THIS week's High Flyer is Hans Henrik Enoksen, the founder of Enoksen Watches, who launch in Belfast on Thursday.
What was your first job?
I started working when I was 14 - there was a really old school cosmetics factory in my home town and I worked there Monday to Friday from 3pm-5pm. The owner was obsessed with tidiness and my job was to keep the place clean. I also filled shampoo bottles and had the questionable pleasure of filling bottles with nail polish - in those days it was both smelly and poisonous and health and safety wasn’t really a concern.
What qualifications do you have?
I have a bachelor degree in business and IT
What do you attribute your success to?
I am an ideas person, who can sometimes spot angles and opportunities and turn them into a business. It doesn’t work every time, but more often than not. I am a risk taker (not a gambler) and I have this unshakeable belief that things will be fine in the end.
How would you describe yourself to someone who never met you?
A straight shooter with good ideas and with the heart in the right place.
Who do you look up to in business?
Those who go up against conventions and lead by example. Nothing in business is easy, if it was, everyone would be doing it. One of my idols is the great Hans Wilsdorf, who founded Rolex.
How do you get the best out of people who work for you?
I don’t ask them to do anything I wouldn’t do myself, and I try to make sure that we all benefit from a shared success.
If you could change one thing about doing business in Northern Ireland what would it be?
I think that the opportunities in Northern Ireland are as good as anywhere else but the lack of flight connections is a massive problem. There’s just one daily flight to Paris from Belfast, no direct flights to Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and just two weekly direct flights to Berlin. There’s a proven correlation between connectivity and inbound investments. How are we going to attract investment and job creation if it takes a half a day or more to get to and from Northern Ireland?
What website or app could you not do without?
I use Facebook and Instagram a lot for Enoksen Watches. Facebook is also great for catching up with friends and family. For news I use BBC, Financial Times and The Economist. Booking.com is great as I travel quite a bit.
What was the last book you read?
I am on a Hemingway trip at the moment and I’m re-reading all he’s ever written. A Farewell to Arms is the last book I read.
What car do you drive?
A Volvo XC60 - a good and unpretentious car from a brand whose values I share.
Tell us something interesting about yourself?
Not sure what to say - I still play tennis at an international level and have represented Ireland on several occasions, despite the fact I’m Danish.
