THE Ernst & Young (EY) Entrepreneur of the Year Jamaica Awards Gala is set to take place on Saturday, May 4, at Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall in Montego Bay and the nominees are bursting with excitement.

In an exclusive interview with the Jamaica Observer, several nominees shared that they already feel like winners by simply being recognised for their work, regardless of the outcome.

“We’re all winners just being here,” said Andrea Cowan, managing director of Lillan Limited, a nominee in the family business category alongside her husband Peter Cowan.

This sentiment was echoed by the other nominees.

“I feel honoured to be among successful entrepreneurs. I didn’t go looking for this recognition. I’m happy that it was recognised. I’m happy that I made it to the final,” said Peter McConnell, managing director of Trade Winds Citrus Limited, another nominee in the family business category.

“I called my grandma and told her,” said Adrian Dunkley, CEO of Star Apple AI, a nominee in the start-up category. “I’m very happy about it. So very appreciated. I feel like I already won, being nominated.”

The EY Entrepreneur of the Year Jamaica Awards recognises entrepreneurs who have demonstrated excellence in innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.

Jervian Johnson, managing director of Tropicks 365, who has been in operation for just two years, was shocked when she learnt she was a nominee.

“I was surprised when I saw the nomination e-mail. I was kind of, okay, where did this come from? It was just a really exciting moment for me because I know that EY is a global organisation, and being recognised by them will say a lot,” Johnson told Caribbean Business Report.

The awards, which will bring to a climax EY’s three-day Caribbean’s Strategic Growth Forum, consist of three categories: start-ups, emerging businesses, and family businesses, with a total of 12 nominees.

During days one and two of the forum, the nominees got the opportunity to socialise and meet competitors in their categories.

“What I also look at here is that we’re exchanging ideas. So we’re just making each other sharper. I’ve learned different business approaches, how to foster relationships, how to craft your business, and how to tell your story,” said Neil Hudson of Scotch Boyz Jamaica, a nominee in the emerging business category, during a round table interview with the other emerging category nominees, Larren Peart, CEO of Bluedot Limited; Alex Morrissey, founder of Esirom; and Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, CEO of The Infiniti Partnership.

The nominees all expressed different expectations
about what they were hoping to experience from the three-day forum. Some shared that they hope to network, meet new people, and meet other business people to learn from their experiences, as well as attend some of the workshops and presentations to learn.

“Never too old to learn,” said McConnell.

“I’m at the start-up stage, so seeking investors is very important,” said Johnson.

“I mean, just being in the room with everybody, whether they’re a finalist or not, or just somebody who came because they want to learn more, I see that as a big opportunity for me to learn from other people because when you run a business, you’re not really in a space where you can learn from outside of your employees because a lot of businesses, particularly in Jamaica, look at each other as competition if you’re in the same industry,” said Morrissey.

The nominee said that regardless of the outcome, they will continue their business and corporate responsibilities with grace.

“You can spin it for what you want. Oscar nominee, exactly right, yeah, Grammy nominee. The motivation to do what we do is not to win,” said Peart during a round-table interview. “We’re all doing our thing regardless of whether or not we win. You know, it’s just like, how do we then impact more with that? You know, Scotch Boy is going to go and take over the US fully, regardless of what happens with this, and Kirk is going to go to mentor a million more entrepreneurs, so you know, this will propel us to do that and even more,” he said, while tipping his hat to the other competitors in his category.

The other nominees include Keisha Bailey, CEO of Profit Jumpstarter Ltd; Toni-Ann Williams, managing director of Mosa Estate; and Michelle Chong, Honey Bun Limited.

The Jamaica Awards Gala brings together entrepreneurs, business leaders, and government officials to honour the achievements of the nominees and winners and to promote entrepreneurship and innovation in Jamaica.