Geoff Johns

Geoff Johns already has one successful company, Jeff the Chef Caterers in Eston, but had been on the look-out for a ‘big idea’ to expand the business and take it to the next level. His inspiration came in the unlikely form of the Parmo - the unofficial ‘national dish’ of Tees Valley, which Geoff is preparing to manufacture en masse as a pre-prepared chilled product.

This is Geoff Johns’s story…

1. Why did you want to start your own business?

   When I was 16, a school friend of mine said I was a boy with ambition and after 20 years of thinking about it, I gave it a go. I started out in the catering industry and developed into catering for weddings and birthdays. From there, I found that there was a demand for my product as food for the family rather than just a take-away.

2. What was the deciding factor for you?

   When I heard Patak’s factory had burnt down my partner commented that my curry was: “better than theirs anyway, maybe you should make some of your own.” We then decided that the Parmo would be a good idea if it was a chilled item in supermarkets, so I looked into starting it as a cook chill product and created a company for it.

3. How did you get the business off the ground?

   With sheer determination and a belief in my product that allowed me to get the company off the ground. My family also gave me the drive to work at this and make them proud, while also looking for the next pound to pay the mortgage.

4. Best bits about working for yourself?

   I would say the best thing about being self-employed would be that I am flexible towards my family commitments, but I still work a seven-day week. You just have to make it work for you.

5. What have been the biggest challenges so far?

   I would definitely say the biggest challenge so far would be raising the finance to see the project through. You have to overcome the fact there are so many packaging regulations and laws governing your premises, which have to be juggled with the high costs and overheads that occur.

6. What would you have done differently if you could go back?

   I really wouldn’t have shown off the product so early (Geoff’s product achieved TV fame on X Factor, after Simon Cowell tasted the dish at Middlesbrough Town Hall. It was also served up by Anthony Worrall Thompson on ITV’s Saturday Cooks) and left it until I was ready to produce it. I’ve had some difficulty preventing the cook chill idea from being stolen and may have to compete with bigger companies.

7. How does it feel to be your own boss?

   Ask me in three weeks what it’s like, when the factory is up and running! There’s always the next goal to aim for and that really gives you the drive to work at it.

8. A piece of advice for those thinking about starting up?

   Be prepared for every knock back, yet for every low there are at least two positives to bring you back up. I would also say you need self-belief, not just in yourself but with the product. Be realistic about what you can achieve, but always aim higher..

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