Great things happen when you believe and go beyond your fears. The greater the aim, the bigger the risk, but to achieve success you have to take the leap. The first step is to overcome the internal roadblocks and your own fears — as Syed Naqi demonstrates.
Having worked in multiple companies, Naqi, an Indian expatriate from Hyderabad, had never thought he would be doing his own business one day.
It requires a lot of capital. What would happen if the business does not pick? I will lose all my money. Should I really do it? Like anyone starting a new business, he, too, was faced with all these questions. But it was faith and the commitment to work hard and persevere that helped him make the final call.
Today, Naqi says he is happy he made this decision a year ago and started his own business. It is the best thing that has happened to him.
“I had never even thought that I would be doing my own business. But I am very happy that I took this decision. I have seen many people losing heart and winding up the businesses they had started at the same time but I remained patient,” says Naqi, who started a jewellery business on a very small scale last year.
A year down the road, he is planning to expand it. There are good and bad days in business. From his experience, Naqi has learnt that you do not recklessly hike your spending during good days.
“You have to keep a balance between your spending and savings. Saving during your good times will help you sail through the bad times,” says the reluctant entrepreneur. He arrived in Doha seven years ago and worked at an oil refinery with a French company. In a span of four years, he took up many jobs after his first contract expired.
And, then, came that decisive moment. In fact, it was his wife’s idea. She had started it from home and with her friends. She used to give gifts to her friends of their native Hyderabadi jewellery and clothes. People liked it so much they started asking her for more.
In the meanwhile, Naqi’s job contract at the company he was last working ended and they gave him a release. He was looking for another job when his wife suggested he start his own business.
“I was unable to start a suitable job as all offers at that time were not really good. I did not have much savings either. But I thought let’s give it a try. That is how I started,” says the new businessman. He began by holding exhibitions of jewellery in Al Khor community where there are around 5,000 families, including Indians, Pakistanis and Arabs.
They liked this type of jewellery and he managed to establish good clientele. He also took his exhibition to Dukhan where he received a very good response.
As the clientele expanded, Naqi thought of starting a shop. He did not have enough resources to establish his own shop out in the market as it required higher rents to be paid. So he contacted the people at Al Raunaq Centre in Souq Waqif who agreed to provide him with space to open his first outlet.
Initially, Naqi says, he did face a bit of difficulty. But come Ramadan and he began to receive customers. And as more people got to know about him through word of mouth, he started getting more clients.
Most of his customers are for jewellery. People buy clothes mostly on occasions such as Eid and weddings. But jewellery is the item most in demand. Naqi stocks gold-plated jewellery with real precious and semi-precious stones including ruby, emerald and real pearl.
“We have these unique fresh water pearls from Hyderabad, the city which is popular for it. Our entire stock of jewellery comes from Hyderabad. Our dresses which are branded come from Gujrat, Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad,” says Naqi.
Hyderabad is renowned as the “Pearl City” since the time of Nizam of Hyderabad. The royals used to wear the fresh water 
pearl jewellery. Even today, the popular “Sat Larra” (Seven stringed) is worn on weddings along with “Jaravi Lacha, Chintak.”
Naqi has contracts with manufacturers in Hyderabad from whom he sources his jewellery which is available in wide range for customers. The prices range from QR150 to QR1000. He also customises designs for buyers.
In clothes, he has unique party wear, wedding dresses and particularly bridal dresses. His main customers are expatriates from India and Pakistan, says Naqi. Pakistanis particularly like the jewellery and for the dresses they have a customer base from both India and Pakistan, besides some from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
In his business, Naqi knows the importance of saying ‘yes’ to customers’ demands. Mostly customers allow him ample time for their orders, but even if they want it urgently, Naqi says he gets it prepared for them.
When he started, he says, he faced a lot of competition in the market. However, he managed to stay abreast with the wide range of collections in jewellery and clothes, and above all the famous Hyderabadi jewellery which he claims nobody else would be selling in Qatar.
“We do not let the customer go empty-handed when they visit our shop because of the variety we have,” he adds.
Naqi acknowledges that starting a business always involves risks. But stating for him was easy. He already had some clientele. The most difficult time came in the middle.
“In the off-season, you do not get many customers and it even becomes difficult to manage the rent of the shop. It is this time when most people panic and think of winding up the business,” the entrepreneur points out.
“But you have to persist and be patient for times to change. When good times come, they are so good that you would forget the bad days you had. So it is all part and parcel of the game and you have to embrace both,” he advises.
A lot of traders from South Africa, Uganda, Pakistan and some other countries have approached him. They want his Hyderabadi jewellery as they say their customers in these countries like it a lot. Naqi recently also sent it to some traders in Saudi Arabia as well where it is becoming very popular.
He is aiming to get out in the open market and have his own shop one day.