By Dennise Williams, Staff Reporter
Hendrickson
KARL HENDRICKSON, OJ, CD, will be inducted into the Private Sector Hall of Fame on October 1, 2003 in recognition by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica of over 50 years of contribution to the Jamaican business landscape. He taps into the needs of Jamaicans and delivers.
In 1952 he brought in the first bread-slicing machine to Jamaica. This he used as the launching pad to take his bakery company to its present heights, encompassing the Homade, HTB, Yummy and National Brands.
In response to the need for elegant business hotels, Mr. Hendrickson presented the Courtleigh Hotel and then the Knutsford Court Hotel in 2001. And with the acquisition the Blue Mountain Inn, a more secluded retreat will be in the works in the cool mountains of St. Andrew.
In the tourist end of the market, Hendrickson controls the Negril Cabins , the Seawind Hotel in Ocho Rios and the Ruins and Sunset Beach Resort & Spa in Montego Bay, affordable hotels that any Jamaican can vacation in.
Hendrickson, a man whose complex bakery and hospitality empire belie his gracious and simple approach to life, sat down with Dennise Williams of The Financial Gleaner and shared insights into his life, business and his personal crusade - wealth creation.
Dennise Williams: How did your parents mould you into the businessman you are today?
Karl Hendrickson: We were born in the country, rural Jamaica. I can remember every family in the town. Family time was really Sunday, but after school when you weren't with your school friends, you went to your parents' business place. And so it is not a matter of them forcing my brother and me to say stay home after school, but the inclination to be at home.
Remember that was rural Jamaica in the 30s, so our parents didn't worry if we weren't at home. But 90% of the time we were at their bakery. We would watch them work in the bakery and we learned to do the things that they did. I learned from the ground up. When my father had to wrap bread, I wrapped bread, when he put bread in the big ovens, I did the same.
Sometimes he had to drive the van to make deliveries and I was right there with him. When I wasn't with my father, I was with my mother helping her write up bills and work with the salesman. And so it went, so when we moved to a bigger bakery in Mandeville, I learned to do the same things on a bigger scale.
So our parents didn't have to teach us, we watched them and learned little bits of wisdom. And when my parents started us out in business, they would give us guidance that experience had taught them, just like any other parent.
DW: Your children's successes are well known, and so what is the secret of such a cohesive and successful family?
KH: There is no secret. It is a good mother that is better than a good father is; I attribute the success of my home and my family to my wife. She has helped me to instil in the next generation the hard work ethic. And just like my father taught my brother, and me, I tell them to be careful with owing money.
Grow only within your capabilities. And my children have adopted that view.
DW: Is it by accident or design that your holdings are so diverse?
KH: We went into tourism because we had to earn US dollars. We had no choice. But our investments are accidents by design. You see, as opportunities arise, we assess them. But we don't go out of our scope of understanding. We get involved with things that have similar processes. For example, we don't know the financial sector. We know the productive processes. Tourism is a productive industry that we understand.
DW: What is your concept of a business hotel?
KH: I've always felt that I would like to create oases. A place of piece, quiet and beauty. All of our hotels have that trademark."
DW: Is the Pegasus Hotel still on the radar screen for aquisition?
KH: "Yes. When Le Meridien left the Pegasus we understood that there would be an opportunity to bid on the property. And so we did, but that did not work out. But if the opportunity arose, we would bid again. The hotel would be a nice mix for us; it would be good for the city if we had that segment of town. But we are not going out of our way to get it."
DW: What type of Jamaica do you see your grandchildren coming into in 10-15 years?
KH: I hope we will have more peace. I will always hope that we will have the willingness and ability to discuss issues. I pray that the good that is here in Jamaica will continue.
DW: If you had to point out areas of the business landscape that you find lacking, where would that be?
KH: I have a great sadness about what has happened to our business sector in the last 15 years. I remember in the 1960s, the glamour of Jamaicans owning their own commercial banks and insurance companies. Now Jamaicans do not own these.
The pride in our factories was also another good thing. Now that is no longer the case. DW: What is the way forward for Jamaica?
KH: National wealth creation is the only way forward. It involves assessing each national asset and determining how we can build on it. It is about the things that are already here. I am not against globalization. But if we don't manage it properly we will become a nation of buyers only. We must take a page from the successes in our country.
Walkerswood, Pickapeppa, Appleton. These are all agricultural based industries that take raw materials and add value to them. Even tourism is a value-added industry. It takes the service of people, the land, the beaches, and the sun and puts them together profitably.
DW: How do you advise businesses to operate in a high interest rate regime?
KH: Carefully use assets and borrow carefully. Better every year to take profits (apart from what you need to live) and reinvest in the business. If your factory needs 50 machines, and you have to buy 10 one time, it will kill you. But buying 1 or 2 per year will improve the business without the need for a hell of a loan. Yes it is a simplistic scenario, but it is true.
DW: Many bemoan the lack of opportunities in Jamaica, how do you answer them?
KH: No! There are opportunities here in Jamaica. But it can't be where we will form committees to look into the matter. Creating wealth is about looking at where we are as a country.
DW: In previous interviews, you have talked about wealth creation, can you share some ideas about how Jamaicans can improve their own personal economies?
KH: Entreprenuership, as simple as that. That is the greatest asset that Jamaicans have and we are not releasing it.
DW: What drives your passion for Jamaica?
KH: I am really happiest in Jamaica with Jamaicans.
