Global Business

Environment

Saudi Arabia- Dates

Business

Submitted by: Swati Sureka (20DM223)

Submitted to:
Prof. Jagdish Shettigar
Prof. Monika Jain
BIMTECH
 INTRODUCTION TO SAUDI ARABIA

The kingdom of Saudi Arabia is considered one of the most important countries
that produce dates worldwide. Saudi Arabia’s production averages 944 thousand
tons, approximately 13.7% of the world’s average date production of 6.9147
million tons in 2011. Despite their economic importance, only 4.63% of Saudi’s
dates are exported. Saudi accounts for 7 % of the world date exports from 2000
to 2011 (Food and Agriculture organization (FAO)). The quantity of Saudi exports
of dates has increased from 28.3 thousand tons (valued at 18.3 million dollars) in
2000, to 51.1 thousand tons (valued at 32.5 million dollars) in 2005. The quantity
decreased to 1.6 thousand tons (valued at 1.7 million dollars) in 2009. It increased
to 77.8 thousand tons (valued at 86.3 million dollars) in 2011 (FAO). Saudi’s
efficient export operations, ability to gain marketing information and compliance
with international standards makes the quantity and value of its date exports
noteworthy in an unstable international market.

MY BUSINESS PRODUCT
Date palm is a typical plant of dry subtropics that gives an edible tasty fruit. One
date palm makes over 100 kilograms of nutritious dates a year. Naturally, that for
thousands of years emerged around 5000 varieties divided into three main groups
– “dry”, “semi”, and “soft”. The “soft” are consumed on the spot with fresh, in a
mature state; the fruits of these varieties contain very little sugar. “Dry” dates,
dried in the sun, contain much more sugar and can be stored for very long, it can
be said for years. As for the “semi” – those intended for export, they are also
dried in the sun. Processed dates are generally more popular than natural dates.
There are many types of packaging: bags, tubes, ravier, boxes. The ravier has the
leadership. It is well known, that semi dates are the tastiest. Moreover, it is
considered, that semi dates favorably affect the brain, increasing its productivity.
But our strategy will allow buyers tasting all sorts of dates chose the best one for
everyone as well.
Dates contain almost all vitamins. It should be noted the high concentration of
pantothenic acid. This substance stimulates the production of energy, makes you
confident, energetic and able to quickly focus on. Dates have also another, less
well-known property: these fruits have mild sedative and hypnotic effects.

Dates can also be encouraged to overcome the weakening of the body after a
serious illness, overwork, stress. No fruit can be compared with dates, if you want
to satisfy your hunger. Dates increase efficiency of the brain and nerve cells. From
ancient times, dates were used not only as food but also as a medicine.

They contain copper, iron, magnesium, zinc, potassium, phosphorus, sodium,

aluminum, cadmium, cobalt, sulfur, boron. Dates can help with anemia. It has a
beneficial effect in fatigue and physical fatigue. It helps with colds as well. Ten
dates are able to satisfy our daily needs in copper, magnesium and sulfur, and
they contain half of the required iron and fourth of the calcium. Dates are a tasty
and natural dessert that has a nice flavor. These fruits are absolutely harmless, as
well as low-calorie fruits and therefore suitable for people watching their weight.

In Saudi Arabia 173 million hectares are occupied for pasture. There are fruits and
vegetables grown. Also they bred animals there. Conditions of rangeland are not
so good. Production potential is very low in some places. Almost 86% of the total
accessible water in the region is allocated for agriculture. So, the 22% of the total
land area is cultivable.

Palm tree is remarkable for its salt-tolerance and heat endurance. The shallow
groundwater is extremely important for its successful growth. Age of the date
palm can reach a hundred years. Life of the people inhabiting Arabian Peninsula is
associated with this palm tree. People demand dates become more and more in
the United Kingdom. It seems that if everyone knew about the usefulness of
dates, they would have been even more reclaiming.
 SAUDI ARABIA: BUSINESS PRACTICES
THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF BUSINESS CULTURE

Saudi Arabian business culture is largely influenced by the collectivist nature of

Saudi society. The most important social unit is the group, a close family,
extended family, or extended relationships, to which loyalty and respect is due.
Thus, Saudi Arabians will prefer doing business with those they know and trust.
Saudi Arabians are generally relationship oriented and, as trust is a fundamental
principle, it is important to take sufficient time and effort to build a personal
relation before starting a business relationship. This can mean attending several
initial meetings where no substantive business is discussed and sharing meals.

FIRST CONTACT

Saudi Arabians may prefer doing business with people they know and trust, thus it
is essential to know a key person in an organization and to receive a personal
introduction. Appointments should be made several weeks in advance, followed
by verbal confirmation a couple of days ahead of the meeting. When meeting
with government officials, a firm date will not be settled upon until you are
physically in the country. The religious holidays of Ramadan and Hajj and the daily
prayer breaks should be taken into consideration when scheduling business
meetings. One must also remember that Saudi Arabia’s weekend is Thursday and
Friday.

TIME MANAGEMENT

Saudi Arabians are generally polychronic, which means that they value time as
flexible and fluid. They have a relaxed approach of punctuality, but never allow
meetings to encroach on their time of prayer. Meeting times are usually set as
times of day rather than fixed hours, for example in the morning, afternoon or
evening. It is not uncommon to have a meeting cancelled at the last minute, and
agendas and due dates are not strictly respected.

BUSINESS CARDS
In Saudi Arabia, business cards are common but not essential to business culture.
They must be given by the right hand and should not be thrown to your
interlocutors if you are across a large table. LinkedIn is an increasingly popular
way to stay in touch in the region.

BENEFITS OF DONG BUSINESS IN SAUDI ARABIA

Saudi Arabia carried out a record number of business reforms in the past year,
earning the country a spot in this year’s top 10 global business climate improvers,
according to the World Bank Group’s Doing Business 2020 report.

Saudi Arabia implemented reforms in eight Doing Business areas, its busiest
activity since the launch of the study. The country placed 62nd globally in ease of
doing business rankings with an overall score of 71.6 out of 100.

The eight business area reforms made in Saudi Arabia according to the World
Bank’s Doing Business 2020 study:

Starting a business became easier as Saudi Arabia established a one-stop shop

that merged several pre- and post-registration procedures. The Kingdom also
eliminated a requirement for married women to provide additional documents
when applying for a national identity card.

Getting construction permits was made easier thanks to a new online platform

and enabling civil defense approval after the issuance of a building permit.

 Getting electricity: Saudi Arabia streamlined connection and meter

installation, using a geographic information system to review new electrical
connection requests and eliminate certificates of completion.
 Getting credit: Saudi Arabia strengthened access to credit with the
introduction of a secured transactions law and a new insolvency law.
 Protecting Minority Investors: Saudi Arabia strengthened minority investor
protections by increasing access to evidence at trial.
 Trading across borders: Saudi Arabia made importing and exporting faster
by enhancing an electronic trade single window, enabling risk-based
 inspections, launching an online platform for certification of imported
goods, and upgrading infrastructure at Jeddah Port.
 Enforcing contracts became easier with the publication of court
performance measurement reports and information on the progress of
cases.
 Resolving insolvency was made easier in the Kingdom thanks to a new
reorganization procedure allowing debtors to initiate restructuring of firms,
improving voting arrangements in reorganization, improving the
continuation of businesses and the treatment of contracts during
insolvency proceedings, allowing post-commencement credit, and
increasing the participation of creditors in the insolvency proceedings.

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT (FDI) IN SAUDI

ARABIA
FDI flows to Saudi Arabia had gradually declined due to political factors and lower
oil prices; however, economic diversification and new projects outside oil and gas
sector helped reverse the trend. According to UNCTAD's World Investment Report
2020, FDI flows increased by 7% between 2018 and 2019, reaching USD 4.6
billion. This is mainly due by the fact that the country removed the ownership
limits for foreign strategic investors. Similarly, the stock of FDI rose in 2019 and
reached USD 236 billion, by far the highest number among Arab countries.
According to preliminary data from UNCTAD, inflows to Saudi Arabia in the first
half of 2020 rose by 12% on the year to USD 2.6 billion. The United Arab Emirates,
the United States, France, Singapore, Japan, Kuwait and Malaysia are the main
investors in Saudi Arabia. The investments are mainly oriented towards the
chemical industry, real estate, fossil fuels, automobiles, tourism and machinery.
Saudi Arabia adopted seven Guiding Principles for Investment Policymaking in
2019, including non- discrimination, investment protection, investment
sustainability, enhanced transparency, protection of public policy concerns, ease
of entry for employees, and the transfer of knowledge and technology. Saudi
Vision 2030's new investment policy and economic reform programme are aimed
at improving the investment environment in the country (by becoming one of the
top 10 countries in Global Competitiveness Report) and promoting economic
diversification. Saudi Arabia in September 2020 announced it would invest USD
810 billion in tourism to open the country beyond Hajj pilgrims. According to
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the country offers investment
opportunities worth USD 6 trillion until 2030.

SCOPE OF DATES BUSINESS IN SAUDI ARABIA

Not only do date palms hold a prominent position in the Saudi emblem or coat of
arms, the tree and its fruit both hold a distinct honour in the tradition, culture –
and economy of the country. Saudi Arabia is among the top three global
producers of dates – and production is steadily on the rise in the kingdom. The
world’s annual date harvest is estimated at more than 6 million tonne by the Food
and Agriculture Organization

BUSINESS OPERATIONS
I will initially market its product to target clients. To achieve this goal:

I will create bright booklets, brochures which describe the benefit of dates, its
useful properties. These booklets will be given for free on the streets close to our
university. There will be invitations at the exhibition of the dates also.

I will post an advertisement about the forthcoming exhibition at the Internet, on

popular social networks.

Organize an exhibition of the dates where fruits will be sold at low price. This is
necessary for everyone to have a possibility to taste dates. There also books and
magazines about date fruits will be sold.

Organize some lectures to tell more about the dates and even to explain how to
grow date palm at home.
With a help of interesting and cognitive booklets a lot of customers will get to
know more about these fruits and re-discover it for them. At the exhibition
everyone will get an opportunity to taste dates for free and then to decide if to
buy it or not. All three kinds of dates will be featured at the exhibition. To every
kind there will be a special description with its characteristics. Dates will be
located in nice decorated pot. These advertisements should pay students’
attention on the forthcoming exhibition. It is obligatory to create nice and
memorable advertisements and brochures. The next day an exhibition will open,
where everyone will get an opportunity to taste dates and to buy interesting
materials about these fruits.

RISK ASSESSMENT
The risk of this selling related to the point, that perhaps not all goods will be sold.
Not all the booklets and brochures will be given. So, I may get a little profit or do
not get any profit at all. The costs can exceed the purchase. Another point is
related with risk of lack attention of students to this arrangement. I am going to
sell dates at the university, so our main clients are students. Surely, if we will
provide good advertising, this arrangement will be undoubtedly successful. If I will
pay not so much attention to advertising, the selling will be not so impressive. So,
good advertising is the most important thing for our arrangement.

But it is not all that I are expecting to receive. I want people to know more about
date fruits and to discover dates for everyone from new sides. Everyone will get
an opportunity not only to buy tasty dates but also to broad his outlook. I believe
we will achieve our aims.

MARKETING CHANNELS OF DATES

Food marketing, according to Kohls and Uhl [4], is “the performance of all
business activities involved in the flow of food products and services from the
point of production until they are in the hands of consumers.” For dates, these
activities include harvesting, processing, packaging, and transportation/shipment
to local or export markets. A marketing channel describes the movement of a
product or commodity from the site of production to the place of consumption. It
may include transportation, handling and storage, ownership transfers,
processing, and distribution. The marketing channel for dates includes initial
processing at farm level after harvest, transport to the local market directly
(especially for the highly perishable fruits) or to the packing plant, processing and
packaging at factory level and transport to the final consumers. There is no
universal set of marketing channels because each country is unique, and
institutions involved operate differently under different sets of regulations.
Therefore, in the GCC countries, the differences in the marketing channels are
minima’s, and include on-farm selling, retailers, local markets, date factories, and
consumers markets

REFERENCES
https://www.pubhort.org/datepalm/datepalm1/datepalm1_41.pdf
https://www.researchtrend.net/ijamh/pdf/20-Saudi-Dates-Industry-in-KSA-A%20-Contribution-to-
Economy-20-DR-MOHAMMAD-TARIQ-INTEZAR.pdf

https://www.ukessays.com/essays/marketing/the-business-plan-for-dates-fruits-
marketing-essay.php

https://santandertrade.com/en/portal/establish-overseas/saudi-arabia/business-
practices#:~:text=Saudi%20Arabian%20business%20culturec%20is,those%20they
%20know%20and%20trust.

https://www.saudiarabiavisa.co.uk/blog/advantages-of-setting-up-business-in-
saudi-arabia/