Gulf Bank’s new podcast tells the story of how two young entrepreneurs left their jobs to seize multiple opportunities born of times of crisis

 

 

• What started as a small company that addressed local needs has since evolved into one of the largest event and organization companies
• LOCAL FLAVOR went from having a couple of employees to hiring a team of 20 within only a few years
• Managing partner discusses navigating pandemic challenges and seizing opportunities during the past year
• Having a “local touch” combined with the founders’ expertise were the secrets to the company’s success
• LOCAL FLAVOR managing partner offers golden advice for young entrepreneurs to ensure business success

 

Kuwait - December 19, 2021: In the fourth installment of Gulf Bank’s new podcast, “Let’s Talk Business,” Gulf Bank interviewed Khaled Al-Sayer, managing partner at LOCAL FLAVOR a local marketing, production and event planning company. The program, hosted by Tareq Al-Saleh, Deputy General Manager of the Economic Research Unit at Gulf Bank, presents entrepreneurial stories within a simplified economic framework, targeting budding entrepreneurs who are considering starting businesses of their own. The Bank’s new podcast is part of its overarching strategy of fostering economic and community sustainability in Kuwait.

 

Realizing & Seizing Opportunities

 

LOCAL FLAVOR was founded in 2012 by Khaled Al-Sayer and Abdullah Boftain. When they first founded the company, Al-Sayer and Boftain ran every aspect of the business. Almost ten years and plenty of successes later, the company has over 20 employees, and is well-renowned in the local market for their creativity in planning and excellence in execution.

 

At the beginning of their discussion, Al-Sayer touched on what makes LOCAL FLAVOR especially unique, saying "Most of the people who work at LOCAL FLAVOR, including our partners and founders, had previously worked on the other side of the equation (working on the client’s side). That is, a lot of us have spent over 25 years of our careers working in marketing fields at a variety of local and regional companies, so we understand the market very well.”

 

The Beginning

 

Al-Sayer also commented on how he and his partner had calculated just how much capital they needed to raise to sustain their first year of business. He says, “In the beginning, we had no idea whether the company was going to survive, so we knew we had to have a very clear business model. Our primary focus was to insure our salaries for at least a year, and so we set our goals accordingly, using that to determine how many employees we wanted to hire during that first year. Therefore, our initial capital needed to cover the costs of our salaries for one year, and any other expenses that could arise.”

 

The Key to Success: Adding the “Local” in LOCAL FLAVOR

 

LOCAL FLAVOR also set itself apart with its unique focus on providing a “local touch,” an incredibly important characteristic for companies looking to implement powerful and effective marketing strategies. Al-Sayer says, “The ‘local’ in LOCAL FLAVOR means that we know and understand the needs of the local market. As Kuwaitis and as people who grew up in this country, we know what the local population wants. Even the non-Kuwaitis who work at our company were born in Kuwait, or graduated from Kuwait, so they also understand the needs of the local population.”

 

Furthermore, Al-Sayer noticed how companies were increasingly outsourcing services after the 2008 financial crisis. More specifically, Al-Sayer noticed how outsourcing marketing services also provided companies with more room to focus on other aspects of their businesses. Al-Sayer continues, “After the 2008 financial crisis, we noticed that companies no longer had the capability to hire a large team, so LOCAL FLAVOR had to be a one-stop shop that provided companies with a variety of services. In the same way that companies outsource other services (like legal services, for example), they can also outsource their marketing. This saves them a lot of resources by freeing up the costs associated with hiring and rent — all of these costs can be alleviated by partnering with us.”

 

Pandemic Challenges & Opportunities

 

The pandemic was an incredibly critical time for businesses everywhere, and LOCAL FLAVOR was no exception. For Al-Sayer, navigating the pandemic required the team to make some strategic choices very early on. One such choice was the decision to shift to remote work in early 2020. Al-Sayer says, “Because we did not know how long the pandemic was going to wage on for, we decided to shift to remote work very early on. We told our team to stay home, and to get used to working remotely. Because we were so early in encouraging our team to work remotely, we were able to run the company remotely in a much smoother fashion than we would have if we had delayed the shift to remote work. This resulted in a smoother transition for both our clients, and our internal team.”

 

Other decisions included lowering overhead costs by moving to less expensive office and storage spaces, and also lowering wages while retaining their employees. Al-Sayer says, “Our primary focus in 2021 was to keep the company going, and to do that, we knew we had to retain our team, who make up the core of our company.”

 

Al-Sayer also touched on the importance of recognizing the unique opportunities that emerged as a result of the pandemic. For example, LOCAL FLAVOR has started focusing on the children’s event space, having recently put on two successful children’s events with local partners, Dabdoob and LEGO.

 

Forming Local Partnerships

 

Al-Sayer also elaborated on the importance of forming local partnerships, and how partnering with other companies can allow companies to build on each other’s strengths. He says, “Partnership is a common theme in our industry, and it guides everything we do. Even if everything is available in-house, we do sometimes opt to collaborate with other companies. When partnering with other companies, the goal is to unify our efforts and complement one another.”

 

Advice to Young Entrepreneurs

 

As business owners, Al-Sayer highlighted the importance of knowing when to keep a business going and when to shut it down. He says, “Don’t be arrogant; its consequences are difficult. If you see that your business has potential for growth, make sure you shower it with attention and allow it to grow. However, if your business is not growing, or is severely hurting your profits, it might be time to shut down.”

 

Al-Sayer also touched on the importance of becoming an expert in one’s field. He says, “During the 2008 financial crisis, we saw some companies shut down, while others thrived as a result of the crisis. Similarly, during the pandemic, we witnessed the closures of some companies, while others thrived. The companies that survive are the ones that truly know their fields inside and out.”

 

"Let's Talk Business" is Gulf Bank’s newest podcast, created in collaboration with Belmokhba, a local creative content creation and production house. Episodes air on Gulf Bank's digital and social media channels.

 

Gulf Bank's vision is to be the leading Kuwaiti Bank of the Future. The Bank is constantly engaging and empowering its employees as part of an inclusive and diversified workplace in recognition of every employee’s role in delivering customer excellence and serving the community at large. With its extensive network of branches and innovative digital services, Gulf Bank is able to give its customers the choice of how and where to conduct their banking transactions, all while ensuring a simple and seamless banking experience. Gulf Bank is committed to maintaining a robust sustainability program at the community, economic, and environmental levels through sustainability initiatives that are strategically selected to benefit both the country and the Bank. Gulf Bank supports Kuwait Vision 2035 “New Kuwait” and works with the different relevant parties to achieve it.