My Recent Interview With Brands Magazine !

Tell us a little bit about yourself?

Well I’m Ahmed Rauf, founder of Telemart; I completed my bachelors and masters from IOBM (CBM). It has been 5 years since the inception of TeleMart. My company is Alhamdulillah among the top three e-commerce companies in Pakistan & the only one to have OmniChannel presence i.e Ecommerce, Retail, Wholesale & Corporate. 

You have been featured under 30 Forbes top entrepreneurs list, what would you say about it? 

For any businessperson, it is a privilege to be on the Forbes list of 30 Under 30, as it is one of the leading publishers in the world. Obviously, it gives you extra mileage and boosts your confidence to achieve even more. Forbes has certainly highlighted my achievements, and has given me & my company a positive recognition. Apart from Forbes, I have won 7 Global awards and have been part of 10 global awards as a jury member, judging brands like IBM and Cisco. I was also selected as a Rising Star by World Retail Congress which is the biggest Retail body in the world. It is always a great feeling, when your work is appreciated.  

Being a young achiever, who has been your biggest inspiration?

My father for me is my biggest inspiration, He belongs to a very middle-class family. He worked in Dawood group for 22 long years. He started his own business of mobile phones and became the pioneer of mobile phone industry of Pakistan. From a freelance seller of phones to starting & running the biggest mobile phone distribution company as a Chairman is the journey that has taught me alot. His values and ethics has taught us a lot, it has helped us to achieve success and to bring us where we are today. He is a simple man, and has always promoted honesty, humbleness & customer centric approach for business.

How do you see the e-commerce industry in the next 5 years?

Well in Pakistan, there is an immense room for growth of e-ecommerce industry. We have not achieved the mark in this industry as compared to our neighboring countries; our turnaround for online orders is nothing like what India or even UAE has. Since the last 2 years we have seen amazing growth rate in the industry & we believe Ecommerce will be a big thing by 2022. Customers are now trusting Ecommerce companies for nearly every product. Telemart is also a part of ECAP (Ecommerce Association Of Pakistan) which recently assisted government regarding the Ecommerce Policy Framework of Pakistan. Government is also considering Ecommerce industry as a significant section in creating Job & Exports. The overall eco-system for Ecommerce is now building up with courier companies, payment gateways & tech companies which are the key pillars for our industry.

Enlighten us about TeleMart ?

Telemart is a business entity with four divisions; corporate, retail, wholesale and e-commerce. Other than the business model Telemart also has unique product offerings. Telemart also has international sellers onboard through which we are selling various premium brands of the world which are exclusively available at Telemart e.g Ferrari, BMW, Mercedes, JBL, Jabra, Marshall, Porshce Design etc. 

Telemart is the only manufacturer of Gold Plated products in Pakistan. We make Gold Plated phones, laptops, home decor, watches, cufflinks, pens, jewellery & various other products. Telemart has catered to various eminent personalities in this category including President & Prime of Pakistan, Business Tycoons & many media personalities.

Telemart is now all set to launch some of the most premium brands of the world exclusively in Pakistan i.e Gucci, Versace, Armani, Louis Vuitton, Bentley, Burberry, Hermes, Harrods, Montblanc etc. 

TeleMart has maintained its reputation by providing quality services and amazing customer services. We believe that customer should be satisfied and we maintain that by taking feedback and giving giveaways when the order is canceled. Telemart provides it customers with FREE Telemart Discount Card on every order which allows our customers to avail discounts on more than 800 locations nationwide. The card is valid for lifetime & has no conditions attached. Telemart is now working to bring Global brands on the card. The only reason for this card is to make our customers privileged wherever they visit.

Do you face any difficulty in operating an e-commerce platform in Pakistan?

Initially yes, I faced a lot of problems in starting my business. I had a very little knowledge about website development and had trouble in understanding the model of e-commerce. Also as you know that it's very difficult to find good employees in the first few years of business as good individuals are always looking to get job in big national & multi national firms. The ecommerce industry was very small and it was not even given its due recognition. But eventually things are getting better & are in the right direction and I believe that we still have a long way to go. 

How do you manage your personal and professional life?

I think I do fairly well in managing my personal and professional life. I spend time with my family specially with my daughters. I follow various comedy shows & other stuff that keeps me fresh. I believe phones were made to make our life convenient & that is the only reason I don’t use phone after I enter my house. Maintaining a healthy personal life always adds value to your professional life.

What message would you like to give to the upcoming entrepreneurs? 

I would like to say that you need to be a risk-taker and give your best. If you work with passion and honesty, eventually you will achieve success in life. Any business needs a good team and sometimes you have to sacrifice in order to achieve success in life. And more importantly you should be unique and what you are delivering should be unique, so that you could address the need or want which was not addressed earlier. Commitment & Consistency are the key to success.