By Wendella Davidson

STARTING one’s own business can be both challenging and exciting as one would undoubtedly encounter many obstacles along the path to success.
Also, the most successful business startups are founded by people who are passionate about what they do.
Cognisant of this, Kelshine Griffith, 21, a budding young entrepreneur originally from the West Bank of Demerara, and who currently resides at Tucville, Georgetown, has been patiently dotting the Is and crossing the Ts in her pursuit of becoming one of this country’s leading young agro-processors.
For now, her main focus in on marketing her Sweet Potato Cake Mix that rivals popular imported brands.

In an exclusive interview with the Pepperpot Magazine, Kelshine, who was a student of the Guyana School of Agriculture pursuing a course in agro-processing and will be graduating shortly, said “I Iove doing things with my hands and I have a penchant for agro-processing, so I am always trying local produce to see if they can be substituted for some of the stuff we import. I am also a lover of cakes.”

According to Kelshine, who said that she always wanted to be her own boss, she spent her formative years at Goed Fortuin, West Bank Demerara (WBD) with her grandmother, her single-parent mother and five other siblings. She attended the Goed Fortuin Primary School before moving to Tucville in the city to live with an aunt, Denise Miller, in order for her to attend the Houston Secondary School, on the East Bank of Demerara.

Upon completing her secondary education, Kelshine said she landed a job at the Massy Supermarket, Providence, East Bank Demerara, but soon realised that that was not what she really wanted to do. So she called it quits and enrolled and participated in a one-week Youth Empowerment crash course, organised by the Government of Guyana (GoG), and held at the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA), Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara (ECD).
Kelshine credited her Aunt Denise for assisting her in signing up for the course, a decision she said she never regretted, as the course taught the participants how to add value to raw materials and seasonal fruits, so that they can have a longer shelf life, along with the benefits of agro-processing. “We produce a variety of fruits and vegetables in this country, so getting into the area of agro-processing can become a very lucrative venture,” she added.

It was during the Youth Empowerment course that the young lady said she fully embraced agro-processing and her interest in becoming a full-time student at the institution piqued.
She added, too, that she also started cultivating a small kitchen garden at her aunt’s residence that continues to thrive.
Kelshine further related that her eagerness to become a full-time GSA student had a setback, as she did not have the required subjects for acceptance and so her applications were constantly rejected. Despite this, the young lady said she never gave up, adding, with a smile “I persevered and continued to apply until I finally got through.”
She recalls feeling ecstatic the day she received news that her application was given the green light and vowed to grab hold of the opportunity with both hands.

New creation
Kelshine said she began classes as a full-time agro-processing student at the GSA, in September 2016, adding that the programme requires each student to create a product using local ingredients, is 100 per cent Guyanese and acceptable on the market.
“I gave the assignment much thought and initially came up with the idea of using breadfruit flour as a replacement for the [imported] cake mix; however, the moisture content in that ingredient made it unsuitable for the purpose. My next best bet was to try out the sweet potato flour and that proved successful,” she added.

According to her, in addition to the GSA agro-processing facility, Kelshine said she received invaluable assistance from GSA Principal Grace Parris, other staffers Stacy Mc Donald and Akeem Williams and Miss Patricia, as well as her aunt Denise and cousin Leam Davis in arriving at what she believes is a final product that can compete with the imported one.
So purposeful is this young woman in establishing her own business, that once the sweet potato flour proved to be an excellent substitute, it has been getting good market reviews, and she said that she immediately started to think about the next steps towards the process.

Next steps
That help came when, in 2018, she undertook an Entrepreneurship and Work Readiness Course in 2018 that was organised by the FAO/Sydar /Youth Empowerment. The participants learnt the rudiments of putting together a business plan, how to find a business name, the art of labelling to attract buyers and marketing strategy.
The business was named and registered as Shines Agri Manufacturing and the product is available in an attractive package that bears the instructions for baking and other important information on the back of the package.
And while Kelshine is exuding confidence in her ability to move forward and establish her own business, she is aware that being at such a tender age appears to have its own challenges and disadvantages.

Kelshine is currently undertaking a work-study student attachment at the Banks DIH laboratory and is also in the process of accessing finance to purchase the appropriate agro-processing equipment.

Noting that the equipment: a flour mill, dehydrator, and a processor are very costly, Kelshine said she nevertheless is determined to prove that young entrepreneurs, once give the right inspiration and guidance, can succeed. She reasoned what could be better than being one’s own boss and ringing in your passion project to the world.