BUSINESS LESSONS

What advice would you give a young woman starting a business?

I’m mentoring four or five women now because I believe if I can help them not make the mistakes I made over years, I’ll be doing something right.

Whether you want to be a doctor or a nurse or own your own restaurant, you need to walk in the shoes of the person you aspire to be.

Just because you have this dream, it does not mean you should view everything with rose-tinted glasses — you need to be realistic, and for that, you can’t underestimate experience.

Learn the areas you are not good at and focus on developing them, because when you’re setting up your own business, you have to become a master of ceremonies. I was good at sales and marketing, but not at finance, to my detriment, so I made it my business to improve my finance skills.

What should foodies know about setting up their own restaurant?

Having a love of food is only a minute part of running a food business. You need to be involved 24-7 and to be able to negotiate with suppliers, do your accounts, balance the books, and manage your cash flow. There is an avalanche of things that you need to learn.