Olīve mēbeles head Viktors Išmakovs: business is a marathon, not a sprint

Viktors Išmakovs, head of the furniture company Olīve mēbeles, believes a company's growth begins with understanding what customers need and offering them something clear, and only then deliberately developing production, technology and the team. In a business profile published by the newspaper Dienas Bizness, he adds that readiness to change and adapt to the market is just as important.

Išmakovs compares entrepreneurship to a marathon rather than a sprint: in his view, what matters most is the ability to sustain results over the long term and keep improving.

Early interest in business

As a child, he recalls, he dreamed of becoming a cosmonaut, a police officer or a firefighter. In the 1990s he began watching entrepreneurs and realised he was drawn to the chance of building his own business, making decisions and developing ideas.

He gained his first small taste of business at school, buying motorcycles with friends, finding spare parts for them and selling them. It was then that the young men developed a more serious interest in sales, which later influenced his choice of studies.

Studies and first job

After secondary school, Išmakovs went to Ireland, where he studied business management at Dublin Business School while also working. Latvia had not yet joined the European Union at the time, so moving abroad and finding work was harder than it is today. After returning to Latvia, he continued his studies at RISEBA university.

His studies helped him better understand the logic of business and the principles of finance and management. At first he was more interested in management, but while building his own company he realised that sales and marketing are just as important. In his view, a good product alone does not guarantee growth — a company must be able to show its value and reach customers.

Išmakovs also had his first job in Ireland, at a food production plant. The work quite quickly made him realise what he wanted to do and what he definitely did not.