Success Story Interview
Khurshid Vakil Executive Director of Marina Home Interiors
M
arina Home Interiors has a solid reputation for a product range that blends traditional, modern and conceptual furnishings to create a truly special end result. I was intrigued to find that Marina’s CEO Khurshid Vakil, has a leadership style that is rooted in traditional solid business values, sturdy long-lasting practices, with accents of a modern style, not unlike his brand. Did one inspire the other? We many never know, but here, Vakil gives us some insights into ‘the concept behind the concept store’ and the success of the Marina brand. Employing a staff of over 500 in 5 countries and 2 Continents, Marina Home Interiors is a luxury household brand that was born in the UAE in 1998 and is now the de facto brand of high-end home interiors throughout the Region. Do you feel that entrepreneurs are ‘born’ or ‘made’? I do not believe that entrepreneurs are born. Some of the best names in business started in sales. Entrepreneurism depends on how people can adapt and how people dream. Being an entrepreneur is a combination of a certain resilience & drive, competently executing a strong business concept, achieving distinctiveness from competitors, a bit of luck, and adaptability, which is a big word given that socioeconomic conditions can be a rollercoaster. What prompted the brand concept of Marina? The desire to express in my own way what is possible, especially in the home interiors industry. I have always had a great passion for interiors and at the time of incepting the business, there was nothing like it in the market, only mass-produced furniture. So I made a deliberate decision to plug the gap in the market, and plug it with a ‘wow factor’ offering. I did not want to copy anybody, my purpose was to innovate the ‘look and feel’ and ambience of home interiors, and add ‘soul’ to the soul-less market that was
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December 2012
leaving customers uninspired at the time.
Being an entrepreneur is a combination of a certain resilience & drive, competently executing a strong business concept, achieving distinctiveness from competitors, a bit of luck, and adaptability
How did you start-up? What were your first practical steps? Start-up was a well thought out business plan. We took the fullest risk analysis possible and stayed ahead of every competitor to lead Marina where it is today. Tell me about your ideation process…how do you work? I always apply strategy to any aspect of business, thinking out of the box and understanding the aspirations of people who want their homes to be beautiful and stylish. What kind of business failure have you experienced? What lessons did you learn? My background is in family business, so we have seen off many challenges and experienced all aspects of running a business and what can happen. Every day is a learning curve. The lesson to learn is that the tastes and expectations of customers vary, so we need to anticipate and be ahead of that, in all aspects. Run a full risk analysis and determine the potential of the business as accurately as possible; establish what will and won’t work with your target market. Know your catchment, the size of your market and the potential size that your market can reach for expansion purposes. You need to be different, not just another competitor in the race – distinguish your business from any other. What is your advice to someone who has entrepreneurial spirit, but has experienced failure? Never give up if you believe in your business concept. There is always room to adapt and progress. Believe in yourself and what you can achieve, everything comes back to that because if you don’t believe in your own success, how can you expect anyone else to contribute to that success?