io81

When thinking about opening a business there are many option to choose from. Some like to build a business from start and others want to become reseller of a business or a product. This post is about being a reseller.

Why, because some products sell them selves.  I have seen many products but some like the one am going to talk about surely are winner, from my opinion of course. 

I’ve always noticed products that are used in bathroom (its not that i like being in bathrooms;p) i just notice stuff.  Why, because some products are used in most bathrooms which means they are successful and add more value to the user. But usually in Kuwait we dont use air blower or dryer, we usually go with tissue and alot and lots of tissue is wasted. Of Course your thinking that the air blowers are slow in drying your hands thats why we dont use them often but this is why I’m posting about this product. To really appreciate it you got to try it out. I’ll explain how it works, and its kinda weird looking too. You slip you hands into a socket and the blower starts, and you just slowly take your hands out of the socket, do it twice and your done. Remember when you wash your car, then the car gets dried by this huge machine that blows the air away, something. Check the product out the dysonairblade.  I think but not sure that they have no suppliers here in Kuwait.

Going around Kuwait City finishing some work i always keep an eye for empty stores or shop for rent, i just have a feeling that many kuwaitis look for a small store in Kuwait City to open a restaurant to serve the employees working their. I usually find many near the stock exchange but nothing close to Fahad Al Salem st, the street where the Sheraton round about starts and and near to the Baitek tower. I found one store, has a good location but no good parking. I have attached some pictures to see the place and you can start imaging you store their:p its next to Gulf Bank branch on Fahad al Salem st, but on the back side of the street. No down payment and 600KD rent. The rent is expected from a store on Fahad Al Salem st. The hares number is 97947908, i guess his name is abu shrooq.

When I see a business I like to analyze it in two ways, one is the beneficial effects on the Kuwaiti Economy and the other is the business itself, meaning success and what have you.

I’ll explain both and for you so you can see why I perceive business from such a perspective. The second which is the business from a success factor is what I majored in (entrepreneurship) and based on its success the first factor becomes important.

Let me put the idea into perspective, if you own logo design company and started out with yourself as the sole employee and then started to make more money and required more employees you start to employ expatiates, why because their salaries are much cheaper then Kuwaitis, off course you have to include the knowledge and expertise factor in the picture because some Kuwaitis do not have that knowledge at the first place. But again let’s see the flow of money from the logo design company; you start getting more orders from Kuwaiti companies, your wealth increases due to transaction increase, you staff expats, so you created jobs. These jobs by themselves create extra wealth for the Kuwait economy. You see economies run by having money spent in them, which increases the KD value because there is more KD dinar moving around the economy or in economics terms, multiplying. Now multiply this logo company by Kuwait and see how many people are opening business and creating jobs, and these jobs create more jobs because they create demand for more supplies, like food, banking, insurance and rent. But the major flaw in this cycle is that the KD is being transferred outside Kuwait and going into a different market, hence the expat sending money abroad, hence banking, insurance and real estate outside Kuwait. Thus your KD dinar cycle gets reduced and losses value. So as much as we try to create a better economy or a work force we end up draining the cash in the system.

Don’t get me wrong, even for a company that I will be starting closely, I will be staffing expats. I point out this because when discussion occur in a  Diwaniya and the subject is that small Kuwaiti business are creating a better economy it’s not true, surely it is creating wealth to the Kuwaiti owner but not the economy itself.

One of the important things to me to run a business is to understand a customer. But remember that that customer is me and you and masses of people with different backgrounds ranging from religion to spending habits to education. I will discuss a smaller portion of the customer; which i think about everyday. Do customers want complex or simple product and services? i came to think about the subject when i got introduced to the Ipod. Remember that when i talk about my self i am only a small portion of the customer and do not reflect the major trend, but i’m trying to figure them out from a Kuwaiti perspective for you ” the reader” to understand your business better. Back to the Ipod, from a customers product awareness perspective i would fall in the middle of the statical bell curve. Which means the worst kind of customer for apple, because apple need customers who cant wait to buy the newest product from them (hence you see the people sleeping before the opening of certain products). I tend to wait and hear how the product performs from friends then maybe make a decision to buy it. Again remember that my personality and upbringing is the the major factor here making me be safe and wait longer than other consumers. After the wait i have bought the Ipod and liked it to some extent but faced problems down the road. The problems for others would be simple means but for me and the likes of me (the customers) i faced problems by fully utilisng the product. I had problems in downloading music and transferring them to my Ipod, every time i sync i lose the old songs and add the new ones in. Remember this post is not about the Ipod functionality rather about how i (or we) deal with complex products. So as you can see that i tend to find simpler products that do the job well and easily so the blackberry is out of the question for me to buy. To give you another example of my simplicity is that i own a phone that is 2.5 years old, and simply only use text and voice calls only. No extra services or chat or saving plans. I say this because as a business owner you need to understand that you have many kinds of customers and some are like myself looking for the simpler option. But to prove my self wrong, Zain is making so much profits from these services and IPods and blackberrys are selling like crazy. So there is another large market that does not mind complexity in the product or serivce. So the question is who is the larger share and who you should target. I personally judge sites by how easy it is to buy from them, registration should be easy and takes a few steps, the buying should be instantaneous like Amazon. So i personally believe in simplicity but this is not the case, it may be a different approach for your business. I will provide a real life example about simplicity and how it attracts me.

I always wondered about the wine industry and how big it is, and how many compete because they got the oldest barrels or a better taste. But the whole thing was intimidating to me, why? because it was hard for me to comprehend. Many brands, many tastes from different countries, why are the older ones more expensive, why wines grown in Italy or France seem more genuine? questions that cant be answered only if i ‘am a wine taster or work in such an industry, and closed only for a certain elite (because it  is expensive compared to other drinks). If you traveled abroad and passed by the wine section you would go crazy just from the different choices available to you. So reading one day i came up with a smart company that created a wine brand called Yellow Tail. Yellow tail answers the question that many people fear, “shall i ask about wine or would i look stupid not knowing what to order?”. It has a simple branding look and comes with easy labeling, does not claim being proud about what vines they own or how old it is. This company to me found out that people are intimidated by the wine industry and that it gives you a feeling that you got to have a certificate to order a good bottle of wine:p but Yellow Tial simply made wine choices easy for the general public and in such a case most wineries thought that Yellow tail demise was foreseen, not knowing that the company took a huge market share and cant stop growing since.  After all its a new commer to the wine market and all the way from down under:P (Australia) not a wine destination from a history sense. But yet again simplicty prevailed, remeber that this may not be the answer for your business needs just an insight to my part of the consumer market.

The last time I posted it was the last parliamentary elections, and i was so happy that at-last 4 ladies made it and it seemed like new blood have circulated Kuwait. What a great feeling it was, it makes me proud that we gave respect to the other sex and gave a blow to the religious zealots in this country that want to run it with their own assumption of how the world should be ruled. But soon after things became worse and i felt depressed again, and had nothing to write for a while so I apologize.

Back to business, to me a slogan of a company is important and reflects the direction and assumption of the customers. Before i continue, a small tip: never come up with your start-up company slogan at the beginning try to start operations and work it from there. See who are your customers and if that you have reached your target audience. But with well established companies its a must to have a correct reflection of your business. Ya3ne a stupid example would be the Oula Fuel Marketing Company slogan, its says “We are changing”. simple thinking will make you say ok! yes you have taken over the government fuel station and have been changing them, but you will change them till when? Is this an eternal change? So you can figure out that this is a stupid slogan done by idiots. But now lets go to the World Olympics( the one held every four years): and their slogans goes like “Celebrate Humanity”. In a sporting event all countries of the world come and compete, you are talking about Muslim, Christien, Jewish, Non Believers, Communist, Socialites countries that all come together. So in the Olympic games all of the world comes to play their best, hence the slogan makes perfect sense.

Another slogan i personally love, its not a company its a TV Channel but their slogans still reflects their purpose, it goes like this “Question Everything” again when watching Discovery Channel you do get the feeling that they provide shows that many of us would like to know the answers too. Such slogans make you think and their meanings reflect the institutions purpose. I always question myself when will we stop adding “increasing shareholders equity” in our missions statmemts and why cant we come up with sensible slogans that really reflect our internal processes. I will broadly answer the question: Wasta, i know its not only wasta, but because we do have many wrong people in the wrong places. The only good thing that may come out of this recession is that related idiots to certain board members will not run most Kuwaiti companies anymore because of their inabilities and the right people should be put in their places because in bad times you need visionaries to run companies not spoon fed kids.

What made me come up with the idea of this post is the affect of staffing Kuwaitis in top management of a non Kuwaitis company, (Vivs, STC). When they entered the Kuwaiti market they made sure that the company was run by a Kuwaiti and not by a Saudi, yes its a simple and known fact in business that to run an effective company in country that the company does not originate from the management should be staffed by locals. HSBC promotes it in their ads, and still we see Kuwaiti companies run by expats. Nothing against expats but to under stand the inner working of the Kuwaiti culture you have to live it. ViVa made a smart move (in my own sense) lately when you require opening a new phone line at Viva, you are requested to sign the Ci-net agreement that allows the company to see you credit history. Before i explain further, the Ci-net is an independent company created by the Kuwaiti banks to keep track of individuals credit history in Kuwait; that includes loans, credit cards and other services from financing companies. User banks use the information to set the internal credit policies to provide financing to customers and such information shows how often customer pay their bills and if the have late payments and any legal actions against them. So Viva uses such a service (which he is not a bank) to have a window into the customers credit history and can build a preconceived decision to provide a service for a customer or not, Smart! Because not doing so creates another problem of collections and legal fees that the company does not want to incur. So if you were not a Kuwaiti and do not know anything about our banking system, how can you come up with such an idea or policy to be implemented within the company. Another thing is that now Viva become a third mobile provider in Kuwait and wants to make sure that it does not start taking in the worst paying customers from Zain and Wataniya already kicked out because of their bad credit history.

Just another point, Ci-net is nothing amazing just a system that is linked between the Kuwaiti banks and financial institutions, and due to its old ad hoc systems, it has many loop holes and problems. It is not anything close to credit scoring systems in Europe or the states but its a start. I personally hope that they themselves can add value to the Kuwaiti financial system, by providing more online services and being more transparent.

I apologize for not writing for a while but i have been between jobs and could not find the time (ya3ne depressed:P) anyways i have noticed something and its either smart or stupid from the companys part that is doing so and i thought i may share it and see what you folks think about it. Some products when trying to enter a new market or trying to create his own market use a method where they make you think you need the product, yes what i’m saying sounds naive or nothing new but think about what i’m saying closely. As an example why do we need to use mouth wash when we already brush our teeth, is it the extra care? a certain brand of mouth wash in the states used a scare tactic, by introducing disease name like gingivitis. “If you do not wash your mouth before you sleep with such n such brand you would get gingivitis” we have always lived without mouth wash and most would not get gingivitis and would be happy just washing your teeth but what happens in our brains and subconscious minds is that we start thinking what am i losing here nothing, buy the mouth wash and hope to prevent gingivitis. I’m recently getting the same feeling and approach from Abraj Bottled water, i heard that other kinds of Kuwaiti brands cause kidney stones (from friends), and that Abraj doesnt. Now many people only carry this kind of brand because of such rumors. First if this is true that this rumor has been started by the company then this is a smart way to sell their product. Secondly if yes, why is Abraj not creating kidney stones like the others and the rumors should be tested by taking the water to a lab and confirm the rumor. This may be not be a rumor and it has been said somewhere which i didn’t get directly but its out their and for sure its increasing Abraj uniqueness between consumers. A smart and scary way to sell, hooray! or unethical is a question to be answered by the consumer himself.

We listen to the music being played on 99.7 & 103.7, all feeling patriotic and proud lifting the Kuwaiti flag but for what? how is our patriotic feelings measured by buying the largest flag, or hanging the most Kuwaiti flags on the car? playing the music at its loudest? Yesterday another kid died in the stupid maseera! again each year we celebrate with ignorance and not knowing by world standards we go going down collectively each year. Education is down again, our health concerns are at epidemic level with obesity in its highest world wide, divorcee rates and car fatalities are in concerning levels and we still celebrate! i measure my patriotic feelings by being more productive, trying to make my country a better place to live, being tolerant and understanding other people religions, providing others with the freedom of worship, increasing education levels in Kuwait, making new discoveries in alternative energy (anything) . Lifting the standard of living in Kuwait, implementing laws and embracing and protecting our civil liberties.

Enjoy our two days with celebrations safely for once.

Imagine how would it feel if i went for coffee and had no cigarettes, how would it feel if i woke up the next day and took a deep breath with out feeling like an old man, how would i feel if some one pissed me off in the street with Kuwait’s maniac driving and not grab a cigarette after swearing 70 times to my self? all of these question kept going back and forth in my head. I had to quit smoking! i really wanted to quit and tried and failed before, and tried some more. Then i thought why not try to understand the feeling associated with the cigarettes, i knew nicotine was the culprit so how can i intake nicotine and not smoke. Its a habit and i had to get rid of it; when i get in my car every morning i tend to open my window slightly even though i did not lite up a cigarette. So yes its a habit and i want to quit, Khallas! So a friend at work told me about the nicotine gum (nicorette). I went to the pharmacy and got me a pack, waited until i finished my last cigarettes and i had no more cigarettes at home.

I started popping the gum like crazy, early morning next day. When sitting with my manager (because he pisses me off). When leaving work, in the bathroom, as soon as i leave the gym, when discussing anything with anyone! it worked, 3 days passed and i had a slight urge to smoke but not the crazy one that makes you want to bash G.W. Bush in the face:P But beware of the stupidness phase you are going to encounter; its like dumb and dumber all over again. You become dizzy, light headed and sleep deprived due to insomnia.

I thought about sharing my experience with the smokers out their and to invite them into a healthy smoke free life:) Just remember one thing…………….Who the $%&@ wants to die in Mubarek Hospital:P

We are all going through some tough times, maybe even more at the private sector but none the less we should all try to pitch in to find better ways to save the business or lower cost so the people managing companies around Kuwait can contribute to society and the economy and not to fire and lower salaries more increasing the fear within the country of an all out recession after many Kuwaitis and non Kuwaiti will default on their loans. Sorry to say we live in a capitalist structure where our lives are based on debt but we still can make the passage to the other side.

I only wish that one company or any for that matter in Kuwait take a decision and sit with its employee’s and explain the situation, then try to come up with solutions to save and increase business. How hard is it to take such a decision, meet with the employees and brain storm ways to lower daily expenses, ie like employees watering the plants in the branches (banks) instead of outsourcing the hard back breaking duty to others:P, cutting down on printing material or is the real truth behind the firing and lower wages is nothing but an opportunity to be seized!?

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