What are the current goals of Deloitte with regards to the organization of the Profit in the Caribbean conference?

We have a few short term goals, the first of which is simply to get a large numbers of signed letters of intent which will represent the first step towards growth and investments in the region.

Our second goal is to help facilitate future partnerships and define which projects have the potential of receiving European grants.

In the long term, can this conference help Deloitte become a stronger consultancy within the Caribbean region?

That is not our principal objective, since Deloitte is already well represented in the Caribbean. Our motivation was essentially to facilitate an excellent outcome for this conference

Nevertheless, our network of Deloitte consulting firms in the region will undoubtedly find that their visibility is accentuated by the Emerging Markets Group’s organization of this conference. We are establishing a strong contact base with a large number of players both in this region, in Europe and in the United States, which can only be beneficial to our business in the future.

Do you believe that the need to organize such a conference has come from governmental authorities, or from the interest of European investors?

I believe that the idea of the partnership program was developed through the European Union, essentially through their various technical assistance programs. During that time, from the input received from dialogue with local governments, it became evident that one of the big problems is that local entrepreneurs do not know where to find partners when they have a good business idea. As a result, EU partners believed that they could play a positive role by attracting EU investors, service provides, consultants, contractors and bankers together with local entrepreneurs in order to facilitate profitable business ventures.

It is a very pro-active idea, yet it certainly has not been easy to organize. We had to sort through a major database of potential investors and determine who might be interested in the Caribbean market, while facing the logistical obstacles of organizing the conference. It involved a great deal of preparatory meetings in Europe and in the Caribbean in order to find the right companies to participate.

In total, there are approximately 80 Europeans companies along with the participation of some American companies, which is quite a good turnout considering the fact that the recent hurricanes kept some people away.

The next meeting will take place in May 2005 and will be linked with the annual Caribbean Investment Conference, organized by the Caribbean Hotel Association, which will ensure a high quality turnout.

Spanish companies have mostly concentrated on Spanish-speaking markets such as Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Cuba, while British companies have mostly invested in Bahamas and Jamaica, for example. Has it been difficult to change the regional and linguistic focus of many European companies?

It is true that a company from France, for example, will first look to a French-speaking country. Yet I hope that events like these will open their eyes to the potential in countries that are outside of their native speaking territories. Sometimes it is simply a matter of one company being pro-active and leading others into a new market.

For example, one of the reasons why Spanish companies are now coming to Jamaica is because JAMPRO (Jamaica Promotions Corporation) pursued the Spanish market for 3 years. After the arrival of RIU a few years ago, there are now a total of 5 Spanish companies in Jamaica.

Which country is the leading force in the European delegation?

By nationality, I believe the majority of the European companies are British, followed by the Dutch, some Spanish and Germans, as well as a few Irish and French companies.

After talking with some of the participants from both regions, everyone seems to be quite optimistic. What is your prognosis?

It was a wonderful sight to see such a positive business atmosphere. However, I think there might have been some false expectations on behalf of the Caribbean entrepreneurs – many of them thought they were going to meet a group of eager investors who would open up their wallets and provide initial funding for their projects almost right away... Of course, investing does not work this way; it a courtship that takes time and understanding.

While there were numerous entrepreneurs from the Caribbean, many of the project presentations were not yet ready to be presented to investors. They lacked business plans, feasibility studies and legal analysis. Needless to say, these are all necessary steps before launching a business, which is a service that some European companies can definitely provide to local Caribbean enterprises.

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