RESILIENCE in business is not about avoiding disruption; it is about how quickly and decisively an entrepreneur responds when plans unravel. According to Lanisia Rhoden, founder of Young Women/Men of Purpose (YWOP/YMOP)), the defining trait of businesses that survive is their ability to pivot, reframing setbacks as opportunities rather than signals to quit.

“Which entrepreneur has never experienced failure?” Rhoden asked the audience during its final R.E.A.P. Entrepreneurship Fireside chat for 2025.

Rhoden reframed pivoting not as retreat, but as a strategic decision that keeps a business alive. She explained that a resilient business is one that can withstand repeated tests — whether financial strain, market shifts, or operational setbacks — even if that means temporarily closing to restructure, changing a product offering, redefining its target customer, or relocating entirely. What matters most, she stressed, is refusing to let the business die. Failure, she added, is not a signal to stop but part of the growth process.

Drawing from her own journey, Rhoden shared that she operated her catering business for nine years out of her parents’ kitchen before being able to expand, navigating limited resources and uncertainty along the way. That period, she said, reinforced the importance of starting where you are, working with what you have, and remaining committed through difficult phases.

“For entrepreneurs, we survive when we realise that we will experience failure,” she said. “The real question is how we make the changes during or after those moments.”

While Rhoden did not reference specific companies in her presentation, Jamaica’s corporate history offers clear examples of how pivoting has preserved business survival. One such case is Wisynco Group, whose transformation was documented in a 2012 Jamaica Observer report examining the company’s evolution through multiple economic cycles. That report detailed how Wisynco’s long-standing shoe brand, Gator, fell victim to cheaper foreign imports, while Iron Man water boots exited the market in 2008. The late 1980s and early 1990s were described as some of the most challenging periods in the company’s history, coinciding with broader economic hardship across Jamaica. In that article, Wisynco Chairman William Mahfood said the company was forced to reassess its business model.

“We saw our company basically go through one of the toughest periods that Jamaica has ever seen,” Mahfood said.

At the time, the business was largely engaged in plastic manufacturing and the distribution of commodity-based items such as rice and bulk detergents. According to the report, management made the strategic decision to exit businesses that lacked long-term sustainability and to concentrate resources on clearly defined brands with enduring potential.

“We took the strategic decision to start closing down and exiting some of the businesses that we didn’t feel had much sustainability, and also to focus our efforts on very clearly defined businesses and brands that we felt were going to be around for a long time,” he said.

While Wisynco’s evolution illustrates corporate-level pivoting, Rhoden highlighted another principle that applies at the individual level, pointing to the late Gordon “Butch” Stewart as a clear example of successful pivoting. She reminded participants that Stewart began his career selling appliances through Appliance Traders Limited (ATL), before expanding into tourism and building a regional hospitality empire. While not every venture succeeded — including a short-lived airline — Rhoden said Stewart’s willingness to pivot across industries illustrated how adaptability can lead to long-term impact and generational legacy. Beyond strategy, Rhoden emphasised mentorship as a critical pillar of resilience, describing entrepreneurship as an often lonely journey, particularly in the early stages when founders are required to manage every aspect of their businesses.

“Entrepreneurship can be a very lonely road,” she said. “You are everything in your business at certain points, and sometimes your friends and family won’t understand because they are not entrepreneurs.”

Mentors, she explained, can help entrepreneurs avoid costly and time-consuming mistakes by sharing experience-based insights. Rhoden also urged entrepreneurs to be intentional about monitoring their thoughts, stressing the importance of recognising which ideas deserve energy and which do not. While negative thoughts will arise, she said resilience depends on the ability to shut down those that are not serving one’s goals and to remain focused on forward progress.

“For many people, you will not just wake up and have great thoughts,” she said. “You have to surround yourself with people who are going to feed into your energy and speak positively, and sometimes you may have to watch videos to stay motivated.”

While acknowledging that finding mentors can be challenging, particularly those who have achieved a certain level of success and have themselves been mentored, Rhoden said Young Women/Men of Purpose uses social media to reach out and leverage its network. She added that more established business owners need to step forward and give back through mentorship as they advance in their own entrepreneurial journeys.

RHODEN…entrepreneurship can be a very lonely road,” she said. “You are everything in your business at certain points, and sometimes your friends and family won’t understand because they are not entrepreneurs.

Lanisia Rhoden, founder of Young Women/Men of Purpose (YWOP/YMOP), speaks with moderator Anni-Vee Moore during a fireside chat on finding stability in unstable times and rebuilding resilient businesses, at Summit, Kingston’s Catalyst Campus.