Sunday Business Post, Ireland
Feb 22 2009
Arshak has plenty of reasons to smile
Sunday, February 22, 2009 By Carol Hayes
Addis Arshak was on a trip to America when he had his teeth whitened –
and had an idea for a new business venture.
Brite Smile, which he set up last year, offers professional
teeth-whitening services either in salons or in a client’s home.
“During a trip to America, I got my teeth whitened in a shopping mall
by a mobile whitening unit. I was a smoker and, in addition, was quite
partial to a few cups of coffee a day, which doesn’t do your teeth any
favours,’ said Arshak.
“While being solicited by the sales representative, I had the
opportunity to view the results on other customers, which – along with
the competitive price – convinced me to take the plunge myself. I came
away quite stunned and impressed.
The idea of the mobile unit started from this experience. However, I
think at Brite Smile, we have evolved the idea of the mobile unit into
a more comprehensive business model.’
Arshak’s family is Armenian, but he was born in England. H e moved to
Ireland when he was four and grew up in Limerick. He was educated in
both Ireland and Britain and has a degree in engineering design and an
award from the London New Designers Show under his belt.
“My parents are both university professionals and believe that hard
work and education will get you a long way in life. I think my drive
to succeed has been a direct consequence of my upbringing,’ said
Arshak.
He said the company had managed to keep overheads down by being an
outsourcing service to salons nationwide. “This also allows us to
target a larger demographic. With this in mind, we can manage to
undercut all our competitors and still be profitable.’ `In addition,
we are helping salons provide this service locally and to a higher
level of safety,’ he said.
Before founding Brite Smile, Arshak worked as a medical products
designer and as a product design manager for an Irish home ware
company, designing products for mass production.
This industry experience and the help of his family were invaluable
resources when setting up his own business.