He is young, dynamic and has got several ‘firsts’ in his long list of achievements—from introducing SMS marketing to building an online jobs portal and the leading e-commerce entity in Bahrain. Meet Mr Mohammed Adel Fakhro, Chairman of MBA Fakhro Group, as he walks BTW down the glorious path of his life and career.
Tell us briefly about your early life, where you were born and brought up, any special memories.
When I think of my early life, I am flooded with happy memories. I was born in Muharraq and I was brought up in a house in Manama in Farouk Garden, next to the old seven-up factory. Most of my neighbors were my cousins and family and the rest were also ourgood friends. I have so many special memories, much more than I can mention in this space, but most of them have to do with time spent with family.
Please give us a brief summary of your educational and professional background.
I spent a good part of my early years studying. It was as a result of this hard work that I got accepted at Stanford University in the US, which is arguably the top university in the US. I didn’t do much in college other than studying, and what little free time I had was spent doing things that, well, I probably should not put in writing. Let’s just say that I worked really hard and I played hard too, but only for a few hours per week. Professionally I always wanted to be a businessman and the day I graduated, I started my first company.
Please tell us about your own entrepreneurial ventures.
I have done a lot of work over the past 15 years. As with anything, some have worked better than others. As they say: you win some, you lose some, and then you die. I think I have developed a competitive advantage broadly in hospitality, technology, and franchising in the Gulf with some overlap between the three, in addition to a few other things.
Being born into a well-known and respected business family of Bahrain—How has it helped or not helped in your journey as an entrepreneur?
Well, it has helped a lot in terms of the financial support. I would say that it has made it a little more difficult for myself to identify as an entrepreneur in the traditional sense because I am perhaps already seen as being a part of an institution to a certain extent. As they say though, every cloud has a silver lining, and in my case I feel quite fortunate to have been given a bit of a head start.
What have been your major achievements/awards so far?
I think I internally classify my success in terms of the innovation that I have brought to the economy. As we know, the primary driver of economic growth globally since the industrial revolution has been innovation. I view my personal success in terms of what I have innovated. In that respect, I feel that I was the first to offer SMS marketing in the early 2000s, the first to build a digital media network, and the first to build an online jobs portal. I was also the first to introduce a restaurant concept using an innovative card ordering system, and the first to launch a leading e-commerce entity in Bahrain. As is always the case, I have had hundreds of people who have helped me along the way as loyal and dedicated employees. In the more traditional sense, I am happy to say that our car rental business has expanded during my tenure from 1000 cars in one country to 3500 cars in three countries, and I have overseen the creation of a restaurant business that has over 20 restaurants in three countries, an outdoor media business with over 100 billboards, and many other bits and bobs. And believe me, I am just getting started.
What have been the challenges that you have faced so far and how did you overcome them?
Challenges are a part of every entrepreneur’s life. I think you need to be persistent, you need to be good with follow up even if it means that you become a little annoying, and you need to believe in the long term success of your efforts.
How would you define ‘Mohammed Fakhro’?
I think most people say I am nice which I think is the first thing that most people will tell you about me. I think that is true but it perhaps hides a deep intensity and determination that I have to be successful. I think my pursuit of success has been the overriding theme so far of my life.
What according to you are the sectors in Bahrain where business will flourish in the next 5 years?
Promising sectors include Internet related businesses because e-commerce spending is going up, the fitness sector is interested because demand can only go up due to the obesity problems in the Gulf. I think the school and college education business are also interesting because of the demographics of the country. I am a fan of the outdoor media businessas a customer because with so much media available at home, companies can only reach the mass market by advertising outdoor so I expect good growth in that sector also.
What are your passions?
I am perhaps unconventional in this part of the world in that I find watching football to be extremely boring. I love following politics, especially US politics. I am also passionate about economic events and I read The Economist cover to cover every week. I really enjoy teaching my kids new things and I would say that they are my primary passion, but I am not sure if that counts.
What, according to you, are the essential traits of a successful entrepreneur?
I can summarize with one word: Persistence. One subset of that is that you need to be persistent in all of your efforts, from financial planning, to follow up with your direct reports, to constant innovation, to constantly getting your message across to your customers. I am sure I have left a few things out but that’s the general guideline.
What is your message to aspiring entrepreneurs of Bahrain?
I would say to them what somebody probably said to Napoleon before he invaded Russia: DON’T DO IT! I think you need to say that to aspiring entrepreneurs so that only the ones who are really sure actually do it because it can be a difficult profession. If they insist on doing it I would say that they need surrender themselves to their dreams and to be ready to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. There will be many setbacks along the way and determination, persistence, and hard work are better than anything you will ever get from a degree or any personality trait you wish you had.