Industry category - IQon Technologies

Entrepreneur: Dermot McElroy & Ciaran O'Donoghue
Business Activity: Computer Manufacturing

IQon Technologies Ltd was established in February 1994 in Dundalk, County Louth and has become Ireland’s largest indigenous personal computer manufacturer, supplying the Irish IT retail channel.  The company employs 110 people and enjoyed a turnover of €65 million in 2005 manufacturing over 110,000 personal computers.

Products
IQon Technologies now manufacture a broad range of both business-user and home user computers and laptops. It also produces external storage devices, flash or pen drives, a wide selection of LCD TVs and a new suite of software products. It owns the ‘Compustore’ retail brand name.

Customers
The company supplies the domestic IT and electrical retail channel with its products and are also one of the largest suppliers of computer products to the mail order catalogue and supermarket chains in the UK. It is also supplying supermarket chains and on-line retail organisations in France, Spain, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. It has just opened an office in Toulon in southern France.

Entrepreneurial Questions

What vision prompted you to start up in business?
IQon was originally founded because of a lack of indigenous computer manufacture and supply of personal computer systems in Ireland. In the 90’s every other European country had a thriving local PC manufacturing industry supplying up to 25% of the country’s business and home computer users. Ireland did not.

Describe your progression from start up to your current status.
From a small 3 person company – one PC assembler, one salesman and one administration person supplying small computer retail outlets in Ireland, IQon now will manufacture over 150,000 computer systems, as well as a broad range of add-on peripherals to nearly 10 European countries this year.

What was the biggest risk you have taken?
Expansion out of the Irish and British markets last year, with all the necessary human resource challenges, product development requirements, post sales support needs and multilingual product customisation that this required. Mistakes in any of these areas are nothing short of fatal in a slim margin business.

Who or what has most contributed to your success?
This business cannot succeed without a dynamic, sales driven, customer-oriented and ambitious management team.

What is your biggest business achievement?
Apart from getting the business off the ground initially, breaking into the supermarket business and becoming a supplier to the largest chain in the UK.

What is the best piece of business advice you ever received?
Look after your customers as well as is physically possible. Your competition will be only delighted to do so.

Express the biggest challenge you see your industry facing?
From a growth perspective – to take the company pan European from a customer base viewpoint. With the convergence of Consumer Electronics and IT products it is crucial to stay ahead of the technology curve and maintain a competitive advantage for our customers. Our product range must broaden in line with future market requirements.

Name a famous international entrepreneur you most admire and why?
Bill Gates of Microsoft has been probably the most clever, innovative and profit-minded businessman in our or indeed any industry. His ability to see opportunity at key moments in time from Microsoft’s foundation in the 70’s right through to today is inspiring.

How do you recharge your batteries?
A morning on the golf course (in good weather) followed by an afternoon watching horse racing is a great days combination. A few winning bets can be the cream on the cake.