Vol II
PLANNING FOR YOUR TAXES
MAY 2014
UNLOCKING YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS: Interview With An Entrepreneur
CASH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (CMS) Simplify Your Payments With Scotia Small Business Online Banking Scotiabank Business Banking ezine | Vol. II May 2014
Keys to Unlocking Your Business Success Online & Mobile Banking for SMEs
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CONTENTS Pg. 3
KEYS TO UNLOCKING YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS Interview with Sandra McLeish, Managing Director, Spring Vale Enterprises.
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PLANNING FOR YOUR TAXES
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ENTREPRENEURSHIP 101 Scotiabank makes grade with Tertiary Entrepreneurship.
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CASH MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (CMS) Simplifing your payments with Small Business Online Banking.
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SCOTIABANK ACTION CLINIC Testimonials
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EVENT GALLERY
Discover what’s possible
Vol. II
Keys to Unlocking Your Business Success
MAY 2014
MEET THE ENTREPRENEURS
Dedicated to the customers who have built successful businesses through personal drive and determnation. We’re proud to be their partners through the delivery of our Business Banking Services. Scotia Business Banking is privileged to serve thousands of dynamic business owners who are making a difference to the Jamaican economy. Here, we highlight these individuals, and share some of their experiences with you:
FROM INNOVATION SPRINGS INCOME
for their ideas. Our experience so far has taught us that the world is very accepting of the Jamaican brand and it is our business opportunity to ‘build it so they will buy it.’
In 2011, after a friend of McLeish expressed the desire to eat a new, exciting Jamaican meal, McLeish whipped up some sorrel vinaigrette that was an instant hit. Since then, Spring Vale Enterprises has been a pioneer in developing and marketing tantalizing vinaigrettes and the OMD! line of salad dressings which utilise locally-grown fruits and herbs such as guava, mango, Otaheiti apple, ginger and lemon grass. What advice does McLeish have for other business owners? Develop a vision for your product or service. We have a vision for long-term success, and as a result new product development is a must. We have to remain competitive in the very dynamic local and international marketplaces. We are already developing new varieties of dressings and vinaigrettes which will continue to interest and excite our customers. Use innovation to get ahead Having limited disposable cash or savings forces entrepreneurs to be super-efficient and get creative to move their ideas from plans to reality. Financial institutions need to see success before they will support ideas so you have to start somewhere. Sell Brand Jamaica We believe the world-wide appeal of Brand Jamaica is greatly underestimated in our country and encourage innovators to look here
Sandra McLeish, Managing Director, Spring Vale Enterprises Sandra is a graduate of the fourth cohort of the Scotia Action Clinic.
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Vol. II MAY 2014
PLANNING FOR YOUR TAXES
Planning for your taxes Founding father of the United States, Benjamin Franklin is reported as saying that “The only things certain in life are death and taxes.” An unknown person quipped in response that, “Death and taxes may be certain, but we don’t have to die every year.” If you’re running a business in Jamaica, you will definitely have to face the reality of our taxation system. While there are some micro entities that may try to avoid the tax radar, once you intend to grow your enterprise, you must make preparations to deal with the tax authorities. Like any other area of your operation, it takes careful planning to be successful with managing your tax obligations. Let’s look at some simple tips that can help you to pay your taxes without stress.
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ORGANISE YOUR ACCOUNTS Utilise a system to document your accounting information, not just for dealing with everyday tasks, but also for determining your tax obligations. If your operation is very small, you may not need a formal package such as Quick Books; simple Excel spreadsheets can also be useful. KEEP TRACK OF COSTS You need to make special effort to store all your receipts for business expenses and costs that are allowable for tax purposes. Without the physical proof that you made these payments for the business, you will not be able to make a claim when reporting your taxes. ENSURE ACCURACY OF DATA Jamaica’s tax system requires self-employed individuals and businesses to self-report, so the onus is on you to ensure that your accounting information is done correctly. You can hire a part-time accountant to manage your books if you don’t feel capable of dealing with the figures. PUT ASIDE TAX DOLLARS Try not to co-mingle funds that belong to the business with those that should be paid over to the government for taxes. One option is to put aside the money collected for GCT or your employee statutory deductions into a separate account until it’s time to make payment. SAVE FOR INCOME TAX Whether you pay income taxes as a self-employed individual or for your company, it is smart to keep a running track of your obligations. Allocate some of your monthly profit towards paying annual income taxes, so that you don’t have to find a large lump sum to remit at one time. BE COMPLIANT Dealing with the tax authorities is hassle-free once you are timely and honest with your reporting; missing deadlines and submitting inaccurate information will cause trouble in the long run. If you have challenges in meeting your payments, make a payment plan with the compliance department.
Vol. II
Scotiabank makes the grade
MAY 2014
ENTREPRENEURSHIP 101
Alorrs Jerks City, Healthy Going, Bizness Connoisseurs, Salubrious…sounds like the names of well established businesses? They probably eventually will be, but for now they are the names of entrepreneurial initiatives from Club Billionaire students at the University of Technology. Just up the road, the UWI Entrepreneur Builder Club was equally involved in putting together business plans for their competition. Students at both institutions were beneficiaries of Scotiabank’s support and expertise in the recently held business development exercises. As our economy tightens, Scotiabank has stepped in to better equip graduates of tertiary institutions develop their entrepreneurial competencies. According to Monique Todd, Vice President, Marketing, Public and Corporate Affairs, "as the development of small and micro enterprise continues to grow in Jamaica, it is important that our graduates are equipped to explore these options should corporate jobs not be readily available. We at Scotiabank encourage entrepreneurship and stand ready to support this sector of the economy.”
Stacy-Ann Fagan (2nd R), winner of the Scotiabank sponsored UWI Entrepreneur Builder Club graciously receives her award for writing the best business plan in the competition. Sharing the moment is Dr. Kadamawe Knife, Head of UWI, Office of Social Entrepreneurship (L), Tanya Francis-Thomas, UWI Career Services (2nd L) and Omar Spence (R), Manager, Marketing Programmes at Scotiabank.
Winners of the competitions benefited from cash prizes of $100,000 which is to be used as seed money towards the actualization of their business initiatives. UWI’s Stacy-Ann Fagan emerged the winner of the business plan competition. Titled JaOSCAS, her concept is to provide starter kits to persons coming into the University for the first year. Lasanna Allen who represented UTECH’s winner Alorrs Jerks City says “The experience was a life changing one. It was the first time we understood the challenges of running a businesses and the kind of time and input it required. As a group we learnt to be wise and calm and respectful of each other”. The team of five has decided to transition their concept to reality and will be expanding to provide waiter services for events, and are in the process of officially registering the business.
"as the development of small and micro enterprise continues to grow in Jamaica, it is important that our graduates are equipped to explore these options.” - Monique Todd, Vice President, Marketing, Public and Corporate Affairs.
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Vol II MAY 2014
ENTREPRENEURSHIP 101
Making the grade cont’d.
Alorrs Jerks City, winners of the Scotiabank sponsored UTECH Club Billionaire entrepreneurial competition pose with their awards. Team members from left are Orane Edwards, Â Lasanna Allen, Rajesh Hutchinson, Trudy-Ann Smith and Ryan Reid.
Scotiabank's sponsorship was more than cash prizes. It included access to $20,000 loans that each entrant paid back over the duration of the competition, facilitation of Scotiabank speakers as judges of the competition, and access to attend Scotiabank training sessions. According to Omar Spence, Marketing Manager at Scotiabank, "partnership with young entrepreneurs is important for the development of our economy, Scotiabank is pleased to be involved in these initiatives."
UPCOMING EVENTS
YOUR CALENDAR OF EVENTS Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship Methods of Funding a Company Workshop June 21, 2014 Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship Tech Workshop: Big Data/Cloud Solutions July 19, 2014 6
Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship Marketing, Branding & Ad design August 16, 2014 Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship How to Build a Team September 2014
Vol II
Simplify Your Payments With Scotia Small Business Online Banking Running a business can be very hectic for entrepreneurs with small or medium-sized enterprises (SME’s). If you operate an SME, dealing with all the payments that the business needs to make on a regular basis is probably one of your biggest responsibilities. At Scotiabank, we understand how important it is for you to keep your payables under control, so we offer a full suite of cash management services that will make it easier for you to succeed. Let’s look at some of the payment services that we provide via Small Business Banking online:
MAY 2014
CASH MANAGEMENT SERVICE (CMS) BANKING
cheque handling costs, and it removes the risk of cheque fraud or lost or stolen cheques. You can also effectively track your payments online to better manage your cash flow. ELECTRONIC DISBURSEMENTS Apart from your employee payroll requirements, you may also have to handle regular payments for goods and services. Our electronic disbursement service provides a simple way to pay your local suppliers, contractors or business vendors right from your computer.
PREPAID PAYROLL DEBIT CARDS If you have to pay employees who may not have their own bank accounts, then our pre-paid payroll debit card may be the perfect option for your business.
This service reduces the cost of tendering cheques, and it is an effective way for you to keep track of the payments made to your suppliers. We are sure that they will also appreciate the time-saving process of making deposits direct to their accounts!
This payroll payment service provides your employees with their own QuickPay debit cards to which you can electronically deposit their salaries. Your employees can use these cards to access cash at ATMs and to make point of sale purchases at merchants island-wide.
INTERNATIONAL WIRE TRANSFERS If your business requires you to make frequent international payments for goods and services, then our wire payment service will allow you to initiate electronic payments conveniently from your computer, to anywhere in the world.
DIRECT DEPOSIT OF PAYROLL Writing multiple cheques on payday can be time-consuming and has the potential for errors to be made. If you need to pay your employees’ salaries quickly and securely, then our direct deposit of payroll would be your best solution.
You can rely on Scotiabank's extensive global presence and network of banking partners to ensure that your transactions are carried out promptly; and your overseas vendors will value the quick processing of payments from the electronic funds clearing system.
With this service, you can make payroll deposits electronically into each employee's designated Scotiabank account. You can easily use your existing accounting or payroll system to generate payment files for the bank transactions. Direct deposit allows you to save money from
Small Business online banking also offers free account access so you can view current balances, get detailed transaction reports, and perform a range of other essential banking services, all without ever having to leave your office.
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Vol. II
Scotiabank Action Clinic Business Development Workshop
Scotia Action Clinic is part of an ongoing educational push, where customers take part in seminars which focus on a range of topics including taxation, book keeping and cash flow management. The sessions have proved beneficial for our customers who have attended. The appreciation for these seminars is demonstrated in the testimonials below.
This course is really beneficial to those just seeking to start up a new business and who may be feeling uncertain as to what their next moves should be. I have shared these feelings with the dentists who had previously recommended these courses to me, and have already recommended it to my other colleagues. I think it should also be shared with small business bankers who are often our first/closest contact with the bank and who may be able to coach us initially and refer us on to a career coach at the appropriate time. Thank you again for this great opportunity. −Dr. Sheryl Fisher, Dentist
“Must do for small business… more than worth any value. The mentoring & advice as well as practical tools were invaluable.” – Michele Johnson, Honeykist Apiaries Ltd. “The workshop has been a life changing experience for me. It has helped me to change my way of thinking.” – Treacha Reid-McCall Shades of Beauty Creation
Now I’m reading more meaningful books, more focused working on the business, having a greater appreciation for my numbers, leveraging what’s available to me by doing more with less, adopting the action 5 ways approach, identifying what makes me unique and to remove my business from the ‘me too’ crowd, understanding the sales process, implementing systems that will make my business work without me. −Andrea Wilson-Green Director/Editor-in-Chief, With Ease Catalogue Jamaica Ltd.
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MAY 2014
SCOTIABANK ACTION CLINIC TESTIMONIALS
Football Freestyle Lesson Scotiabank-Visa FIFA World Cup competition winner Craig Chin(C ) and Regald Reid (L), Scotiabank Portmore branch manager, pay close attention to the freestyle football lesson being shared with them by Aquel Fonseca (R ). The occasion was the presentation to Mr. Chin of a trip to Rio, Brazil, to watch the World Cup. Scotiabank cardholders earned a ballot for every J$6,500 they swiped between February 1 and March 26, 2014.
Vol II MAY 2014
EVENTGALLERY
Ribbon Cutting For the Brand New Block
[May 6, 2014] Joylene Griffiths Irving (c), Director, ScotiaFoundation, shares the ribbon cutting exercise with Janet Brimm (L), Regional Director, Ministry of Education, at the recently opened Grade One block at Norwich Primary in Portland. The classrooms had been decimated after the passage of Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and have been restored through funding from Scotiabank and the Ministry of Education. Looking on is Claudia McLean, Principal of Norwich Primary.
Scotiabank Teaches at Allman Town Primary [May 6, 2014] Kerry-Ann Redwood (3rd left) of ScotiaInsurance, shows this young man from Allman Town Primary were to place his sticker, as he identifies the career he is interested in. Redwood was part of the Scotiabank Teacher’s Day initiative that saw over 260 Scotiabank volunteers assisting in 85 schools across the island. Scotiabank partnered with Jamaica Junior Achievement to share the JA Economics for Success programme. Observing the exercise are other students from the Allman Town primary and Scotiabanker Racquel Rowe (2nd left).
Scotiabank has Fun Reading at St. Andrew Prep [May 6, 2014] St. Andrew’s Prep School Grade 1 students listen intently as Richard Shaw Front End Adjustor at The Centralised Retail Collections Unit of Scotiabank, reads a tweaked version of Promises from God for Men to them. He was participating in the Reading Day activities organized by the ScotiaFoundation on May 6, 2014. According to Shaw “I did a very interactive session with the children, I read, they read, they answered questions and to wrap it up, in their own words they had to recap what the book was about”. The reward…candy. Everyone had fun.
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Discover what’s possible
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