Why Entrepreneurs Should Consider Cuba? The Cuban Culture is Filled With Entrepreneurs and Forward-Thinkers
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| Cuba. Havana. Photo: Baltic Media |
Related: President Obama Announces Historic
Visit to Cuba
THE ROLLING STONES ANNOUNCE FREE CONCERT IN CUBA!
THE ROLLING STONES ANNOUNCE FREE CONCERT IN CUBA!
The past is in the past.!The Rolling Stones anuncian concierto gratis en Cuba! #StonesCubahttps://t.co/Xdl4DW9lnH pic.twitter.com/6idtYqexbK— The Rolling Stones (@RollingStones) March 1, 2016
In
1959, Fidel Castro took power in Cuba and took billions of dollars’ worth of
U.S. corporate and private property and nationalized them. This ultimately led
to a U.S. embargo on Cuba that halted all forms of commerce and trade with the
island -- though Cuban officials would have you believe that the U.S. robber
baron’s were at fault and still have museums dedicated to illustrating this.
Castro’s rule included
the elimination of legal discrimination and saw improved employment rates. But,
Castro also managed to limit land ownership and rid the country of private
businesses. Castro took over private businesses without payment, which caused
the U.S. embargo on trade with Cuba. The embargo, in turn, led Castro to
heavily rely on the Soviet Union for support.
When
the Soviet Union collapsed in the 1990s, the Cuban economy significantly
declined. Even though Castro was able to help restore some trading
partners, he passed control to his brother in 2006 and finally resigned in
2008. In December of 2014, President Obama met with Raul Castro and made
the controversial decision to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba.
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| Cuba, Havana. Photo Baltic Media |
Cuba
has always been in a strategic position -- whether as the maritime gateway to
Latin America, a Cold War ally of the Soviet Union or today as an economy
ready to rise. It’s time to put the past in the past. The opportunities
available in Cuba are abundant, and the Cuban government is ready and willing
to help expedite the process.
Cuban
officials have pledged to double the amount of Wi-Fi accessible spots to the
public to over 100 locations (yes this is sad, but it’s at least 50 more than
five months ago). In September, Wi-Fi was basically non-existent except at
the hotel reserved for foreigners. Even at the hotel Wi-Fi was at the speed of
dial-up internet in the ‘90’s. Social media…forget about it. The government is
also in the process of providing broadband internet service to some homes, a
luxury that is currently illegal.
The
steps are being taken to make Cuba a more accessible and business-centric
option for companies looking to expand outside of the U.S. There is an
opportunity here that is smaller but on the same philosophical and economic
scale as when Deng Xiao Ping opened the doors to China.
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| Cuba. Photo: Baltic Media |
Good relations
and smart business
One
key component that sets Oggun tractor plant apart from other companies that may
seek business opportunities in Cuba is their overall goals and purpose for
choosing to produce in Cuba. Oggun is seeking to create affordable tractors for
local private farmers to help further develop the agriculture in Cuba as
well as provide nearly 30 jobs to locals within the factory.
When
considering whether or not Cuba would make sense for your next business
venture, you must consider the benefits to the Cuban community. How can your
business help their economy while also providing you with an opportunity to
expand? This is where my exploratory trip ended. Like most socialist
/ communist societies, education is tightly controlled by the government,
which makes something as innocuous as teaching English, Chinese and
Portuguese almost impossible -- despite its positive intellectual and economic
effect on the Cuban people.
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| Cuba, Havana. Photo: Baltic Media |
A culture of
entrepreneurs
Cuba
has transformed. There is a burgeoning number of private entrepreneurs operating in the country. I was fleeced by
a few of them. The Cuban government has changed their policies to help local
business leaders, private farmers and employees of Cuba’s joint ventures to
live, thrive and survive. The private sector of the Cuban workforce now
comprises about one third of the entire Cuban workforce, and it will continue
to grow over time. -- especially as ventures such as Oggun start to pop up in
Cuba. Cuba’s private sector is an enticing opportunity for businesses and,
despite the growing pains, it is worth it to make the move now before the
market becomes saturated.
The
Cuban culture is filled with entrepreneurs and forward-thinkers, and if your
business can tap into that workforce and partner with these Cuentapropistas
(private entrepreneurs), the options for future growth on the island are
endless. Cuban citizens pride themselves on creativity, and while that spirit
may have been oppressed in the past, it’s changing -- slowly, but still
changing. The people of Cuba may be your business’ next competitive advantage.
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| Cuba. Photo: Baltic Media |
Next steps
So
what’s next for your business? This isn’t a process that’s going to happen
overnight, considering Oggun isn’t planning on opening until early 2017, the
time now is to start planning and figuring out your next move. If your business
is ready, do your research -- figure out how you can benefit the Cuban
community. Your business needs to integrate into the culture to turn this new
relationship with Cuba into a great investment for your business.
Like
China, there is the easy way in filled with risk and mostly illegal but quick
returns. There’s also the right way, which is frustrating and time consuming
but ultimately rewarding. It may take years in Cuba, but now is the time to get
started -- just keep calm and step in.
You’re
going to want to start planning your team. You’ll most likely work with locals
to help seamlessly transition your business model to fit their culture and work
ethics. In addition, you’re going to want a representative from your company to
ensure quality and processes are clearly communicated to the new team. Seek out
employees who have a solid basis in Spanish and can navigate the Cuban culture
and language. Training your employees to be bi-lingual or investing in
bi-lingual employees can help make the process easier without the concern of a
language barrier.
When
planning for the future for your business and different areas for expansion,
Cuba is no longer on the black list. Consider just how your business may
benefit from the Cuban's culture, entrepreneurial spirit and willingness
to jumpstart their economy -- and make moves before it’s too late.
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| Havana, Cuba. Photo: Baltic Media |
Cuban Spanish
Cuban Spanish is the variety of the Spanish language as it is spoken in Cuba. As a Caribbean language variety, Cuban Spanish shares a number of features with
nearby varieties, including coda deletion, seseo, and /s/ debuccalization
("aspiration").
Of all the regional variations of
the Spanish language, traditional Cuban Spanish is
most similar to, and originates largely from the Spanish spoken in the Canary Islands of Spain.
Cuba owes much of its speech patterns to the heavy Canarian migrations of the
19th and early 20th centuries. Migrations of other Spaniards such
as Galicians, Catalans, Basques and Asturias also
occurred, though without as great an influence.
Much of
the typical Cuban replacements for standard Spanish vocabulary stems from
Canarian lexicon. For example, guagua ('bus') differs from standard Spanish autobús. The word guagua originated in the Canaries and is anonomatopoeia stemming
from the sound of a Klaxon horn.
An example of Canarian usage for a Spanish word is the verb fajarse ('to fight'). In
standard Spanish the verb would be pelearse,
while fajar exists as a non-reflexive verb related
to the hemming of a skirt.
Much of
the vocabulary peculiar to Cuban Spanish comes from the different historic
influences on the island. Many words come from the Canary Islands, but some words are of West
African, French, or indigenous Taino origin,
as well as peninsular Spanish influence from outside of the Canary Islands,
such as Andalusian or Galician. American English has lent several words,
including some for clothing, such as pulóver [sic] (which is used to mean
"T-shirt") and chor ("shorts", with the typical
Spanish change from English sh to ch).
Related: Airbnb Lands in Cuba
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