February 8, 2022
A Bahamian company that started with a few hand-made soaps and a cultural vision is going into expansion mode, moving into spacious manufacturing headquarters and expanding staff and its retail footprint, thanks to a partnership with one of the premier investment firms in the region.
The transaction awarding 26% of My Ocean to Jamaican-based progressive investment company, FirstRock Private Equity Limited was announced by Simplified Lending, the Bahamian firm that brokered the historic deal. The equity position in a Bahamian company, which was approved by local regulatory authorities, was a first for the funding leader and an innovative capital-raiser for a local manufacturer-retailer with a growing footprint.
For the founder of My Ocean, Tanya Klonaris, FirstRock’s injection of capital is a game-changer, allowing her to grow the business and its culture she calls “effective altruism.”
“Well beyond just a capital injection, this investor partnership relationship comes with an expertise and dedication to propel My Ocean into an internationally recognized brand,” said Klonaris, who believes the company she started on a shoestring and grew to a success story before Covid put her dreams on hold will become “a premier exporter of hand-made Bahamian elements and ingenuity.”
FirstRock Private Equity Managing Director Chris Yeung notes the partnership aligns with the interests of both companies, calling My Ocean one of the “most recognized brands” in The Bahamas.
“The interest in My Ocean is in line with the company’s growth strategy,” he said. “This acquisition is aligned with our strategy to be one of the leading private equity partners for small and medium-sized enterprises in the region.”
Simplified Lending founder & CEO Robert Pantry said the minority equity position by a regional player in The Bahamas is evidence of the critical nature of access to capital.
“My Ocean with its beautifully hand-crafted rolled soaps that remind you of the sea is one of so many companies that have a great product, good management and perseverance. The company was doing extremely well and in 2019 looking forward to its best year ever. Then the pandemic hit, shut down tourism and severely impacted businesses like My Ocean,” Pantry explained.
Klonaris recalls various challenges due to the uncertainty of the pandemic after building the company that she had poured her heart and soul into. She was forced to make very tough business decisions in order to maintain operations as the travel and tourism industry came to a complete halt. Access to capital to re-boot was critical. That was when Simplified Lending stepped in.
“When we launched Simplified Lending three years ago, we wanted to be part of the success stories of companies like Tanya’s My Ocean, small to medium-size Bahamian companies that just needed that additional financial infusion. To get to the next level, they face the critical capital access challenge and all too often that it is a concrete wall they cannot pierce.”
Pantry said it was especially notable that the agreement to invest in a Bahamian company was negotiated during the height of the pandemic.
“This deal was consecrated following many discussions demonstrating the viability of the Bahamian visitor market even at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Pantry. “FirstRock recognized the value in the market and the long-term potential. And My Ocean saw the benefit of working with an institution that is patient enough to take a long-term view.”
The financial infusion is allowing My Ocean to move into a new 11,000 square foot headquarters east of Mackey Street off Shirley Street. The company also intends to up its social media presence and expand retail locations beyond its current eight which include LPIA, Atlantis and BahaMar. Among its newest locations is MSC’s private island destination, Ocean Cay.
Klonaris explains, “The reimagining of My Ocean includes high tech system automations and even industrial machinery to facilitate a vastly more scalable Studio of Artistry and design for new products and to embolden us to efficiencies of scale and quality of our craftsmanship. Our ‘hand-made in the Bahamas’ international branding will also be closely associated with our new social media marketing intent on illuminating the Bahamian culture and the personnel being afforded opportunities for career advancements in a training-centric culture.”
She plans to add eight additional full-time staff with a two-year plan to build to a total of 42.
“This is excluding the collaboration with local artists and other talent to reach new customers and even change the nature of our relationship with our clients,” says Klonaris, who noted that the impact of COVID on consumerism reinforced the values that inspired her designs, including contributing to the health of the ocean. Altruistic corporate gift-giving will benefit BREEF, the NGO dedicated to education and awareness about the importance of coral reefs.
“Following COVID, I came to realize that being an entrepreneur is about more than business opportunity but in seeing fit to emphasize our values to positively affect the lives and environment that gave rise to ‘Hand-made in the Bahamas,”’ says the artisan designer of soaps and candles whose business future is being lit by an historic merger.
A capital infusion from Jamaica-based FirstRock Private Equity Limited is allowing the My Ocean brand to expand, thanks to a deal arranged by Bahamas-based Simplified Lending.
