Sligo surfer Ashleigh Smith turned a Master’s thesis into a startup with The Atlantic Equipment Project (AE). The business, which is based in Strandhill, produces handmade satchels and backpacks, sold through its website and in selected shops in Ireland and abroad.

Smith (29), who was a competitive surfer for the Irish team in her teens, studied product design and technology in college and undertook a two-year MSc programme in integrated product design in the Netherlands. “When they write their thesis for this programme, most folks do so with a funding company.

"In my ambitious naivety, I decided to build my own company. My thesis for that MSc was the brand strategy and initial product development for what is now The Atlantic Equipment Project,” Smith explains.

“I knew I could never be your classic product designer, rendering toasters for Philips in a big city. When I returned home I realised that with hard work and skill, I could develop the branding, build a website and launch the initial AE collection.”

In Association with

Lean Model

Smith fashioned her business on a shoestring. “I needed only a few essential elements: an industrial sewing machine, a functioning web shop and a laptop. My workplace for the first few months was my mother’s kitchen table.” Family funding helped Smith buy the necessaries, and the venture also secured €50,000 Enterprise Ireland support through the Competitive Start Fund. “AE has operated thus far, and always will, a lean business model approach to cash and growth. From day one, demand has always exceeded supply. We are always busy and, crucially, productive.”

Smith says the key to dealing with Enterprise Ireland is to be honest. “Have an exact, simple plan about how you will spend the money you are pitching for. Know what your weaknesses are and where you need mentoring. Attend your pitch day with sales, proof of concept or a detailed plan of how you will prove the concept.”

“I have a little booklet that I printed out just before I graduated. It is the brand identity for AE and outlines our core values of Atlantic coastal heritage, honest design and shared exploration, and it nails down our vision. My advice is to write your vision down, if you haven’t done so already. This is what you will pitch with the most passion and honesty. A startup requires long days and it is only your core vision that will keep you going.”

Experienced Mentor

Smith adds that she was fortunate to be mentored by a man who is eight years ahead of her in the startup world. “He has established an impressive global business and I would often have meetings with him at times of high stress and worry. The first thing he said to me was, ‘Ash, it is always like this, just the numbers get bigger’. Now I realise that business success depends on your resourcefulness and your ability to navigate and survive.

“I also remember my mentor quoting Mike Tyson: ‘Everyone has a plan when they step in the ring, then they get punched in the face’. We have been punched in the most unexpected ways, and I know we will get punched regularly. But I also know that if we do the work, navigate and find solutions we will succeed.”

Ashleigh Smith’s bags and satchels sell through her website for between €62 and €140.