Date: July 27, 2016
Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC)’s recent ‘Tajribati’ session discussed the topic of “converting hobbies into businesses”.
The ‘Tajribati’ session was attended by entrepreneurs who had turned their passion into business, industry consultants and aspiring entrepreneurs. The ‘Tajribati’ series serves as a unique platform to connect business experts with start-up owners and new entrepreneurs to exchange views, discuss common challenges and share best practices.
The session was held to stress on the fact that converting a hobby into business is possible if one works hard and does sufficient research before starting a business. The discussion attracted the participation of many members of Zubair SEC, SMEs and new entrepreneurs from different sectors.
Jewellery designer Muna Al Khusaibi, owner of Dar Al Washa – Kidani, and a prominent member of Zubair SEC, was a main speaker at the session. A winner of Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme, she is someone has who turned her hobby into business. Muna, who initially designed jewellery only for family and friends, was encouraged by them to work towards becoming an entrepreneur.
At the session Muna spoke about the importance of identifying the needs of the market; supporting the hobby with sound knowledge; building the correct business model; and creating the right identity for the business and having a solid marketing strategy.
“Make sure there’s a market for your goods and services,” Muna said adding that successful businesses require dedicated work and responsibility.
She also reminded that once the hobby is turned into a business the pressure of working to a deadline, meeting financial objectives and customer expectation will set in.
“People must understand that there is a difference between doing something for fun and doing it as a business,” she said.
“Starting a business based on your hobby can be deeply satisfying, but it will almost certainly be challenging,” she said.
The ongoing ‘Tajribati’ discussion series organised by Zubair SEC, a social responsibility initiative of The Zubair Corporation, is aimed at supporting young entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium enterprises. The session provides them a platform to have dialogues and discussions with experts on topics related to business.
Moderator of this session Adel Al Hubaishi, Senior Advisor, Zubair SEC said, “We are delighted to host sessions on interesting topics such as this one. Participants have gained immensely from the ‘Tajribati’ sessions as per the feedback we have received so far. Both members and non-members who attend the sessions have acknowledged the importance of hosting such sessions as they help entrepreneurs to-be.”
Referring to the topic of discussion, Al Hubaishi said, “The speaker with her thoughts has inspired and encouraged young entrepreneurs to have the courage to convert their hobby into business. As she rightly said when one is ready to move his or her activity beyond a hobby, they need to get serious about managing it. The session was rewarding and insightful.”