to Jamaica. I had brought two
Andy Holness - JA Deals
Steely Willpower
His voice rings with passion. From the
moment he spoke, I knew this interview
would be quite different from any other I
had previously done. I was speaking with
a serial entrepreneur, former British
soldier and man determined to add
immense value to Jamaica’s business
landscape. Andy Holness is an
extraordinary man who has owned four
businesses over the past thirteen years
and has a wealth of knowledge to share
on entrepreneurship.
He shared a story from his time in the
British army which aptly depicts his
fortitude as an entrepreneur for over a
decade. It was an early British morning,
a bit nippy but only a severe snowstorm
could prevent these British troops from
completing tedious training ahead. Andy
had sustained a leg injury a few weeks
before. However, he was determined to
participate in this training.
With steely eyes and a fixity of purpose,
Andy started running with his rifle, fully
packed backpack and army boots. The
pain moved from 0 to 100 only after
running a few meters but he kept going.
The other troop members kept
encouraging and pushing him forward
each time he would fall behind.
However, it came to a point where Andy
had once again fallen to the back of the
group. His legs were moving up and
down but not forward. “It was as if I was
in a trance, but I believe this was out of
pure determination to keep going”, Andy
said.
The sergeant, who was at the back,
caught up with him. There was still a
long way to go. “Stop Holness!”
Issue �: January ����
His voice rings
with passion
"
the sergeant shouted. Andy, still
caught in his trance, kept moving his
legs. It wasn’t until the sergeant
shouted again that Andy registered
the sergeant’s command and halted.
He was immediately put into a
nearby ambulance and brought back
to the barracks. It was clear that he
wasn’t in the physical condition to
stay in the military. Therefore, he
was given medical leave for a year.
Andy knows the value of persistence.
Some may consider him a fool to
have gone out that morning despite
his injury. I call him a brave soul who
would risk it all for a fighting chance
to make his life count. This was the
man I met sometime in late
November for this interview. Here
are some tidbits from our chat that I
hope will inspire you to become a
successful entrepreneur.
What is your business background?
I attended Munro College and moved
to London in 2001 to study
electronics and sound engineering.
While studying, I got my first job at a
clothing store in London called
Peacocks. I learnt a lot about
customer service and keenly
observed the business’ operations.
Changes came and I had to move on
to another clothing store on one of
London’s busiest streets, Oxford
Circus. I was later hired at
Selfriges,
London’s
largest
department store at the time.
These experiences taught me a lot
about retail and sales.
In 2005, I signed up for the British
army and was enlisted as a Royal
Engineer. My leg injury resulted
in me being forced to sit out a
year in 2006 so I decided to return
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