5 mins with: eStore CEO Lorenzo Coppa

At 22 years old you designed a car immobiliser. How did that come about?
Cars were being stolen in and around the university campus I was at. I developed a simple and effective solution to prevent hotwiring a car; no car that had my "anti-theft car immobiliser" was stolen - including mine that was broken into. This helped finance my studies while only taking little time to manage. I also worked casually at Dick Smith Electronics as a sales person.

Why did you go to Germany not long after that?
I was invited by a relative to serve in his growing business during a previous summer break. I added DTP capability to the business that enabled the company to advertise new products faster than its competitors with a more professional look. The following year I was engaged to open their retail "showcase" superstore in Munich.

What was it like setting up your own business?
It's a once in a lifetime opportunity that you never feel 100 percent ready for. I felt like a kid who had no idea what you could not do, with the heart to better serve our customers. University gave me the modelling skills to understand some aspects of the best operators in the US and Germany; if most businesses go broke because of debt and unprofitable business models, I made the simple determination to neither have debt nor run an unprofitable model.

What did you do right and what did you do wrong?
Customers were well served and the business model was so attractive to customers that 40 percent of our growth came from customer referrals in the first three years. We managed costs and the model very well. I worked hard to establish a reputation of reliability and integrity that paid off in future years.

We stuck to our core competencies without deviation no matter how tempting. Initially we had good success hiring staff, but in years four to seven I made many mistakes hiring leaders. Several were hired on capability and fired on character. Weak leadership has naturally very damaging effects on staff. Therefore the right leaders are key to the organisation's future ability to hire the best and the brightest.

What advice would you give to an online business starting up today?
Be sure you are serving a need in the industry in a sustainable way. The better problem you solve for your customers, the better your business. Never lose focus of your customers and build a team of people that "live, eat and breathe" your DNA.

Also, it's important to handle money well. Cash flow is king. Spend money on things that generate value for your customers and profit in your business.

Any secret or not so secret passions outside of IT?
My family is my passion. My kids are at wonderful ages, 10 and 7, and I try and spend as much time with them as I can. I also love cooking and have a good wine cellar that I enjoy with friends.