Kam Kothia
I'm a strong believer that the harder you work, the luckier you get!
Kam Kothia left a job as the Director of Telewest Communication's Business Services division in the North West to set up web design and internet marketing business,
eBusiness UK Ltd. Working with his brother Latif, Kam plans to open 25 eBusiness UK offices throughout the UK over the next three years by developing a network of eBusiness UK franchisees.
Why did you want to start your own business?
In my time at Telewest, I grew the Business Telecomms division from a blank sheet of paper to a turnover of over £10m in less than five years. An achievement like this made me even more determined to do it for myself. My father also ran his own business so this probably me from quite an early age.
What was the deciding factor for you?
Coincidentally I had just left my job and my brother Latif (Operations Director, eBusiness UK) had just sold his business. It was a great opportunity to join forces as I had the sales and marketing experience, and he had the technical and operations experience. Some may say it was a lucky break but I'm a strong believer that the harder you work, the luckier you get!
How did you get the business off the ground?
There was about three months between us making the decision to go for it and us opening our doors for business. In that time we got as much help and support as we could get. We initially contacted the Regeneration Department at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council. They were very helpful with office accommodation. They also put us in touch with Blackburn Enterprise Trust who provided us with a small start-up grant, training and support.
Best bits about working for yourself?
Seeing your own business grow is fantastic - particularly when you have a great team of people around you.
What have been the biggest challenges so far?
We decided on a web design business but the internet was quite still fairly new in 1998. Also, although I had used the internet, neither Latif or I were web designers! We did a lot of research to establish alliances with designers, hosting companies, software programmers etc. It was also quite hard going from a job with a very healthy Director's salary to zero income but I have no regrets.
What would you have done differently if you could go back?
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and you could always do things differently. But I don't regret anything that I have done, and very happy with my lot.
How does it feel to be your own boss?
I don't think I could ever go back to working for someone else.
Finally, a piece of advice for those thinking about starting up?
Stay focused on your business and don't get distracted by other things.
