Exploiting opportunities
The competitive landscape for technology e-tailers in the UK is pretty crowded. Any HEXUS reader will be able to name at least half a dozen sites off the top of their head that sell most of the PC paraphernalia they might need.
It seems inconceivable, then, that the situation in Ireland is quite the opposite, or at least it used to be. According to the founder and MD of Northern Ireland based e-tailer C3 Computers, Patrick Cassidy (pictured), nobody was servicing the custom build market in Ireland until he formed C3 in 2007, and the e-tail side of things was pretty minimal too.
So having identified this inexplicably underserved niche, Cassidy decided to start up C3 to exploit this opportunity. What makes his decision remarkable, however, was his age when he did so. He was 18.
Speaking exclusively to HEXUS.channel, Cassidy explained that he was always interested in PCs as a child and that business runs in the family, so he was able to observe how it's done as he was growing up.
He managed to secure half a million pounds to start up the business - half from family investors and half from the bank - and in two years later, C3 already employs 15 people. "We set ourselves up as the only people doing what we do in Ireland," said Cassidy
Oh, and if this account of youthful over-achievement hasn't already made you feel inadequate enough, Cassidy won the Shell Livewire young entrepreneur of the year award in Northern Ireland last year.