Making Waves

Making Waves

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A Caribbean Social Innovation Guide

Step 5: Choose Your Path

Commercial Enterprise (LLC / Inc.)

Recognized Social Enterprise (eg. Jamaica-specific framework)

PRIMARY REVENUE SOURCE Direct B2B/B2C sales of goods and services; Commercial contracts & export sales; Equity investment & debt financing. PROS Complete operational freedom; can issue equity to attract private investors, secure bank loans, and retain or distribute commercial profits. CONS / CONSTRAINTS Completely ineligible for public subventions and non profit grants; subject to standard corporate tax rates and commercial interest rates.

PRIMARY REVENUE SOURCE Blended revenue: Commercial sales + impact grants + specialized development loans PROS Official state recognition; tailored access to specialized growth programs; blended finance; and impact investment facilities. CONS / CONSTRAINTS Requires continuous formal reporting on social impact metrics; restricted to jurisdictions with active policy definitions.

03 . The Caribbean Social Innovator’s Guide

Cooperative / Friendly Society

Grassroots Collective / Informal Community Initiative

PRIMARY REVENUE SOURCE Member equity deposits; Shared production and marketing dues; Member loan interest reinvestment. PROS Democratic, community-based ownership; strong local buy-in; shared risk among members; high financial resilience during localized crises. CONS / CONSTRAINTS Slower decision-making processes due to member voting requirements; strict ongoing regulatory compliance (Eg. credit unions).

PRIMARY REVENUE SOURCE Volunteer contributions; Localised micro-crowdfunding & donations; In-kind community labor and resource sharing. PROS Zero administrative startup delay; maximum flexibility on the ground; deep proximity-driven community trust. CONS / CONSTRAINTS Cannot open corporate bank accounts, sign commercial leases, secure institutional funding or apply for some state subventions and multilateral grants.

This step helps you understand some of the many ways to move forward. The structure you choose should support your mission, not define it. As you learn more, you may discover that a different approach or a complementary approach is a better fit. The Caribbean’s legal landscape is still evolving, and many social innovators work across traditional categories.