Online business has always been an interest of Stephen Langford’s. Appreciating the success of Netflix in the US, Langford soon launched Quickflix in Australia, and online business success followed.
DB: What helped you most in trying to get the business off the ground?
SL: Two other major players with some serious money behind them were also interested in the model – Telstra and Home Screen. It was this validation from competitors that the model had the chance to be effective that proved a plus.
DB: What has been your biggest challenge?
SL: Aside from having major competitors that are heavily funded, it was competing for access to the investment capital required to get the business up and running. The other challenge was breaking consumer habits and presenting them a new way of renting DVDs.
DB: Any lessons learned along the way?
SL: We probably underestimated what it took to introduce a new model into Australia. Changing habits and the way that people are comfortable doing things is hard work. If we had our time again, we would have raised more capital at the outset.
DB: What is the downside for you?
SL: To be an entrepreneur, or at least for me, I can only do things by being very focused and single minded. I think this often means you are not perhaps the most rounded personality.
DB: What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
SL: Be persistent and take the feedback from your detractors as a challenge and prove them wrong.