Yaneek Page | Retirement planning for entrepreneurs

“Retirement is cancelled,” one entrepreneur told me recently as we discussed the uphill savings catch-up that was required in the post-COVID era.

It’s a sobering sentiment.

Let me issue a trigger warning – this article may cause some discomfort for many, but the conversation is necessary. Here’s the number one question every entrepreneur should be able to answer almost off the top of their head today: How much do you need to retire comfortably at 60?

The answers will vary widely, depending on your lifestyle, health status, obligations, and goals. It could range anywhere from $45 million to well over $150 million, adjusted annually for inflation. I’ll break that down further shortly.

What’s clear, though, is that retirement readiness is no longer a private concern but a critical national conversation. Since the start of 2025, pensions have taken centrestage in Jamaica. Delays in NIS payouts, sweeping legislative reforms, and proposals to raise the retirement age have all stirred public debate.

While much of the focus has been on public sector workers and ageing employees, the group most at risk may be the ones who rarely make headlines – such as low-income workers, independent contractors, construction workers, farmers, barbers and hairdressers, entrepreneurs, self-employed professionals, and gig economy workers.

It is worth noting that less than 15 per cent of Jamaicans are enrolled in a formal pension plan. This is one reason that the limited and surface-level discourse around the retirement age is concerning. Whether you’re running a solo venture or scaling a small business, the odds are that your retirement strategy isn’t nearly as strong as your business plan, especially after the challenging COVID er,a which caused a considerable gap in earning for some and wiped out the savings of many entrepreneurs.

Jamaicans are not alone here either. Around the world, the self-employed lag traditional employees in retirement readiness, and not for lack of discipline, but lack of knowledge and means. Some have even cashed out their retirement funds to capitalise the business. Also, the current systems were never built with them in mind, but mainly for a traditional career and workforce.

So, let’s go back to the numbers and do some quick and dirty math for a range of ages. Assuming that a comfortable life will cost you $450,000 monthly and that you have $0.00 saved today, here is what you would need to save and invest at the following milestones:

• Start at age 35: $90,638 per month;

• Start at age 40: $135,943 per month;

• Start at age 45: $215,981 per month;

• Start at age 50: $383,278 per month;

• Start at age 55: $900,263 per month.

For those who want to retire earlier at 50 or 55, it’s a much taller order in terms of monthly set aside, and smart investing, to say the least. Indeed, if the projections are correct, advancements in healthcare and outcomes will enable us to live longer and healthier lives.

Taking a conservative approach, if those amounts are invested monthly at a modest minimum return of 6.0 per cent per annum, then you would have saved almost $63 million at age 60. If you withdraw exactly $450,000 per month, allowing the remaining balance to continue to earn 6.0 per cent per annum, you could enjoy a decent standard of living over the next 20 years, all things being equal, until age 80.

If you are a risk-taking entrepreneur with an aggressive investing strategy, you may be able to save far less and enjoy much bigger returns.

Still, for some, the sticker shock of the numbers may have your head spinning. It can be overwhelming, particularly for those who are raising children, carrying the responsibility of an extended family, battling medical issues, to name a few potential spokes in the wheel.

At the same time, the later you face the facts, the steeper the climb will be, because you would have lost out on time and the impact of compound interest. Many entrepreneurs tend to focus squarely on building the business, with tunnel vision.

However, neglecting retirement planning in the early stages is almost impossible to walk back. In fact, without adequate savings, entrepreneurs could be facing elder poverty, which perpetuates inter-generational struggle rather than builds generational wealth.

What we also know is that the data around the world tells a similar story:

Entrepreneurs face unique challenges in securing their financial future, compared to traditional employees.

The self-employed have a lower savings balance in later years (this is because steady incomes are better than those that vary widely and are unreliable. To put it bluntly - the good months almost never compensate for the bad).

Running a business demands everything you have, but you won’t always have everything to give. We are humans, not robots. That’s why planning for your future isn’t optional or secondary: it’s the most essential thing you can do today that your future self will thank you for.

One love!

Yaneek Page is the programme lead for Market Entry USA, and a certified trainer in entrepreneurship.yaneek.page@gmail.com