The Bedaya Centre for Entrepreneurship and Career Development (Bedaya Centre), a joint initiative by Qatar Development Bank and Silatech, recently hosted a workshop titled “Stand out from the crowd,” in collaboration with a group of leading Qatari entrepreneurs.
The initiative was part of Bedaya Centre’s monthly “Second Sunday Networking” event where many young entrepreneurs and business professionals gather to gain guidance, training, and support.
During the workshop, the young locals enhanced their knowledge and acquired practical experiences that offered them a wider understanding on how products can be designed to stand out and be different from one another in terms of ideas, implementation, marketing, and customer services.
One of the participating entrepreneurs, Ibrahim al-Emadi shared his entrepreneurial experience, and talked about the difficulties he had experienced. He emphasised that despite the hardships, he continued “living the adventure” and ultimately fulfilled his dream.
Since starting his first business three years ago, he has now ventured into his second “Black Rock Grill,” where the workshop was held. Ibrahim also offered his help to all attendees and urged them to kick-off their own projects.
Another entrepreneur, Razan al-Suleiman, stressed on the importance of using all available resources, especially social media platforms to promote business. According to her, this should be considered one of the most important mediums to preserve and maintain the brand’s image.
Al-Suleiman also talked about the launch of her brand “Fanilla Couture” in 2011, which is gaining popularity in Doha, as well as the whole GCC. Today, al-Suleiman is preserving and maintaining this success through diverse social media platforms.
Aisha Badid al-Mannai, owner and general manager of Darz Design, talked about the ease of starting any project — however small it might be. She asserted that the most important factor is to maintain the service level and remain focused on the ambition to reach the highest levels.
Al-Mannai talked about her own brand “Darz” that was launched in 2000 and specialises in classic abayas that reflect the traditional image of Qatari women.
Reem al-Sowaidi, general manager of Bedaya Centre, said: “At Bedaya Centre, we strive to tackle useful and beneficial topics for entrepreneurs during our monthly meetings, as well as workshops. This month, we touched upon several ways in which a project can be designed in order to characterise and sustain the business.  “We also discussed and deliberated on some of the best practices that could be adopted to promote ideas and products, which eventually results in the success of those projects,” she added.