Today, we talk to Colm Healy, originally from the Northside of Dublin, who took over the Ballinskelligs chocolate factory back in 2004. Despite a devastating fire in 2010 which nearly destroyed Ballinskelligs chocolate factory, Colm went on to build a bigger and better premises and increase its turnover fivefold, to about €1.1 million a year.
What led you to starting your business?
I have worked for myself for over 25 years now and I have always tried to find an ‘angle’ or a ‘solution’ to problems. But in Skelligs Chocolate I saw an opportunity to purchase a life style business that did not require me to be onsite full time. There is something romantic about this industry which you can easily see when you tell people what you do, they invariably smile and have a mild look of envy…
How did you raise the start-up funds you needed?
I was fortunate for this venture that I had my own resources from having sold my house and previous business. Basically I felt strongly enough in my convictions I was willing to bet everything on this venture.
What was the most significant lesson you learned in starting your business?
There have been many lessons and sometimes you only realise that’s what they were when some time has elapsed. But unless you are running a charity, the most important thing to remember the customer pays every single one of your bills. Don’t ever forget that in every dealing you have with him/ her.
Many new businesses/enterprises fail in the 1st year, what was the greatest difficulty in the early years?
There are a number of reasons businesses fail in the 1st year, especially due to failing to plan, not having a reality check on the fundamentals of the business, for us it has always been ensuring we are relevant to the customer. Why should they buy from you? Unless you have a monopoly there is competition, what sets you apart? Is it Price? Quality? Service?
You have encountered a number of set backs on your journey, most notably the fire a few years ago. What supports from either the Udaras, Local Enterprise Office available to you on your journey.
We have indeed had a number of setbacks but if it was easy then everyone would do it… I have always been of the opinion that a business that relies on state aid is not viable. We have been fortunate since we are located in a Gaeltachta to have access to Udaras na Gaeltachta, who have been very kind in providing us with some finance for equipment but more importantly they provided us with access to experts and have helped us fund staff training.
What has been the proudest moment in your business so far – your proudest achievement, or moment of significance to you?
In general I am not one to look for milestones as we tend to be too busy getting on with the business but in hindsight our recovery from the fire is up there. I would by nature be a positive person and when we had the loss of the factory due to the fire all I saw was the building had been destroyed, not the business. But many people have commented subsequently that they were amazed we came back, built a bigger and better premises and have gone from strength to strength. But this has been a team effort, nothing we have done could have succeeded without the support of my wife and family, our staff (who were incredibly supportive) and all who live locally.
"failure is just the step before success"
What advice would you give aspiring entrepreneurs thinking of starting a business?
Make sure you stress test it on real potential customers (of course your mammy is going to say it’s great). Go and do ‘proof of concept ‘ work – for example, if a food item, get a stall at a market, ask a local supermarket will they allow you to try and sell your products. If it doesn’t sell,there is a reason. Then you need to be aware of the legal and financial requirements. But an important point to remember is that failure is just the step before success.
Have you benefitted from mentoring or networking?
Unfortunately when I was starting off working for myself there was very little in the way of mentoring support. In the last number of years the state agencies have been much more proactive and are facilitating mentoring and this is very useful to startups and established businesses. I am proactive so if I needed help I got in touch with who I thought best could help me. With regard to networking I think a planned approach is vital, there is no point turning up at an event, giving out 30 business cards and thinking the job is done. Research the event, is it relevant to what you are doing? Can you find out a list of attendees (not always possible, but you can ask) and try to decide what is your measure of success? For me if I can make contact with one or two people I can follow up with afterwards then I am happy. And above all for me, Do not Sell at the event. This will just turn off the majority of people. There is an art to networking – learn it.
If you could start up all over again, would you do anything differently?
Just simply ‘No’ – everything we did helped us learn and if you are not making mistakes you care not learning. We appreciate what we have achieved and we are very proud of our business. I think you have to earn your stripes and you have to go through the journey to develop yourself as a person.
Do you have a story similar to Colm's? Can you relate to hisexperience on your entrepreneur journey? If so, please let us know in the comments section below!