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By Natalie John

The Sandals Resorts International–Royal Caribbean Group deal gave me hope.

It also gave me pause.

When I first read the news of Royal Caribbean Group’s investment in Sandals, my immediate reaction was pride. I don’t know Adam Stewart personally, but I felt proud of him.

A company born in Jamaica, built in the Caribbean and developed into one of the region’s most recognised hospitality brands has grown to the point where a global company of Royal Caribbean’s scale sees significant value in what it has created.

As a Caribbean entrepreneur who has spent 27 years building my own company, that gave me hope.

It reminded me to dream bigger.

Sandals is certainly not a small company. But relative to the enormous global scale of Royal Caribbean, it is the smaller player. Yet Sandals has built something the larger player wants.

There is a lesson in that.

Never assume that because someone is bigger than you, you have nothing of value to offer them.

Build something special. Build it well. Someone is watching.

But after the entrepreneur in me celebrated, the Caribbean businesswoman in me started thinking.

Because growth brings opportunity — but it can also change the economic landscape around a business.

Greater scale usually means greater purchasing power and opportunities for efficiency. Procurement can be streamlined. Technology, distribution, administration and other functions can become increasingly centralised.

Services previously provided by independent companies can sometimes be brought in-house.

From a corporate perspective, those decisions may make excellent business sense.

But efficiency for the corporation does not automatically translate into greater economic participation for the destination.

And that is where my attention turns to the wider Caribbean tourism ecosystem.

I think about the tour operator.

The photographer.

The florist.

The wedding planner.

The taxi operator.

The entertainer.

The farmer, manufacturer, caterer, tradesperson and local supplier.

And the many other Caribbean entrepreneurs whose livelihoods depend on meaningful access to our tourism economy.

My concern is not that Caribbean companies are becoming too big.

Quite the opposite.

I want to see more Caribbean companies become this big.

I want Caribbean entrepreneurs building companies capable of competing internationally, attracting global investment and expanding far beyond the shores where they started.

But my question is this:

As our biggest companies grow, how do we ensure the ecosystem around them grows too?

How do we build globally competitive Caribbean corporations while still creating space for the next Caribbean entrepreneur?

How do we make sure greater efficiency does not unintentionally mean fewer opportunities for smaller local businesses?

How do we create tourism economies where success at the top creates new ladders for businesses coming behind?

Those are questions worth asking.

So yes, I celebrate this development and congratulate Adam Stewart, his family and the Sandals team.

Their journey carries an important message for every Caribbean entrepreneur.

Being from a small island does not require us to have small ambitions.

Dream bigger.

Build well.

Think beyond the size of the island you are standing on.

And as we build Caribbean giants, let us also build an ecosystem strong enough to produce many more of them.