Name: Teresa Ward

Company name: Capall Dubh Equestrian

From: Raheny, Dublin 5

Based: ‘Belle View’, Carnes Road, Bellewstown, Co Meath.

Type of business: Primarily eCommerce business specialising in designer equestrian Inspired Jewellery by American designer Kelly Herd and Absolute Jewellery in Cavan. We pride ourselves on having something special to suit all budgets.

We also stock products for the horse, the tack and the rider. Our gifts and accessories are sourced from suppliers such as Horka, Waldhausen, Carr Day & Martin to name but a few. As Capall Dubh Equestrian is a young company, we are constantly building up our brand portfolio.

Qualifications and experience:

• Equine Business and Horsemanship QQI L5 Distinctions – Dunboyne College

• Entrepreneur Advanced Certificate in Management Practice – University of Ulster

• Centre10 Horse Rider Psychology ‘Win the Mind Game’

• Centre10 Advanced Applied Psychology for Equestrian Coaches Certificate

• Digital Marketing Sure Skills and QQI L5 Certificate/Diploma

• 30 Years in retail business – sales representative advanced to key accounts manager/territory manager for 25 years in Merck/Seven Seas Ireland (college of life!)

Why did you opt to start up this business?

Having worked for Merck/Seven Seas for 25 years – all our positions were made redundant and our Sales and Marketing in Ireland was outsourced to an agency. I opted to take a year off and I travelled to Australia and Spain for six weeks with my son.

I also attended a Tony O’Connor Equine artist workshop for a week in Oklahoma in the United States on a ranch where we painted and rode the horses there. I have been a horse owner since my first job when I could afford to pay for my horse riding lessons.

I bought my first horse on April 17th 1990 and have had the pleasure of owing several fabulous horses and bred my own foal. I decided that the time was right to combine my passion for horses with my business experience and that is how Capall Dubh Equestrian was established. The eCommerce side suited my family situation as I was able to work from home and be there for my visually impaired son if I was needed.

How long have you been in business?

My company will be two years old in April 2021.

What do you enjoy most about your job the most?

The ‘freedom’ it can offer – freedom to work with whom you like and to make your own decisions. Freedom to allow you to have the business work to your lifestyle and not you work yours around the business.

Working remotely from anywhere in the world will allow the freedom to live the life you want.

What is the most challenging part of your job?

The larger equestrian companies have huge marketing and advertising spends to build their brand awareness, plus they have larger buying power to demand better margins and discounts on their products from their suppliers.

Another factor of been a start-up sole trader business is your work load - you have to fill many job roles work harder than you would for anyone else plus have time to work ‘on’ the business instead of ‘in’ the business too.

How is the Covid-19 crisis affecting your business?

I am in the lucky position as I do not have the overheads such as rent and wages to pay on my business as I am based at home. Online business trading has been brought forward by at least five years by the Covid-19 pandemic. I was fortunate to have had my website created and functional when lockdown came into effect, so this was a big advantage to the business.

Although missing out on revenue from our first-year trading in venues such as the Dublin Horse Show in the RDS did leave a large void to fill as these were all cancelled because of the crisis. Apart from losing out on the revenue, it was a brilliant way of getting to know your consumer and build your brand and company profile. Hopefully with the vaccines now available, we can get back to our ‘new’ normal very soon.

Teresa Ward was in conversation with Emer Bermingham