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April 30, 2007

Comments

Akram Ameer

Alternatively, the key word for profts is brand name! Multinationals are minting money in the developing world just by selling their brand names. In Sri Lanka Unilever buys tea, grown by Sri Lankan farmers, sticks their brand name and sells to the Sri Lankans for double the price. They outsource almost the entire process, dominate the market without getting their hands dirty, and ship the profits home, that simple. Same way, in most of the lucrative consumer or industrial goods categotries, there is a dominant MNC sitting on the top raking in all the profits, leaving very little for the laggards.

My sincere advice to the would be MNCs of the Gulf is: build brand names based on quality, warmth and closeness to the consumers, and the world can be your football field.

Also try to learn and make use of the "Lovemarks" concept to evoke loyalty beyond reason. There are some excellent explanation at website:

http://www.lovemarks.com/index.php?pageID=20022&_fr_collectionid=9


May Allah help us.

Discussion welcome [email protected]

mumby

I always wish muslim to buy foreign companies and then rebuild those companies.Why not rich muslim buy food processing companies,IT companies,chemical companies,building substans companies,medical equipment companies,pharmaceutical companies,glasses companies,retail companies and so on and rebuild those companies.They can hire competence managers and competence officers from abroad to run companies.It is better they hire muslims in the west to cunduct companies.At the time they should train local people to run companies in the future,put them beside hire managers/people in oder they can learn in practical manner.

The companies that establish in the west should transfer to the low labor cost region and rich resourses region in muslim countries like Pakistan,Indonesia,Malaysia and so on.That transfer should go on gradually or partially

It is good for Muslim countries to send students to Japan,Korea,Taiwan and China to learn and get training in technologies, marketing and management.Muslim no longer need put eyes on the west in that knowledge and skill.They should turn eyes to east region which have bright performance in the future.They also should build new market in Asia instead of the west.That region have promise for good in the future.

Rafi-uddin

On the acquisition front there are certainly some healthy recent trends.

Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic), a chemical manufacturing giant from Saudi Arabia, has recently purchased General Electric Co's plastics division, GE Plastics, for $11.6 billion in cash! There are many such investments emanating.

However, there is probably much to be desired in consumer product/service categories. 'Lovemarks' is indeed an excellent representation of the power of branding which is relevant mostly in consumer/ retail space. It speaks to how companies should focus on their customers and make them passionate about their products/ services.

There is certainly no reason why Ulker (Turkey based confectionary brand), Savola (Saudi based Food manufacturing company), Proton (Malaysian car brand) and other such consumer companies and brands can't add passion and personality to their products.

Ghazzali  Wadood

The Sri lankan tea industry is a perfect example, I think there is ample products and services in the Muslim world (outside of Oil) that could be marketed in this flat global market place. I think education and sharing would be the need of the day. Major kudos to Sheik Mohamed of UAE for setting up an educational endowment that can help to educate young Muslims in the Middle East.

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