates places, events, other free apps, and more. The techies Omarie Case (Lead Developer), Glenford Dickson (Applications Engineer), Christo-pher Hinds (Web Developer) and Ramon Dunkley (Database Manager), along with Commercial Director Rory Burchenson, of Quamsoft Limited, talk shop.

JuSt tump it: “The name ‘Tump!’ was from a brainstorming session we had. We had a whole heap of names, but we narrowed it down to about four or five. At the end of it, Tump is inherently Jamaican and easy to remember: when you want to find some-thing, you Tump it.”

What the people Want: “’Awesome app!’ ‘Brilliant!’ ‘Where was this last week?’ It’s really comments like those that are the driving factor… Persons are at parties and looking up where else they can go, which is the same concept we had [that Friday night], so that type of energy that we’re getting from users, or the tweets on Twitter and comments on Facebook, is pushing us to deliver more, add more content, give more quality and keep going.”

BuSineSS BeneFitS: “[O]ne of the key features of the next release [will be] premium discounts. There’s no longer your static ad page in the yellow Pages. It’s very reasonable. As a business, what you can do is update your page like a Facebook page. If you have a deal where you’re selling shoes half off, you have the ability

to change your page, update your listing, and the users now have access to that. Whenever they go on, they will see a little sign be-side the business place so they’ll know you have a special going on, so it drives customers to businesses… The next thing is ads. We’re putting ad space in the app, making it more intuitive, making ads more relevant. So no longer are you going to see ‘Win an iPad2’ and it’s only eligible in the United States. People don’t want that. Ads have to be relevant and speak to Jamaicans.”

the next Step: “One thing we’re never short on is ideas… Our projects might just include doing Android apps, other Black-Berry apps, iPhone apps… We’re a software house; we don’t just do apps. We do any type of software – enterprise grade software, websites, mobile software, mobile websites. Whatever it is in the software business, we are able to tackle it.”

Othe tump! team (From left:) glen Ford Dixon, omari case, rory Burchenson, christopher hinds and ramon Dunkley.

Start uPS

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The current economic climate has created a seller’s market where temployment opportunities are concerned. Entrepreneurs looking to hire the best and brightest for their companies have a pool of poten-tial candidates who are all eager to demonstrate why they should get the coveted position. However, it can be a challenge to choose the right person when you receive 100 applications for one job and every other person is suitably qualified on paper.

he screening and interview process helps employers separate the good from the rest. The employer has a lot riding on making the right choice – it takes time and

money to train new recruits, which go down the drain if the per-son selected is not the right fit. This is especially difficult if the business is new and/or low on resources. keep these tips in mind as you staff your new company or hire new employees:

bEfOrE ThaT fIrST InTErVIEWTake the time to understand the job itself and the qualities of the person you want to fill the position. First time employers should seek the input of people in positions similar to the one you are filling. This will give you a gauge of what skill sets, personality traits and behaviours to seek out. After receiving applications, familiarize yourself with each candidate’s resume. you can also Google their LinkedIn profiles for additional information.

aSk ThE rIghT quESTIOnSMany bosses use these four approaches when conducting inter-views:

Fact-based questions are used to clarify information on the can-didate’s résumé or just find out more about who the person is and what they are capable of. Such questions include ‘What in-

terests you about this job?’ or ‘Why did you leave your last job?’

Situational questions force the candidate to think on his/feet and come up with believable answers. Nervous interviewees want to look good and seem prepared, so they study sample questions and swot the ‘correct responses. Be careful of answers that sound canned.

Stress questions are designed to put the interviewee on the back foot so you can gauge not only their responses but also their demeanour. Although the candidate has also likely prepared for a question like, ‘You don’t have any significant work ex-perience. Why should i hire you?’, it still makes them uncom-fortable. However, try not to come across as intimidating or too aggressive.

Some employers prefer behavioural questions to stress ques-tions because they are not confrontational. Behavioural ques-tions like ‘How did you manage to meet performance targets when your department’s budget was cut in half ?’ allow can-didates to demonstrate what they have done in the past and how they are likely to respond should similar situations arise at your company.

narrOW dOWn yOur ChOICESyou will likely meet several great candidates for the position, so take notes during the process and then carefully evaluate and rank each applicant. Schedule follow up meetings with the top candidates to help you decide not only who is most qualified for the job but who will be the best fit in your company.

T

hire the BeSt talent For your company

hoW To

ideaS Worth Sharing. you’ll get access to hundreds of TEDTalks, as part of a free and wide

database of ideas from some of the world’s leading thinkers. The talks and conferences bring together people from technology, entertainment,

design and other fields, who are seen as forward thinkers and doers.

they don’t JuSt talk, they tWeet! you’ll get daily TED Talks that you can watch on their website for free.

on-demand inSpiration. Thinking about starting the ‘next big thing’ but not sure what your first

step should be? Watch as these pioneers share where their dreams started, the temporary roadblocks, the outright failures and the eventual

successes.

tedx Jamaica. Jamaica has its own TEDx, which is an independently organized event

which shares ideas and inspiration from local speakers. The most recent TEDx Jamaica was held at the start of October and included talks by

Barrington Irving, the Jamaican pilot who became the youngest person and first black man to fly around the world solo.

tedtalkS are For everyone! you’re never too young or old to benefit from the ideas of others.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, an employee or the owner of a multi-million dollar corporation, a wealth of information is available to you.

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