A creditors' meeting for PR Slides Ltd has been scheduled for November 12, where John Eddison of Upton Ryan Chartered Accountants has been proposed as the liquidator, according to the meeting notice.

The online image library, now rebranded as PicStash, was originally founded by model Emma Jane Power in 2013. Entrepreneur Niall Harbison (pictured with Power) invested in the company, becoming joint chief executive.

Harbison's other digital ventures include iFoods, Lovin' Dublin and Simply Zesty. The latter proved a home run for the entrepreneur, while iFoods — an attempt at a foodie-focused social media site — wasn't so successful.

In his entertaining book Get Sh*t Done, Harbison states that iFoods ended up raising over €600,000. Companies Office documents disclose that the initial funding of €139,000 in December 2007 was sourced from his friend Sean Fee (€37,000), father Ronan (€12,000), cousin Barry (€21,000), Pieter Plaetinck (€37,000) and Niall himself (€31,000).

A year later, iFoods tapped Enterprise Ireland for €200,000. The agency’s cash was forthcoming after iFoods sourced matching funds. This time dad Ronan invested €70,000, cousin Barry followed on with €20,000 while Niall and Sean parted with €20,000 each. Marino Software Ltd chipped in €50,000.

In Association with

Dissolved

As Harbison frankly admits, the problem with iFoods was that there was no focus at this ‘Facebook for Foodies’ on revenue streams. iFoods never officially went bust; the company was simply dissolved.

“Despite every indication to the contrary, from website traffic to bills pouring in, right through to the advice from friends and business people to shut it down, I hung on to that business for at least six months longer that I should have,” Harbison recalled.

Harbison is relaxed about business failure. In his book, he writes that after iFoods he "realised that failure wasn't as bad as I'd made it out to be in my head. Fear of failure had stopped me doing so many things, but I knew it was no longer the ordeal I'd imagined it to be.

"Now that I had experienced once, I knew I could deal with it. I've failed many times since, but I've failed much faster and always learned a lesson along the way."

Simply Zesty

In June 2009, six months after iFoods raised €400,000 in capital, Simply Zesty Ltd was incorporated. This was a joint venture between Harbison, with 40% of the equity, and Lauren Fisher, who had 60%. Simply Zesty was started more than two years before iFoods Ltd was formally dissolved in November 2011. Five months later, in April 2012, Harbison landed in the money.

The idea behind Simply Zesty was to advise brands how to connect with consumers using social media. The agency’s client roster quickly attracted suitors, one of whom was UTV Media, the Northern Ireland plc. In March 2012, UTV agreed to pay €2m upfront with a further €3.6m contingent on earn-out targets out to 2017. However, the earn-out portion proved to be mostly illusory, with UTV exiting its €3.6m contingency in 2013 for an outlay of €240,000.

Harbison was one of several shareholders in Simply Zesty. In the book he states that he was due to receive €546,780 cash after the UTV deal closed. “I had €400 in my bank account and a credit card that has 1,200 left before maxing out,” he writes.

Harbison stayed on with Simply Zesty until mid-2013, when the company was restructured by its parent.

PR Slides

Harbison then teamed up with PR Slides, which had been set up by Emma Power. PR Slides is a very nifty website that provides a one-stop shop for fashion, beauty and other brands to interact with the press.

Harbison invested €20,000 to get involved and Enterprise Ireland invested €50,000. In January 2014, Harbison was central to the company rounding up another €500,000. EI topped up with €250,000, Kernel Capital invested €100,000 with the balance of €150,000 coming from Niall himself (€10,000), dad Ronan (€50,000) and a number of other angels.

PR Slides' purpose is to offer media professionals free access to high-resolution images from global brands. Its photos include people, sports, product shots, lifestyle images and holidays.

Both journalists and brands alike can sign up for free accounts, though brands hoping to promote their products through the site for free only get space for 10 photos. After that, they have the option of PicStash Premium.

In Get Sh*t Done, Harbison remarks: "Knowing when to pull the plug and admit failure is absolutely key. Being ruthless and learning how to fail faster will not only save you heartache but also free up time to focus on new endeavours and more positive pursuits.”