Formed by the highly decorated and awarded, local insurance “Super Agent” Chester John.
Developed and pushed further by son and heir Kennie John.
And now opening the way for the third generation of the John family to participate – present CEO Kennie John, is optimistic that his son will too, get involved in the family business and help push the fledgling Antillean Group to become a regional Life Insurance power house.
Antillean formerly known as NEWIM recently went through a re-branding exercise
Kennie explains “Companies, just like houses need solid infrastructure,
So if you have a one story house and you want to extend it, sometimes the structure cannot take another level, so we had to rebuild the company structures.
Our growth strategy is to become more prevalent in the Eastern Caribbean.
The way we were set up could not support that but now we can.
The new name came about from looking at the region. “Antilles” is an old name that describes the region and is also we feel very palatable (Lesser Antilles / Greater Antilles). When we did our research everyone had heard about the Antilles and knew it was a part of our history.
Most Insurance companies chose their name based on either:-
1. What they do to cover or secure you (Guardian / Prudential etc) or
2. The region they are from (Nationwide, AIG etc)
So we chose the region as our identity hence Antillean struck a real chord with us.
Kennie’s path into the business was a Business Studies degree, becoming a member of the Chartered Insurance institute, and then working in the market in London as a reinsurance broker to hone his skills.
He recalls “On the business level my first true professional job was at the reinsurance level, after years being in the business, I then learned commercial Insurance which is what I do here, but its all linked…if you understand Actuarial Science and re-insurance, it all sets the level and tone of what happens right through to selling to the consumer.
But what actually is Actuarial Science?
According to Wikipedia : Actuarial Science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in insurance, finance and other industries and professions. Actuaries are professionals who are qualified in this field through intense education and application of mathematical modeling and experience.
Initial studies have shown that not many people have actually studied Actuarial Sciences here in Grenada but it is a key asset to have according to Kennie John, as it enables one to look at their portfolio and restructure their business to support the facts.
“Structuring your re-insurance program on modeling that sees where your exposure lies and whats at risk, so that you as a company, are covered, is a key component of the industry, and where Actuarial Sciences are applied“ adds Kennie.
CEO Kennie John
In short, Insurance companies at our level, buy wholesale insurance to sell retail.
A wholesale Insurance product is referred to as a “Treaty” and a retail product is a “Policy”.
“We have to be aware of what our wholesale mix is to make sure we are covered” John continues
“A company may have more exposure to commercial business which represents high value from few clients” or conversely, “Residential homeowners coverage may represent many clients but with lower values, so we have to be aware of what our ins mix is so we can buy enough coverage.
The interesting aspect is that in buying a treaty it is not just one insurer. There are many insurers who may buy for instance a 10%, a 20% an 18% that all combine to make the 100% required coverage. So we deal with a lot of insurers. And obviously have to deal with the international Brokers who work with us to get the best deals for our particular needs.
At a company level like Antillean, I work with International brokers and supply them with quarterly figures of :-
1. Aggregates i.e the total quantity and sum of all buildings
2. The premiums and
3. The rates
Those 3 things decide whether or not you are a good client for them. The re-insurers will likely run modeling programs and algorithms to determine how risk averse you are and if you fit in with their underwriting guidelines.
It takes years in a relationship with them to build the mutual trust.
“In Insurance terms, The Caribbean as a region is small, however it does have one of the most expensive reinsurance phenomenas in the world because of our wind exposure. so geographically, yes, we in Grenada are probably at less risk than our neighbors in the north but we are judged as a region and not individual jurisdictions.
The need for reform in the industry is viewed however as a major priority. Whilst we are judged as a region, we operate as 8 individual states with regard to the various Insurance acts that are in place in the Eastern Caribbean.
As a result, the industry has come together to try and make one unified insurance act for the whole OECS territory so we can become one territory and not remain as 8. At this moment in time there is a regional steering committee with representatives from the industry, regulators, The ECCB, GARFIN, various regional ministries of Finance are involved, aswell as Acturial consultants, and 2 local companies.”
“I happen to think this is a wonderful idea that needs to happen. All the islands have differences so we are trying to follow a new model that highlights best practices. And start new legislative guidelines that are common to all.
“just as we have a monetary union with the Eastern Caribbean Dollar it makes sense that there is also mutual protection of our financial assets” states John
“Currently we are now 2 separate companies Antillean Life and Antillean General, which will transfer to all the other islands once the new Insurance act comes into effect.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN LIFE & GENERAL?
CEO Kennie John explains “General Ins and Life ins agents don’t necessarily mix its a different culture in terms of how they each operate. For instance, on the Life side you would deal with a lot more Actuaries whilst on the General side underwriting can happen in house as the level of mathematical permutations may not be as high.
The variables in a life policy are long term and as we get older the premium gets more expensive – If we are 25 years old the policy will be much less than a new policy for a 40 year old for instance.
Term Life, will only reap benefits when life is gone and usually refers to a specific term of time ie 25 years – Whole of life is a longer term policy.
John believes the best aspect of having a life insurance policy, is that it is an instant estate, “This is the beauty in life insurance once you take out a policy then your worth is instantly worth that amount. So if you take out a $500,000 life policy then your worth is instantly worth at least that amount.
However, Life Insurance cannot be fortuitous. So you cannot take your own life and expect to get paid for it and certain professions are very difficult to obtain coverage such as Pilots and Deep Sea Divers for instance both t h e s e professions are notoriously difficult to get individual coverage as they have such strict underwriting guidelines .
WHAT DOES KENNIE JOHN LOVE ABOUT HIS JOB?
“The beauty of having your own insurance company is that we can work directly with underwriters and our very own Actuaries and craft a policy, tailor-made to a particular group if we feel that it is an attractive proposition.
CHALLENGES?
“We’ve only had our Life insurance license for 10 years now, whilst most of our competitors on the Life insurance side are like a hundred years old – so we are definitely the new kid on the block.”
Looking at the region, most policies are probably based on actuarial facts from Jamaica or Trinidad or Barbados, however we at Antillean Group are concentrating on the Eastern Caribbean and there are differences and nuances in the population percentile that can be significant. Differences can include, average wage earnings in the EC are different to the large islands, the levels of poverty are different, the customs and natural inclinations in terms of diet etc are different. We see that most of the EC are very similar in these aspects, so we are able to craft a product based on our actuarial studies & research which takes into account the specific nuances of Eastern Caribbean peoples.
Larger companies look at this and think Ok the differences exist but the market is too small.
We on the other hand are trying to make ourselves the specialists of the EC life market and as such we can often times spend upwards of $50,000usd crafting one product specific to our market. If you want to craft and develop a whole suite of products then that can run you into the millions of $sss.
In terms of a Life Insurance company we are still very much the baby of this particular family.
Life Insurance is slow steady growth whereas General Ins. premium income can vary up and or down significantly from year to year.
Since the Clico / Baico debaucle in the region, John observes seeing a huge drop in the number of Life insurance policies, down around 50% from pre debaucle levels.
“Although the confidence is low and probably rightly so, it does represent a huge opportunity for our company to grow” John wisely believes .
Antillean group currently has 28 employees and 10 agents who are essentially self employed.
“Our continual challenge is to try to develop relevant products for our people that is cost effective and attractive. So there is no point having a product that is cost prohibitive , so we are continually trying to hone our skills in this department to become more relevant and to reach more people.”
Le Marquis Complex
ADVICE TO BUSINESSES
“Keep good records of stock etc so that in the event of a disaster your losses can be proved easily without necessarily the insurers having to use the services of a forensic accountant to prove your actual losses;
Make sure your coverage is what you want, If you are expecting a new for old policy then you should make sure that is the policy you are paying for. As an example an A/C unit may be insured but also it has annual depreciation, so with depreciation in the event of a total failure after a few years you will not be fully covered for a new unit, so companies and businesses have to be cogniscent of these facts and adjust their policies to suit.
“Another aspect that we saw after hurricane Ivan passed our shores back in 2004, was that many houses and properties were massively under insured.
“Market value and rebuild costs can be widely different so we try to advise our clients of all these potential pitfalls and urge them to take regular valuations.
John is a strong believer in encouraging consumers to maximize their savings when it comes to Insurance
“One way of saving significantly is to bundle all your insurance products with us
Insure Car, Home, Business, Life, Health all with us and you will see significant savings by bundling all of them together.
PHILOSOPHY & COPRPORATE CITIZENSHIP
“I support the strengthening of our local institutions.” states John “and whilst the major Insurance companies worldwide make their money from investments not from premiums, the Law here is quite specific as to what and where we can invest in. Insurance Companies, in Grenada, are mainly restricted to investing in Government Bonds & Real Estate.”
“As a Local Company we reinvest into the local economy and hence help build the country as we see other companies do in Trinidad and Jamaica for instance. Foreign companies have to send their monies back to their respective countries where their headquarters are domiciled. Our money is reinvested back into the Grenadian economy,
“The opportunities ahead are tremendous as we look at the Eastern Caribbean as our market and not just Grenada.
“We pride ourselves in helping our people achieve UK exams & qualifications relevant to the industry.
“We have adopted 2 schools in Grenada one in St Marks where I was born and one in L’esterre, Carriacou where my father was born.
“As part of our corporate citizenship we support Cricket, Football and offer a number of scholarships islandwide. .. No one takes care of you like your own” states Kennie
“We are proud to be a Grenadian company that can benefit Grenadians.
Grenada, as small as it is, currently has 26 Insurance Companies registered with total assets amounting to $358.2 million and 46 registered pension plans amounting to approx $203 million. For a small island state this seems to be a very high amount so we asked Kennie his thoughts on the subject.
WHY ARE THERE SO MANY INSURANCE COMPANIES IN GRENADA?
Kennie John is of the opinion “Under British rule, Grenada was the seat of parliament for the Windward Islands including Tobago.
“The 2 oldest schools in the OECS are The St Joseph’s Convent and The Grenada Boys Secondary School (GBSS).
“Many of the leaders throughout the region from a specific era and generation, would have attended schools here because we offered high school and 6th form services not available on their own islands. So we have a number of institutional and historic legacies here in Grenada that make it such a strategic location.
“We have a very high rate of savings here in Grenada and also the highest land ownership rate per capita in the Western Hemisphere.
“The standard of living in Grenada is relatively good compared to other islands. We had and still have a large middle class with a lot of families in various businesses so there is property and ownership of vehicles etc and insurable items and goods.
“When you add up this combination of positive factors, you can see why it attracted a lot of Life & General insurance companies, thats one of the main reasons why we have more insurance companies here than any other Eastern Caribbean country”, according to Kennie John CEO Antillean Group.