Posts Tagged ‘business’
We hear from entrepreneur Caelen King on his aspirations for 2011, starting your own business and the best tips in his mind. . Read more about it here in our Stories Section. . . continue reading
Exporting: What Country is for me? Part I of II
When it comes to exporting it is always crucial to have done some homework before committing. Although exporting may not be specific to every start up it is good to have some knowledge on the area. continue reading
The Importance of Insurance – Start-Up Businesses
Insurance is essential when starting a business but the difficulty lies in understanding which policies your start up requires. It goes without saying that insurance policies differ depending on the type of business. There are a number of continue reading
Tobin Shipping & Transport Ltd. – Startup Story
Company: Tobin Shipping & Transport Ltd
Website: www.tobinshipping.ie (off line in Jan for re work)
Founders: Simon & Simone Tobin
Age: 38
Based: Dublin
Staff Number: 3
Date started: 11th October 2010
Tell us what your business does?
Tobin Shipping & Transport is a European logistics Company, providing a comprehensive intelligent logistical service.
What does this mean?
It means that we draw on years of experience and a large global logistical network that has daily co-operation between a large numbers of highly motivated people, from a variety of countries and cultures.
Tobin Shipping & Transport uses this know-how to set high standards in the industry. Our European & Global network is constantly growing. The standards of the European Logistics business network also extend to transport solutions in the Middle East, Asia and the USA.
Our aim is always to be a premier logistics service provider with a strong focus on a partnership approach to Customers and Suppliers. Since our establishment, we have achieved consistent tailored logistical solutions through continued research and development, and through strategic partnerships.
We Provide:
· National transport & distribution
· Daily UK Transport
· European Transport & shipping
· Ocean Freight
· Warehousing
Where did the idea for your business come from?
Our family have been in the shipping and transport industry since 1946, and have built up many business in Ireland & the UK. I have now taken on the legacy and established a new business with a reach into Europe, Asia and the USA.
I had worked in the industry for the past 19 years and achieved senior roles in major European logistics companies and plc’s, following restructuring of the company I last worked for I was made redundant, and decided to take up the family tradition and commenced my own business.
Have you always wanted to run your own business?
Yes, I stayed out of the family business and went my own way in the corporate world but always had the itch to do it for myself.
What planning did you do before you started up?
5 months of planning, networking and seeking agents / suppliers globally. Draft business plans and all the legalities and administration infrastructure that is required.
Which entrepreneurs do you admire?
Denis O Brien
JP McManus
Richard Branson
Michael O Leary
What challenges have you faced how have you overcome them?
Trade Credit
Rising Fuel Prices
These are the two main challenges that are a daily on-going problem, we are striving to partner up with other similar / related business to collectively buy services and negotiate on credit terms. With regard to fuel which is 32 % of cost in road transport, we constantly seek to try get a fuel surcharges but struggle. It is the norm in the UK and Europe.
How have you promoted your business?
Daily and hourly, via networking
Are you optimistic about 2011?
Yes, down to my own belief in myself and the will and drive to succeed.
What advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
Do your research, you are always leaning, you will never be an expert or know everything, constantly network and meet people, be honest and humble, know who you are and where you came from, never give up, work hard but keep your family values and work life balance, take calculated risks but never gamble, close your eyes and imagine where you want to be in life and business, and live it, act ON IT > GO FOR IT !
New Business Startup Idea. Where do I start ??
All Businesses start with an idea!, How do you find the right one??
continue reading
Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin..Reviewed by Fiscal Student
Did you ever see someone at work or in school achieve something really great, and think to yourself, you know what, I knew that guy/girl a while back and she didn’t seem that much better than me. Well the good news is your right, the bad news is that they succeeded where you failed through tremendous hard work. Geoff Colvin’s book is quite comprehensive in its study of excellent human performance across multiple fields from chess to golf to business and music. In all cases the greatest performers had been practicing extremely hard for at least 10 years before any exceptional performance was achieved.
You often hear commentators say of Tiger Woods, he makes it look so easy, the truth is that the shot he is playing probably is easier than he’s used to. A good example of this is a technique used frequently by Tiger to practice bunker shots. He drops a couple of balls in the sand trap, and then stands on them, burying them into the sand, before practicing this shot for hours. So if he is faced with what most people would consider a difficult bunker shot in a major tournament, it is much easier than what he has been preparing for. Extraordinary achievers practice consistently over long periods of time and continually make that practice more challenging as their skills improve.
This book comes to the conclusion that while a certain amount of performance is unaccounted for by hard work, the success which is attributed to innate gifts is overrated. If anything is the difference between great performers and the rest of us it is the motivation to do the required work.
This is a well researched and well written book. I also found it very inspiring because what your parents tell you when your younger is true, anything is possible if you work hard enough. Or as the old saying goes, “You know how to get to Carnegie Hall?” practice, practice, practice….
Thank You FiscalStudent….looking forward to reading this one!
www.fiscalstudent.com
Is anyone else loving the Irish apprentice this year or is it just me? I have to say I am totally hooked, this is car crash TV at its best. I have noticed a growing trend among people who love reality TV all of a sudden but feel embarassed to admit it!. Between the X Factor on Saturday and Sunday and The Apprentice on Monday sitting in has never been so much fun.
Each week I find myself praying that the Breffmeister survives for another week, the show will just not be the same without him. I actually think that he is the funniest character on Irish TV since Ardal O’Hanlon’s Fr Dougal McGuire. This is the man who describes his background as rowing, has shocked the people of Cork by claiming to be one of them, speaks like Prince Charles illigitimate son and gets more likeable with each week.
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Last week saw Breff kick ass in the Cadburys chocolate challenge. He has had his ideas rejected and mocked before even though his gut instincts were proved to be on the money in previous tasks. Not this time! despite the clever attempts by Aoiffffe to cover all the bases by saying that she supports all ideas 100% and then 5 minutes later stating that she is totally opposed to the idea hence being able to pull either card out in the boardroom, the Breffmeister stood firm, hanging up on the patronising backstabbers and sticking to the task at hand.
Breff won the day and in the process his stock shot up. As an act of concession to the nose out of joint duo of Aoifffe and Ruth, Breff let Ruth present for the team, her robotic presentation (see below) and funeral parlouresque choice of entertainment nearly blew the Breffmeisters victory.
Expect no quarter to be given in future, go Breff go............
Twitter is poised to close a $US50 million funding round that values the microblogging startup at a staggering $US1 billion, according to TechCrunch and AllThingsD. Since closing its last venture round in February, the startup’s value has grown fourfold.
Grown, that is, in the eyes of Silicon Valley’s venture capitalists, slaves to the technology fashions for which Twitter is the leading model: real-time, micro, iPhone friendly and acquisition bait for Google. Twitter might say it’s in this for the long haul—someone is spreading word the company has $US30 million, or most of its last funding round, sitting in a bank account—but the company has proven far more adept at finessing moneyed suitors than in groping for reliable revenue streams.
Twitter’s trend hopping founders, whose project management company began their blogging company, which led to their podcasting company, which began Twitter, seem more likely to seize on the easy exit of the former rather than the long grind of the latter.
Especially when, as these charts of their past investment rounds show, they’re so very good at jacking up their price:
We rewiew the good, the bad and the ugly of business books. Do you have a favourite business book? why not review it on Startups.
Entrepreneurs –Autobiography/ Biography
Business Stripped Bare – Richard Branson (Virgin Books)
This is a sort of update on Sir Richard’s business empire taking a more philosophical view on what makes a business successful. This is not a patch on Losing My Virginity and in fact many of the same stories are repeated. Unless you are planning to take over a chain of banks, buy a railway monopoly from the state or build a spaceship you can live without this one. 2/5
Anyone Can Do It – Building Coffee Republic From Our Kitchen Table – Sahar and Bobby Hashemi (Capstone Publishing)
Sahar and Bobby Hashemi are the sister and brother team who built Coffe Republic the UK high street coffee chain. Giving up highly paid professional jobs, she as a lawyer in London and he an investment banker in New York, they staked everything on their dream. This is a great little book and well worth a read. It takes you step by step through the process of building Coffee Republic , from the original idea and brainstorming to Growth and customer service. 4/5
Making Bread – Brody Sweeney (Liberties Press)
A refreshingly honest, direct and jargon free book, Brody shares his experiences, good, bad and difficult of setting up O’Briens Sandwich Bars. This book is well worth a read as it offers good practical advice from an Irish perspective. The chapter on bank finance is particularly relevant i.e ‘Banks only like lending money to those who don’t need it’ and how to get around this. 4/5
Anyone Can Do It – My Story – Duncan Bannatyne (Orion Books)
Grumpy dragon Duncan tells his story from a tough upbringing in Clydebank, Scotland to multi millionaire entrepreneur. Duncan was a self confessed dosser until he finally set his mind to making money in his thirties. Starting with an ice cream van business he built business after business each more profitable than the last. This book also shows Duncan’s charitable side which is pretty inspiring stuff. 4/5 This book is also reviewed by FiscalStudent (See post below)
Enter the Dragon – Theo Paphitis (Orion Books)
Theo Paphitis has built one of the most successful retail empires in the UK. Theo founded his first company at 23 and his big skill is in seeing untapped potential in loss making business which he then makes profitable. Of particular interest to anyone in retail this is worth a read although there is a big middle padding section where he covers his period in charge of Millwall football club, this is just boring. 3/5
Tycoon – How to turn dreams into millions – Peter Jones (Hodder & Stoughton)
I hated this book and to be honest could not finish it. From the arrogant title ‘Tycoon’ to the incredibly annoying ‘Tycoon Tips’ throughout the book you get the impression of someone who is a bit too dizzy in the glare of fame. Tycoon Tip – Avoid. 0/5
Business Nightmares – When Entrepreneurs Hit Crisis Point – Rachael Elnaugh (Crimson)
A novel approach from the fallen dragon. After the high profile loss of her business ‘Red Letter Days’ and subsequent removal from Dragon’s Den, Rachael interviews other high profile contacts such as Jeffrey Archer and Doug Richard. The book has a pretty bitter and angry tone particularly towards some of the remaining Dragon’s. Despite this it is relevant to see the dark side of business when things go wrong as they do more often than not. There is also some good advice and tips that could save you lots of money and heart ache. 3/5
Dragons’ Den – Success from Pitch to Profit – Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden, Theo Paphitis, Duncan Bannatyne and James Caan (Collins)
This book is a bit of a con. Someone got an hour interview time with each of the Dragon’s and turned it into a lightweight mish mash in order to cash in on the show’s popularity. You will walk away none the wiser. 1/5
How They Started – How 30 good ideas became great businesses – David Lester (Crimson)
This is a great little book, each chapter is a perfect bite size, just long enough to tell each story while maintaining your interest. The book covers businesses such as Bebo, Moneysupermarket.com, Pizza Express and Cobra Beer and gives a brief outline of how they got going and the challenges that they faced along the way. 4/5
Marketing
Purple Cow – Transform your business by being remarkable – Seth Godin (Penguin)
A good ‘Loo’ read. Marketing Guru Seth Godin urges everyone involved in creating, designing or selling to think in new ways about their market. By adopting alternative approaches to your business, you and your company will survive to innovate another day. 3/5
Online Marketing Heroes – Michael Miller (Wiley)
Terrible and boring. Interviews with 25 ‘succesful online marketing guru’s’. If you are having trouble sleeping, this one is perfect for you. 0/5
