Stuart Ong (left) and James Low Yiqi
at CHOOSE, their eco-store.

Two years ago, no one took them seriously, but Stuart Ong and James Low Yiqi, bit the bullet and persevered. Afterall, at just 24 and 25 years old, they knew that people may have more than just doubts about their entrepreneurial skills; what more embarking into a business they have little in-depth knowledge of. Fast forward to 2010, and still considerably young at 26 and 27, both Ong and Low take pride in proving naysayers wrong. Their green business, Olive Ventures, is not only doing well, but making headlines in the local media. Their eco-store, CHOOSE, which promotes eco-friendly products ranging from household cleaning agents to sanitary pads made from organic cotton, was branded as Singapore's first by The Business Times.

            Their entrepreneurial idea was germinated while these two friends were reading economics and finance at Singapore Management University. Ong and Low toyed with the idea of embarking on the green business route. While they had profound interest in environmental issues, they knew they lacked real insight and knowledge to run a green outfit. Upon graduation, the duo organised a self-funded, month-long trip to the US to learn more about the industry. Their visits to numerous businesses, colleges and garage operations helped them to define their business strategy. Apart from the US trip, they spent a year researching on the green industry as much as possible, arming themselves with knowledge on wide-ranging topics from domestic green products to renewable energy.

            Running the business with lean team of four people, including a store manager and a head consultant, Olive Ventures has two other arms, ACT and THINK. ACT is the consultancy arm for the business where the duo plans to provide green consultancy services to local SMEs looking to implement practical environmental solutions into their practices. THINK is the research and development department where Olive Ventures will not just develop green products but also systems and services that are sustainable. Though these two arms have yet to take off, their eco-store is garnering significant traction amongst eco-conscious consumers. 80 percent of the company's revenue come from CHOOSE, and the duo foresees breaking even by 2011. They sank  S$200,000 into the startup costs of the business which was invested in setting up the retail operations, from renovations to stocking up on product supplies. Currently, CHOOSE is located in a sprawling 2000 sqm space at Sago Street, Chinatown, which also houses Olive Ventures main office.

            To practise what they preach, CHOOSE sells items which are sourced locally and regionally, in an effort to reduce carbon footprint. Using energy saving-lights throughout the store, recycling and utilising an inverted air-conditioning system to cool the facility, Olive Ventures is vigilant in making sure everything they do is 'green'. Also, for executives looking to cycle to work, CHOOSE provides secure bicycle parking, shower and locker facilities. No doubt a smart idea seeing that Chinatown is a mere walking distance to the central business district.

Stuart Ong shares with Ebizsurf more on their entrepreneurial journey and their future plans for Olive Ventures.

How did the idea behind Olive Ventures begin?

Stuart Ong: James and myself were toying around with the idea while in university. We were both interested in the developments within the green industry. However being both economics and finance trained at SMU put us at a slight disadvantage in venturing into this industry. We spent a good year doing research and developing the idea and concept behind Olive Ventures before we opened our doors.

How much was Olive Ventures' startup capital?

Stuart Ong: We put in about $200,000 and it went to set-up our retail operations (renovations, stock, equipments) and while these don’t seem like very big investments, it was a large investment into building the brand that is Olive Ventures and not only providing credibility but also quite a few leads for our consultancy arm of business.

While we haven’t broken even on our initial investment, we were breaking even month over month with 6 months. However, with all the groundwork already laid, we expect to break even on our initial investment within the next year.

What was the biggest challenge you faced in the the startup phase of the business?

Stuart Ong: I think the biggest challenge we faced was getting people to take us seriously. Prior to opening the shop we met numerous suppliers who did not believe we were serious about an eco-store and the fact that we were young was perhaps another factor that played against us. We currently don’t face this problem anymore and our biggest challenge is staying ahead of the competition. We continually update ourselves with the latest news and developments within the green industry.

What kind of impact do you hope to achieve with Olive Ventures?

Stuart Ong: We formed Olive Ventures with the goal of promoting and leading environmental sustainability from the private sector and we would like to inspire, influence and faciliate change in the direction of environmental sustainability. 

How is the local market's sentiments towards the green movement?

Stuart Ong: We find it pretty responsive but there is a massive amount of education to be done and this is being done daily not just by us but by numerous other organisations (government and non-governmental organisations) and the various green communities we get the priviledge to meet.

Through your consultancy arm, you meet local companies aiming to go green. What are some of their concerns and motivations on going green as a company?

Stuart Ong: We’ve been lucky so far and almost all the motivations behind a company wanting to go green have almost always been a genuine concern for the environment and wanting their business to be a more environmentally sustainable one. As with any business, the major concern is the cost of going green and the amount of change the organisation has to make. However, we understand this and at ACT, we really try to understand the way the business operates first and then tailor sustainable solutions to fit the organisation’s fundamentals and operations.

Describe Olive Venture's marketing and branding strategy in reaching out to the market.

Stuart Ong: We’ve been extremely lucky as we receive constant mainstream media exposure and this has really lightened our marketing budget. Beyond this, we are actively promoting Olive Ventures online through the various forms of social media - blogs, facebook and twitter.

What are some of the environmental issues impacting your business currently?

Stuart Ong: We don’t really separate environmental issues into those impacting our business and those not. While the latest BP oil spills do very little in impacting our business, it is still something that we are concerned about. Any environmental issue, locally or abroad, is of concern to our business.

What is the business outlook for Olive Ventures for the next 5 years?

Stuart Ong: With the green economy and industry being relatively new, we are really excited about the potential and opportunities that we envision. We are looking to expand our retail arm of operations as well as build on our portfolio for our consultancy services.We also hope to launch our research and development arm of business within the next 5 years to leverage on the experiences and insights gained through our consultancy and retail operations.

What would be the one word of advice you have for entrepreneurs reading this article?

Stuart Ong: Having a great idea is just 10% of the job, the other 90% is how hard you work at it and while it is always great to have a plan, be flexible and adapt to changes because it rarely goes according to plan.