Focus on Georgian Start-ups: the Apple Chip Business

The startup Enkeni was founded in 2016 by three students of the Georgian Agrarian University: Nona Noniashvili, Tamara Sheitnishvili, and Shako Mdzinarashvili. The name Enkeni comes from an old Georgian word for September – the season of fruit harvesting. Enkeni uses freshly picked apples to make their popular dried apple chips. GEORGIA TODAY spoke with Enkeni’s founders to learn more about their young business.

What is Enkeni and how did you get started?

Our idea was born at the Georgian Agrarian University. The administration and staff members helped us in many ways, so we are truly grateful to them. The aim was to start a business in the field of innovative food technologies. Our team won several business competitions in a short period of time and we formed one strong team with a singular purpose – to create a global and loveable brand. We work together very well, we possess great motivation and support to each other. Our team functions as one organism.

How did you develop the idea for the product?

The three of us were motivated to start our own business and were looking for ideas. During one specific lecture on general food technologies, our idea was born: to produce apple chips by using our own drying regimes to create an innovative, healthy, and high-quality product.

How was the development process?

The development process wasn’t so easy, and we believe it’s the same for every startup. But we also believe that if you truly want your idea to work out, you have to put yourself 100% into whatever you’re doing. Only then will you get positive results. Right now, our biggest challenge is to diversify our products and markets, meaning we want to add new and innovative products and to start exporting. We’ve already begun negotiations for exporting to the US, Egypt, and more.

Has the Georgian agriculture community been welcoming to you or is it a competitive environment?

Of course, there is competition, but the local community and the majority of business owners are welcoming and encoure us as young entrepreneurs.

Where did you get your entrepreneurial spirit?

We are not sure about that…maybe it’s because we felt that our country has potential to incubate and develop businesses. We knew it would be difficult, but we still believed in our idea so much that there was no way back for us.

Do you think the Georgian market can sustain a totally new product?

As founders of Enkeni, we decided to have face to face contact with our customers. That’s why, for the last eight months, we’ve been holding tastings in different markets, taking part in exhibitions, and talking to our customers directly. Our customers are the #1 priority for us and we want to take their feedback into account to become a better company every day and to create suitable products for our customers.

What is your long-term vision for the company?

Our main mission is to support healthy lifestyles, that’s why our main direction is to offer healthy, innovative, and trendy food, snacks, to the local and global market. We want to grow Enkeni into a globally known brand which will be associated with a friendly and open company, not just a big corporation.

What are your next steps in the short term?

The partial automation of our factory to simplify processes and grow productivity. We also want to start developing new, innovative products, implement cold storage, and enter more markets to gain more customers.

Why did you decide to locate your factory outside Tbilisi? What is it like working in the regions?

Our factory is located in the village of Ditsi, near the Tskhinvali Administrative Boundary Line, [approximately 30 km north of Gori]. The social and economic situation has significantly worsened in this area since 2008, after the war between Russia and Georgia. Many locals left the village due to unemployment. We had two main reasons to build our factory there: first, to improve the general social situation by creating employment opportunities, and second, we were expressing our support for the territorial integrity of Georgia. In this way, we want to create a brand that has no boundaries. It really isn’t an easy job, but it depends on what you, as an entrepreneur, want. In our case, we knew why we were building our factory in the regions. It’s hard, but it’s worth it to achieve our goal.

What is the best part about owning your own business – and what is the worst?

The best part is that you create something unique, relying on yourself and your team, and you are learning and growing every day in many aspects. The worst part is that in business, it’s natural and logical to have some expectations, but sometimes it’s really hard when the reality you face is so drastically different from those expectations – but even this worst part is a great teacher if you use it wisely!

Find Enkeni on Facebook for more information.

By Samantha Guthrie

Image source: Enkeni