The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A small business owner says his struggles to obtain government assistance in the past mean he has little faith he can access the investment incentives set out in the 2021-2022 Budget.

Eric Smith, owner/operator of Zebra EZ Clean & Sanitising, told Tribune Business he is not looking for any help from the government despite the pledges and tax breaks offered in the 2021-2022 budget.

He said: “When I asked this government for a small business loan, they never gave me one and I’ve been struggling. So what they are doing right now can’t help me, because if you don’t have any money to buy anything then how is this going to help me?”

Voicing frustration over his interactions with the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC), Mr Smith said he applied for loans on four separate occasions over the past two years but was rejected every time.

While he did not disclose the reason for the rejections, Mr Smith added: “The SBDC denied me four times. I put in everything they asked me to. I paid up all of my National Insurance and everything. That cost me $4,000.

“This government isn’t making any sense. I’ve stopped even listening to the prime minister because the only thing that comes out of his mouth is garbage. I have made up my mind to just do me and focus on what I have to do and keep God first.”

Mr Smith said he recently entered the cleaning business, after selling the vehicles he used to operate a limousine service in the six years prior to 2020 and the pandemic.

He added: “I haven’t worked in my limousine service in almost a year, so I took the money that I had and sold two of my cars and started Zebra EZ Clean, because now I do cleaning services for COVID-19 as well as clean furniture. I also detail floors after construction and a lot of churches.

“The business goes up and down, but now things are slow. I just thank God for the little that I do have. Even if these duty concessions could help me, the money just isn’t there because I still have to hire staff. Everybody is hurting now. We are going through a pandemic now, and it was rough before then so now it’s even harder to keep your head above water.”

The prime minister, in last Wednesday’s budget, promised to “level the playing field” for small and medium-sized Bahamian businesses by giving them access to the same tax breaks and incentives as those enjoyed by foreign investors and larger local companies.

“Every Bahamian small business and entrepreneur will be able to apply for and obtain duty-free concessions on all the items needed to start or expand their business, including on the first stock of inventory,” Dr Hubert Minnis said.

“Any Bahamian entrepreneur. Any small business with an annual turnover of less than $5m. Anywhere in the country. You will get the same treatment as the mega resort, or the large manufacturer. We are levelling the playing field.”

Renaldo Wright, owner/operator of Watch This, said he thinks these incentives can help the wider Bahamas if businesses “use the break wisely”. He encouraged business owners to pass the tax breaks on to consumers and not just horde them for themselves.

Mr Wright said: “I don’t think we should be paying VAT on government services, for example like the Passport Office or at the Road Traffic Department, because they are the government. I think alleviating that would help a lot more along with the duty concessions.”

Steven Johnson, owner/operator of Prestigious Tints and Prints, said it was a “good thing” to have duty concessions for his small business because he imports almost everything it requires. There are no manufacturers in window tinting in The Bahamas.

Mr Johnson added: “With the hot days of summer upon us, a lot of people will need their windows tinted up to protect them from the heat.” Uncertain whether he will pass any tax savings on to his customers, Mr Johnson said “it may be a mix of both”, as he needs to recover some of what he lost in the “terrible 2020”.