Votech in the Gold Coast Bulletin
Posted on 28. Oct, 2006 by Net Retriever in Articles, News
BELIEVE IN THE PRODUCT FIRST
Gold Coast Bulletin | October 2006
People need dedication and perseverance to start a business, says Alex Voevodin from IT company Votech.
The company won the Emerging Business category of the September Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards.
Based in Surfers Paradise, it was formed in 2004 by Alex Voevodin to provide hardware, software and technical support to the hospitality industry.
Mr Voevodin said he started the business with the encouragement of his wife and business advisers.
“Everyone has ideas about what would make a great product or service, but most people let that idea slip away or file it in the back of their minds, only to see it come from another company some time down the track,” he said.
“After a lot of late hours and working too many weekends I turned my idea into a successful software package used by hospitality sites all around Australia and New Zealand.
A lot of dedication and perseverance is needed, especially when starting a business from scratch with a product that is new to the market.
“More than once I considered going back to regular employment, but when I looked back at all the hard work and the potential the product had, I refused to let it go to waste.”
The company’s core is Net Retriever, a piece of software that sits in the middle of two or more hardware and software systems and handles the communications.
This type of software is often referred to as middleware.
“The main benefit of Net Retriever is that it is very flexible.
“We can write an interface to receive or extract data from just about any hardware or software system and translate it into any other format for insertion into another system.”
Mr Voevodin said there were many obstacles to overcome when building the business.
“Overworking was a big hurdle,” he said.
“Because we worked so long without any discernible success or income of any kind, it was hard for my wife and me to take a break.
“We funded everything ourselves so we had to keep our overheads as low as possible.
“Thankfully we were encouraged to continue when our first product caught on as a useful tool to help hospitality sites run their business more smoothly.”
Mr Voevodin has some advice for people planning to set up their own business.
“Running a business is not for everyone, but if you are thinking about starting a business the best advice I can give is you must believe in your product or service.
“Much of the success I am experiencing now has come because I have a product I believe in and know the market well.
“That comes through when I am talking to others – my enthusiasm engages them and consequently they become excited too.”
FAST FACTS:
- Votech is a hardware and software development and distribution company that provides guest, patient and student service solutions to the hospitality, health and education industries.
- A website has been set up by Votech for offsite and resident unit managers as a social and educational resource. Go to www.oarums.net.
- For more information on Votech visit www.votech.com.au
- Details on the Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards can be obtained from 1300 887 206 or at www.goldcoastbusinessawards.com.au
