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Jaidi

JAVED IQBAL: A RAGS TO RICHES STORY Introduction Jaidi is a name which every
Lahori is familiar with. It is the pioneer of brands in the Paan12 business, which
revolutionised the way in which the Paan market operates. The mastermind behind
Jaidi is a humble individual named Javed Iqbal, who is currently just thirty-six years
old. A married man and a father of four children, he set out on his relentless pursuit
at the mere age of fifteen. Start-up Iqbal recalled the days of his childhood and the
time when his journey as an entrepreneur began. It was in the year of 1992, when
fifteen year old Iqbal took it upon himself to do something for his middle-class
family. Not too fond of academics, he wanted to enter the real world by setting up a
business from an early age. His family belonged to a military background. His
father, Malik Awan, was a prisoner of war, and had fought in the battles of 1965 and
1971 for Pakistan. Since they did not support his ideas, Iqbal was left alone to
pursue his unique passion for Paan. Initially he was fearful as everything seemed
murky and he had neither a strong education, nor his family's support to back him
up. It was his immense passion, he said, and his vision to revolutionise the Paan
market, that helped him through. It upset him a great deal when Paan shops and
the workers there were looked down upon and ridiculed by the society. He wanted to
change that and so he didIqbal turned an investment of a mere Rs. 2000 into a
renowned business with the worth of a whopping Rs. 250 million! Iqbal did carry out
some research before setting up his Paan shop. He went around to different Paan
shops and observed how they were operating. Never enter a business without
proper research, he emphasised. Name and Location Elaborating on the motivation
behind the name, Jaidi, Iqbal said that he used to play cricket with his friends
quite often and once they randomly came up with this nickname for him. Iqbal
thought that it had a certain appeal to it, so when he set up his business, he named
it Jaidi. 12 Betel leaves filled with various delicacies. Hunting the Heffalump: A Case
Study of Four Inspirational Entrepreneurs 23-065-2015-1 - 10 - The first hurdle that
Iqbal came across was the location. Although the prime locations for Paan shops
were Fortress and Liberty, Iqbal knew that he could not compete with the already
well-established ventures over there. Therefore, he went on to set up a Paan shop in
H-Block, Defence Housing Authority (DHA). It was a relatively new residential area in
the early 1990s and had a great prospect for new businesses. Offering a relatively
untapped market and an area unfamiliar with such delicacies, DHA was a golden
opportunity. Challenges and Innovations to Overcome Them Back in 1992, Jaidi was
nothing more than a small cabin set up on a four square-feet piece of land right
outside a CD shop. Just like every other business, the start-up was the most taxing
phase for Iqbal, and he quite often missed out on the daily rental payment of Rs.
100, simply because he could not afford it. With the business struggling, he put up a
small section of cigarettes in his shop since Paan and cigarettes are complementary
to each other. Additionally, he also introduced the tobacco flavoured Paan. Two
years into the business, Iqbal was finally able to hire his first employee, a Chacha13
who always stood next to his shop and would only leave for prayers. One day, Iqbal
asked the Chacha to go and hand over a Paan and a few cigarettes to his customer
in the car parked in front of his shop. Besides paying Rs.10 for the Paan, the
customers tipped Chacha an extra Rs.10. Chacha, delighted by this, went up to
Iqbal and asked him to hire his services. Iqbal complied, and Chacha became the
first ever employee at Jaidi. As Iqbal put it, 1996 was the most troublesome year for
him. Financial problems had still not alleviated and Jaidi was not making enough
profits to cover the rental costs. On the verge of selling his business for Rs. 20,000,
Iqbal was persuaded by his friend not to go ahead with the transaction. Around the
same time, the Cricket World Cup of 1996 was in full-swing and Iqbal, being the out-
of-the-box thinker that he was, exploited this opportunity by setting up a small
television outside his shop. On each match day, people came in huge flocks to
watch cricket which brought Jaidi into the limelight. When this came to Pakistan
Tobacco Company's (PTC) attention, they approached Iqbal and offered to sponsor
his business. Knee-deep in rough waters, he took up the offer immediately and PTC
helped him buy out the CD shop at a rent of Rs. 4000 per month. From a cramped,
dirty cabin, Jaidi had now taken the shape of a small, well-kept shop that sold
multiflavoured Paans and every single brand of cigarettes. Fascinated by the
outcome of his decision to place a small television for cricket lovers during the
World Cup, Iqbal started making special arrangements for special occasions, such as
Eid,14 Basant15 and Independence Day. He was always thinking of ideas that would
help him maximise his customer base. He would decorate his shop in green and
white lights on Independence Day which attracted a young and vibrant crowd,
which was the target market segment of his business. Iqbal soon realised that
people were as concerned with the outlook of his shop and product as they were
with the quality of the product itself. He could not do much to change the quality of
his Paan, so he focused on the presentation and hygiene of his shop and product.
Always on the hunt for new ideas, Iqbal came up with a smart business strategy
which set Jaidi apart from its competitors. Other outlets only had Meetha16 and
Tobacco flavoured Paans, however, Iqbal decided to take it up a notch and introduce
new flavoured Paans. According to him, Jaidi now boasts about twenty-five to thirty
different flavours of Paana feat unmatched anywhere else in Lahore. Iqbal was
always looking for ideas that would enable his product to appeal to the aesthetic
sense of consumers and soon he realised that this could be done by improving the
packaging of the Paan. Therefore, he outsourced the entire process and started
importing custom-made wrapping for his product from China, which was a unique
and a cost-effective way to present his product in trendy and appealing wrappers.
Iqbal emphasised the profound impact of such minute intricacies. A Move to
Sponsorships Eventually, Jaidi started offering soft drinks upon the arrival of several
sponsors such as PepsiCo. and Coca Cola. With a reasonably strong financial
framework, Iqbal was the first person in the vicinity to have a large television screen
set up in his shop so that his customers could enjoy watching TV while buying his
products. This idea took off again in the 1999 Cricket World Cup when people would
just stand by his shop, gazing at the screen, while continuously ordering Paans,
cigarettes, and soft drinks. 13 Literally translates to uncle, can be used when
addressing older men. 14 A Muslim festival. 15 A kite flying festival celebrated
during spring. 16 Literally translates to sweet. Hunting the Heffalump: A Case
Study of Four Inspirational Entrepreneurs 23-065-2015-1 - 11 - Juices and Milkshakes
Jaidi soon ventured into the domain of juices and milkshakes. According to Iqbal, he
went out with his friends to juice shops quite often, and felt that their juices were
ridiculously overpriced. Unhygienic conditions, in which the juice was made, also
discomforted Iqbal since he had a deep liking for hygiene and quality. He went over
to several outlets in the city to observe the operations, taste the product, and
develop a network that would help him set up his own juice business. Finally,
equipped with substantial market knowledge and insight after an extensive research
of four years, Iqbal incorporated an entire section of juices and milkshakes into his
product portfolio. He was not afraid of failing and taking an initial plunge into this
river of uncertainty, but at the same time, he was sensible enough to analyse the
market beforehand. He said, Before jumping into the unexplored ocean, one must
gauge its depth. Upon finding out that other vendors earned 5070% profit on the
sale of juices and milkshakes, Iqbal made it a point to keep the prices relatively
lower in order to attract a strong clientele for the new products. His immediate
focus was to set up a loyal customer base, which would not wander off to other
outlets when he gradually increased prices. Eventually, Jaidi built a reputation of
offering products that gave its customers the best value-for-money. The success of
his juices and milkshakes venture enabled Iqbal to save up enough money for
setting up a cold store for fruits. This enabled Jaidi to have a continuous supply of all
types of fruits throughout the four seasons since he had a substantial backup of
these fruits at all times, and would otherwise even import them if the need arose.
An employee was responsible for the purchase of such items in bulk and Iqbal
emphasised that he himself remained in contact with the suppliers and the market.
Additionally, the shop was further extended and renovated five to six years back to
give Jaidi a contemporary and fresh outlook. With large glass windows, a plasma
television, and an immaculate setup, Jaidi finally took the form that he had dreamt
of, stated Iqbal. He works there from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., even though he does not
really have to. Having a strong passion and love for his business, Iqbal went on to
say that sitting idle at home leaves him dissatisfied and he wants to remain
engaged in the work that he loves. He said, Sitting idle makes me exceedingly
restless. Iqbal has put in place a stringent process for hiring employees. Potential
workers have to go through several procedures before being hired, such as the
interview, screening process, employee profile, bio data setup, etc. This rigorous
process ensures that only the best people are hired for the job and guarantees a
quality check of the employees, which facilitates greater efficiency of the business.
Jaidi further expanded into a catering business for various functions, such as
weddings, college events, etc. According to Iqbal, Jaidi is also the sole supplier of
Kulfa17 ice-cream to the Pearl Continental Hotel in Lahore. This shows how well-
organised and streamlined Jaidi is, keeping in mind the strict and exhaustive
process through which any external vendor has to go through for a hotel like the
Pearl Continental. Upcoming Plans With his brother Hafiz Muhammad by his side
now, Iqbal stated that he plans on expanding his business into more competitive
areas such as Fortress and M.M. Alam. When inquired about the late timing of his
expansion plans, he immediately replied, In order to meet your competitors head-
on, you need to first earn a name for yourself. Unlike other companies which start
focusing on expanding their businesses prematurely, Iqbal is of the view that it
should be undertaken only when one has a strong foundation in place, and that can
only be achieved step by step rather than overnight. Iqbal further stated that he
wanted his business to attract so many customers that it enjoys the same
reputation as other well-known local restaurants such as Cuckoo's Den, Butt Karahi,
18 etc. and become a renowned tourist attraction within the city. Even currently,
Jaidi is often visited by foreigners within the area who are left licking their fingers
because of the unique taste of their Paan and the supreme quality of their juices
and milkshakes. 17 An ice-cream flavour popular in Pakistan. It consists of whipped
cream, evaporated milk, condensed milk, coconut and nuts.
http://www.khanapakana.com/recipe/1a724734-90d1-4f7b-ae39-
e4db8621be8e/kulfa-ice-cream, accessed July 2015. 18 Popular restaurant in
Lahore, specialising in traditional food cooked in a wok (karahi). Hunting the
Heffalump: A Case Study of Four Inspirational Entrepreneurs 23-065-2015-1 - 12 -
Iqbal's children are studying in different schools within DHA and once they are done
with their studies, he plans to utilise their technical skills by integrating
computerised information system within the business framework for greater
efficiency. Jaidi also has a Facebook page and has over 1000 followers. Towards the
end of the interview, Iqbal shared his ultimate goal: coming up with Tetra Pak Jaidi
juices in the market and creating a monopoly for them. On being asked if he
believed he could achieve such a goal, he responded in a crisp voice, I was alone in
my struggle for Jaidi and not even my parents supported me. They told me that
selling Paan would get me nowhere and that it would not even be enough to feed
myself. With just Rs. 2000 in my pocket, I have built this empire. I am now the
richest man in my family. I have proven everyone wrong. And there is no reason to
believe that I cannot do it again. It all depends on your spirit!