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Ali Kamal Daud

OMAN - Economy

Ali Kamal Daud

Chairman & CEO, Daud Group of Companies

Bio

Ali Kamal Daud is the Chairman of Daud Group of Companies. He is also the founder of Al Daud Restaurants. He completed his early education in Aiglon College in Switzerland and acquired a bachelor of arts degree from New York University. He is the Chairman Emeritus of the Oman American Business Council, where he has served on the board since 2004. He is also the Honorary Consul of Canada in Oman.

TBY talks to Ali Kamal Daud, Chairman & CEO of Daud Group of Companies.

How did having a diversified portfolio help you handle the challenges caused by the pandemic?

It is a classic case of “don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Some industries were affected more than others, while some were not at all affected, and by being diversified we were able to hedge against that. We are like a private equity house with the exception that we also operate our businesses. We have a presence across the Gulf and in Turkey. We have operated outside of Oman ever since the 1980s. We have a large base out of the UAE that manages our international activities outside of Oman. We used to be in India, though we subsequently left the market. Since the pandemic, we have started various online companies with global reach.

What global business trends are you exploring as a group?

It is all about what we can put online from our existing business. Aside from that, we are now building a whole new business online that will be an e-commerce platform. Ours is called Web House, and it will host different sites mostly to do with fashion and cosmetics. This is something we have embarked on since the pandemic started. It aggregates multiple online retail websites across the globe and is intended to serve the region and beyond, so customers will have access to all the same products online regardless of where they are. We have several websites of this type, and another one is called Feel Unique. It has got multiple sites on it, for children’s clothing, makeup, and all other retail products. I Saw it First is another website for teenage clothes. We are also partnering with influencers and are creating a brand around them. The influencers get royalties, but we arrange everything—we produce the product, market it, and so on. This product has been under development since March 2021.

How are you incorporating the priorities of Vision 2040 into your long-term strategy for the group?

Tourism and fisheries are hot on the 2040 agenda, and we are exploring them in depth, in addition to our digital pursuits. We are looking at the entire fisheries supply chain to identify where we want to be, and that includes studying all the different species of fish.

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