Aljoud Mill
Planned Approach
Taking challenges head on, Nasser Abdullah Nasser Al Mawali’s perseverance paid rich dividends as he launched his second business in a very short time
‘What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’; an old phrase that aptly describes persevering for success in the business world. Failure in business for some people can mean a sense of hopelessness and surrender; whereas for others it is a learning that directs them along the path they have to follow. Experiences, both good and bad, are valuable lessons that guide entrepreneurs towards achieving their goals and dreams.
The hero of this story failed in his first business venture which was a construction company. Nevertheless, he did not give in to despair and persevered to launch his second business. Nasser Abdullah Nasser Al Mawali from the Wilayat of Wadi Al Maawil had initially worked in the private sector for several years, until he retired to start his own business.
Recounting his entrepreneurial journey, Nasser comments, “After retiring, I started a construction company and the work was good since we had many projects. However, due to the lack of sufficient adequate workers compared to the volume of business, we failed to deliver on time. As a result, we exceeded the expenses budgeted for, and due to my lack of experience in proper accounting, I was unable to fulfil the project requirements and I started accumulating losses. I had to sell some of my plots to pay off loans that were beginning to pile up and eventually I had to close down the business”.
“During this period, I joined Zubair SEC and there I learned that the reason for my failure was due to the ambitiously large number of projects I had taken on. The business advisors explained that I should only agree to a realistic number of projects that were corresponding to the resources I had”, adds Nasser. Following the dissolution of his first enterprise, Nasser did not want to revert to working as an employee in a company, nor did he wish to continue investing in the construction sector. Therefore, he decided to visit local souqs every morning to conduct market research and understand which lines of business where the ones which were in most demand. During a visit to a souq in one of the Wilayats, he witnessed the wide demand for milled grains, so the idea of opening one in Wadi Al Maawil began to take shape in his mind. He initiated a thorough analysis into the field, with regard to the most demanded grains, their prices, processing budgets, expected success opportunities, etc. After that, he presented a business plan to the Zubair SEC advisors who encouraged him to take it up. Nine months later, Nasser established his ‘Al Joud Mill’ enterprise.
“I launched my second business on the first of October, 2014. As it is the case with any small enterprise, I had to face some challenges. One of them being the rejection of the purchase or stocking of my products from other merchants. Therefore, I hired someone to help me find new outlets for the sale of my products. I kept working closely with him every morning when we visited the souqs of the nearby Wilayats. The profits were minimal initially, but they gradually increased over time”, he notes.
Nasser had previously applied to Zubair SEC’s the Direct Support Programme but was not selected for several years. Yet, with a firm determination, he kept trying and was successful in fulfilling his goal to join the Programme in 2017, marking a new phase in the growth of his business. Continuing his story, Nasser says, “Several months later, my marketing employee retired, so I hired one of my old employees from the construction project. Together, we continued going to the souqs every morning, from Muscat and Batinah South to the Suwayq souq in Batinah North. We set up agreements with numerous outlets and have currently reached about 130. Our objective is to keep adding new ones”.
Nasser believes that investing in research, and putting the needed time and effort in a business is what takes it closer to success. He also highlights the fact that the market is filled with opportunities for people with innovative business ideas. “The uniqueness of a business idea and utmost dedication to business are fundamental to success. A unique business is not necessarily extraordinary, but is one that sets itself apart from similar businesses in areas such as marketing, branding, product offering, packaging, quality, and building a trusted relationship with clients”, he concludes.
Keeping in tune with the transformation of the company and its vision for the future, Zubair SEC has created a new brand identity and logo for Aljoud Mill.
Nasser Al Mawali has been running a successful and sustainable grinding mill since the launch of his business.
“I have a long-standing relationship with the Zubair SEC team since it was first established. I consider joining the Direct Support Programme in 2017 a great opportunity for me which has opened many doors for my business. We have worked on renewing my business brand and on reflecting the new brand on all marketing collateral and packaging. We also managed to purchase a barcode printer for easier processing of my products at bigger stores. We also intend to improve the production process at the mill by upgrading from fully-manual to a semi-automated system. The addition of a branded delivery vehicle has contributed to the increase in the amount of products delivered to stores. We are also currently working on improving our accounting system”, says Nasser Abdullah Nasser Al Mawali.