Think entrepreneurs and the people that spring to mind are high flyers such as Mr Richard Branson or super rich software developers like Mr Bill Gates. But both of these were small fry in the business world once and all over Ireland success is coming to the small entrepreneur who has the courage to carry out big ideas.

In April last year a group of 15-year-old Junior Certificate students from Waterford showed that age is no barrier to entrepreneurship. Their Website design company TourWeb produces web pages for companies such as Waterford Castle and even Microsoft. For their effort they won an award at the national finals of the Young Entreprenuers Scheme.

At the time one of their clients, Microfix a Waterford based computer training company, told this newspaper how impressed he was with the TourWeb team. "What they are producing is the equivalent of what people doing this stuff for 10 years would do. I just had to say exactly what I wanted and they took it on board and did it the way I wanted it done. They show very mature business skills, working very much as a team," said Microfix director Mr Joe Fitzgerald.

What he described contained elements of what all entrepreneurs need in order to be successful - but apart from good business skills it is also crucial to enjoy solid back up support.

There are many agencies working across the state to help small businesses at the start-up stage. None harder than Udaras na Gaeltachta, the government agency that aims to attract a healthy mix of large international projects and smaller indigenous activities to the mainly rural Gaeltacht areas.

According to their public relations officer Ms Maire Seo Breathnach they offer "a tailored follow-up consultancy and support service". Financial support includes employment grants, rent subsidies and feasibility study funding. However many non-financial incentives such as start up guidance and legal advice are included in the package.

"Our project development officers keep in constant touch with the entrepreneurs to help them in whatever way we can to grow and develop their business," she said.

Two companies who have benefited from the guidance of Udaras are Gaeltacht-based businesses Euro Iompu Teo (Eurocoach Builders) and Seaclaidi Ballinskelligs (Ballinskelligs Chocolate).

Managing director of Eurocoach Builders Mr Joe Ferry started out as a car mechanic in Co Donegal and now heads up what is widely regarded as one of the leading coach building companies in Europe providing direct employment for 43 people. His aim from the beginning was to become "the Rolls Royce of coach builders".

When he first established the business on an industrial estate in Gweedore in 1985, Udaras provided him with one year's free rent and helped fund the training needed for fully skilled employees.

Their first big break came when they were approached by Turners Cross Motors in Cork to convert Mercedes vehicles into vans. Since then the company has won contracts with Dublin Bus and has supplied them with 95 inner city "Imp" buses, built from scratch at the Gweedore base.

But where Mr Ferry really excelled as an entrepreneur was in finding a gap in the coach building market. Before he set his mind to it, there were no tour coaches in Ireland with less than 45 seats. He identified the need for a modern, fully equipped coach to suit the needs of smaller tour groups.

He spent a year and a half travelling around Europe before finding a company in Spain that built the kind of 33 seater vehicle he was interested in. "We tapped into their technology and received 50 per cent funding to send employees on a six-month training course at the Spanish company," he said. To date they have built 25 such vehicles which have been snapped up by the main tour operators in the state.

Mr Ferry would advise other entrepreneurs to "go see what is out there, see the quality of what is being done in other countries and bring your product up to that standard".

It has been a busy Christmas for Mr Micheal MacGabhann and Mrs Anna MacGabhann who arrived in Co Kerry four years ago from the UK, in search of a better lifestyle for their family. They started off making home made truffles for friends in the area and have ended up the chocolate king and queen of the region.

The Sceilig Chocolate Factory was established two years ago at a premises secured from Udaras who had a building that had once housed craft lndustries.

al and Anna They had a very strong sense of what would make their chocolate products different from other Irish competitors. They decided that packaging their chocolates in hand painted boxes with a wax seal would make the product stand out. They use all natural ingredients for their chocolates which include champagne and orange flavour truffles and the product is rolled by hand on marble slabs.

"From the beginning we decided we were going to stick to our guns, make a quality product and not sell ourselves short," said Mr MacGabhann.

They began selling to the corporate market becoming the first Irish food company to be stocked at London's Fortnum and Mason store. Their big break came when they were asked to supply 3,300 hand painted boxes of chocolates for the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin in 1996. All the boxes featured the name and address of the Ballinskelligs Chocolate Company which led to a dramatic increase in orders.

Since then their products have been acclaimed at a New York food fair and the chocolates are stocked at small food stores all over the State. Mr MacGabhann is full of praise for Udaras na Gaeltachta who, he said, "keep an eye on you and hold your hand through it all".

Mr MacGabhann's advice to others thinking about taking the entrepreneurial plunge is simple: "Don't soften your idea and don't move away from what excited you about it in the beginning.".