Kevco Printing successfully obtained $215,000 in loan investments from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), through the Access Accelerator, Small Business Development Centre (SBDC).
Juluis Tinker started Kevco Printing, a large format digital printing company, as an auxiliary marketing branch of another organization. However, after receiving his first major contract with Focol Sun Oil he decided to take the company public.
Now with the loan investment from RBC, Tinker will be able to scale up the production of Kevco Printing by adding new equipment, products and services to the company’s line-up. Taking the company one step closer to achieving its long-term goal of becoming the largest print service in the Caribbean.
According to the young entrepreneur, the most difficult part of the process with the SBDC was having patience but having to scrap ideas and take criticism came in a close second.
Tinker said, “The hardest part of the funding process is the waiting. I didn’t go through the classes since we already had an existing business. Everything else was relatively straight forward. A close second would be scrapping all your ideas to start over and accepting the constructive criticism, then moving past it with the changed implemented.”
Tehranique Darrell, Kevco Printing’s SBDC advisor, described the company as promising and is looking forward to seeing the expansion.
“Kevco Printing is a fun and promising company,” said Darrell. “I’m looking forward to witnessing the expansion of the company and the continued growth in Juluis. It’s just as exciting to see a business grow as it is to see young entrepreneurs getting a better outlook on their businesses and nurturing the mindset needed to succeed as businessowners.”
Tinker credits the SBDC for giving him a better grasp on running his business properly and has encouraged other entrepreneurs to seek the organization’s services to do the same.
“My conversations with my advisors at the SBDC helped me to get a firm grasp of procedure and theoretical business deals that I later turned into real deals, with real money.”
He continued, “I recommend people to the SBDC all of the time. Even if it’s just to get a good grasp on how to run a business properly and not just for funding.”
The SBDC is the product of a tripartite arrangement between the Government, through the Ministry of Finance, University of The Bahamas (UB) and the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC). The Centre will work to guide the development, funding, growth, and evolution of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (“MSMEs”) in The Bahamas.
