Building a Business Heritage - Ivan Green
Published:Monday | October 12, 2015 | 3:06 PMKeisha Hill
Ivan Green is best known for his calm spirit and his drive to help others. The accomplished business man and noted Justice of the Peace, has been the owner and chief executive of Christiana Pharmacy and Book Centre in Manchester for over more than years.
In 1978, Green retired as marketing manager at Cuna Mutual after he saw the need for a pharmacy and bookstore in the Christian area. At this time he was 45 years old. "There was a drugstore but there was no book store," Green said.
A devout Christian, he has touched the lives of people in almost every way through his involvement in several organisations, including the Manchester Parish Development Committee, the National Union of Co-operative Society and Insurance Services, the Christiana High School board and the Christiana Potato Growers Co-operative Association.
legacy
As a businessman, for decades he has been providing jobs for people in the Christiana community, while dispensing much needed medication from his pharmacy. "Working now is a therapy for me. I like being in touch with and serving people," Green said.
A father of three sons (one deceased), Green believes in family life and consistently works to preserve his family's legacy. "My children are already involved in the business. One of my sons is the pharmacist and the other is the accountant, so we are already poised for continuity," Green said.
Green is also a vice-president of the Manchester Chapter of the Lay Magistrates' Association of Jamaica, and a recipient of the Golden Scale Award for the county of Middlesex.
"Service is what keeps any business going. You have to seek out what people need and supply their needs. Do not think you know what they need without finding out what they really need. You have to be up to date with what is going on and be in touch with people on an individual basis," Green said.
"When you are in the business of selling goods and offering services you have to know how to interact with your customers. You have to walk the floor and make sure they are being served," he added.
Green who is now 82, also served as the acting custos of Manchester, is a past president of the Rotary Club of Christiana and assistant district governor for Rotary District 7020.