Made in Qatar: Meet the companies putting Qatar’s exports on the map

euronews (in English)

From idea to end product: In this episode of Qatar 365, we’ll meet businesses, big and small making waves at home and abroad.

Transcript

00:00 We aim to grow premium products, products that can't be grown in Qatar, but I like to

00:08 prove that wrong.

00:10 We can do a lot of work here in Qatar and we didn't need to import it from outside.

00:15 We have committed to our government here in Qatar to introduce every year two to three

00:20 new factories in Doha, Qatar.

00:25 Hello and welcome to Qatar365, I'm Laila Humaira and on this episode it's all about

00:31 "Made in Qatar".

00:34 From idea to end product, we'll meet businesses big and small making waves at home and abroad.

00:41 One such firm is Suhail Industries, a leading manufacturing conglomerate producing processed

00:47 metals, plastics and steel.

00:50 And when it comes to the nuts and bolts of running a business, Suhail Industries is a

00:55 well-oiled machine powering up Qatar into an industrial juggernaut.

01:03 These industrial pipes are waiting to be packed and shipped halfway across the globe to the

01:08 US.

01:10 The pipes don't leave the factory until they're thoroughly checked and painted with an important

01:15 label, "Made in Qatar".

01:18 Back in 2012, Suhail Industries was a battery recycling factory.

01:23 Since then, it's grown into an industrial powerhouse that includes recycling and manufacturing

01:29 bronze, copper, aluminium and steel castings, plastics and even paper.

01:36 Right now we have 15 factories, all of them in the engineering industries.

01:39 They are foundry, which converting the steel scrap to cast iron and ductile iron castings.

01:47 Among the 15 factories, there's one that stands out from the rest.

01:52 Housing Suhail Engineering Industries, it's the company's newest and most high-tech factory

01:57 to date.

01:59 This sprawling site boasts a land area of more than 13,000 square metres with nearly

02:04 60 industrial machines.

02:06 Other than the noise, this isn't your typical factory floor.

02:10 High-tech machinery, air conditioning and even a little greenery.

02:14 Suhail Industries is challenging the idea that an industrial factory can't also be sustainable

02:20 and eco-friendly, just like its products.

02:25 This bronze valve is being measured to the precision of one to a hundredth of a strand

02:31 of hair, which is part of Suhail's strict quality control.

02:36 The verdict?

02:37 It's a pass, which means mass production of the valve can begin.

02:41 Our main target was to have a state-of-the-art factory, to have it friendly to the environment,

02:48 to have zero impact basically any waste that could affect the environment to be there,

02:54 to be handled properly and to have a good atmosphere for the employees.

02:59 So we used like Japanese methodologies, having like trees in the factories, which brings

03:04 a good vibe to everybody working in the factory.

03:07 And this working environment is helping to boost production and ultimately exports.

03:13 Business is going so well for Suhail Industries that its international market makes up more

03:18 than half of its clientele.

03:22 For Qatari market, we are targeting only 20 to 30 percent.

03:25 The rest 20 percent for GCC countries and the remaining is for the whole of the world.

03:29 Right now, Suhail exporting every week, in average, 15 containers to the whole of the

03:35 world, 10 of them to USA market and five of them for China, for Europe, for Korea.

03:42 But that doesn't mean investment at home is stopping.

03:45 In fact, Suhail Industries is revving up expansion in Qatar, helping the country move towards

03:50 a self-sustaining future in line with Qatar's 2030 vision.

03:59 From factory to farm, it may be hard to believe that where I'm standing now, right in the

04:04 middle of the desert, is where households all around Qatar get their fresh daily vegetables

04:10 from.

04:11 This is Safwa Farm, one of Qatar's oldest family-owned businesses.

04:16 And I'm here to meet Fardan Fahad Al Fardan, the CEO of Safwa Farm, to find out how the

04:22 company is using high-tech farming methods to plant the seeds of Qatar's self-sustaining

04:27 future.

04:28 Fardan, thanks for having us here at the farm today.

04:34 Firstly, Safwa Farm can be considered a pioneer in the Qatari agricultural industry.

04:38 Can you tell us a little bit more about how Safwa Farm came to be?

04:42 It started in 1975.

04:46 It was more of an area for my family to go for a picnic every weekend.

04:50 It was around, let's say, 100 square meters back then, and now it grew to around almost

04:56 reaching 1 million square meters.

04:58 I had small aquaponic machines at home.

05:00 I used to grow my cherry tomatoes and basil for my pizza, because I love pizza.

05:05 I told my grandfather about the system and that, you know, people don't grow this in

05:10 the market, and if I can grow it, I'm sure anyone can grow it.

05:13 He told me, in the middle of summer, if you can put your own money and grow it in front

05:18 of me, I will invest in it for you and make it part of the family group.

05:24 That was three years ago, and today we're doing much more than what we did in the beginning.

05:29 And looking back at Safwa Farm as it started, it started from humble beginnings, really,

05:36 but it's now grown into a company that's using high-tech horticultural techniques.

05:40 How does the company stick to its roots while also using technology?

05:44 We aim to grow premium products, products that can't be grown in Qatar, but I like to

05:49 prove that wrong.

05:50 So we have from your normal European Italian basil, your kale, your Lolo Biondo butterhead,

05:58 and of course, high-end peppers like you see behind us are habaneros.

06:03 And looking at around us where we are now, it's so green.

06:07 How does Safwa Farm make such green crops without using soil?

06:11 To be honest, I'm amazed myself that we did it.

06:14 So I think outside right now is from 48 to 50 degrees, but inside we're reaching temperatures

06:21 of 28 to 30 degrees, which is, for some crops, very good.

06:27 It makes a big difference because we're in the desert.

06:29 For example, in aquaponics, you need a lot of water, but 90% of the water is recyclable,

06:36 where you use normal old-school farming, you lose all of it.

06:42 And because Qatar is such a small country, land is not as much as available.

06:48 So going vertical is also another target we're doing.

06:52 And finally, as a truly made-in-Qatar brand, what does it mean for Safwa Farm to be at

06:57 the forefront of Qatar's self-sustaining goals?

07:00 Right now we're reaching 30 tons a year.

07:03 Come back in November, it's going to be 180 tons.

07:05 If that's not enough, we can double, we can triple.

07:08 You know, sky's the limit with this.

07:10 Again, if we fulfill the requirements, we will plan to export eventually.

07:18 Big business, small business, one family.

07:21 Adel Halim recently met with a father-daughter entrepreneur duo.

07:25 The father has had a customized furniture business for almost two decades, while his

07:29 20-year-old daughter recently set up her own eco-friendly cards business.

07:35 Nice to meet you.

07:38 Me too.

07:41 It's my pleasure.

07:44 Thank you.

07:45 Welcome to our workshop.

07:46 You just opened this?

07:48 Yeah.

07:49 Three months ago, we transferred to the permanent one.

07:54 Finally, our permanent workshop.

07:57 It's been a long time coming, but Ayman Natcha finally has a place to call home.

08:03 He's managed Azur Trading and Contracting since 2009, specializing in home, office,

08:09 and retail renovations.

08:10 The Palestinian businessman takes great pride in setting up shop in his adopted country.

08:16 I'm very happy.

08:17 This is my dream, actually, to have it as a permanent workshop, because we have been

08:21 in the rent workshop before, and now we have our own.

08:25 For me as a person who lived in Qatar and studied in Qatar, I would like all my life

08:30 that's to have some products in Qatar and carry the name Made in Qatar.

08:36 We can do a lot of works here in Qatar, and we didn't need to import it from outside.

08:40 He likes to keep things in-house, literally, before hiring a social media manager, Natcha

08:46 relied on his daughter's digital savvy to keep up with the changing times.

08:51 The new technologies, social media and advertising, of course.

08:55 That support went both ways.

08:59 In 2021, Hannah Natcha followed in her father's footsteps and started her own business.

09:04 But instead of a brick and mortar building like this one, she does all her sales and

09:08 marketing exclusively online.

09:12 I started making cards when I was like five, six years old, and I grew up making them.

09:17 My mom has a collection of all the little cards that I've made growing up.

09:21 I've always been very passionate about gift giving and just making gifts very personal,

09:26 and I wanted to bring that into the market as well.

09:28 The university student designs eco-friendly handmade cards and stickers for special celebrations.

09:34 There's always an occasion.

09:36 There's always a way to make them happier with such a simple thing, and I love being

09:39 a part of that.

09:40 And having a front row seat to her father's trials and successes inspired Hannah to launch

09:45 her own specialty brand.

09:48 Growing up, I watched my dad grow his own business, and I watched him do it from the

09:53 very start to where he is now and how much he's developed and improved and how big he's

09:58 gotten in the market.

10:00 And I think that was very motivating for me.

10:03 I'm very proud of Hannah and how she created her own business.

10:07 And she's very smart.

10:10 I push her all the time to have a bigger and bigger business.

10:18 Across the city, another family business is also thriving, all from a casual Friday meal

10:24 between father and son.

10:26 We saw an opportunity to bring a family business to start, and his idea was to initiate a factory

10:34 that produces made-in-Qatar perfumes.

10:38 Soon after launching the perfume factory in 2018, the Almatwiz identified a market need

10:43 early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

10:47 With nearly 90% of the raw materials already in-house, the perfume makers pivoted to produce

10:52 sanitizing products to help keep the local community safe.

10:58 Having already partnered with international retailers, the family attributes the success

11:03 of its growing business to several factors.

11:08 Luck, yes, luck.

11:09 But I think this is God's wish, God's support, you know, Hassan.

11:14 And I think Qatari, Qatari, they are -- they like the beautiful smell.

11:21 Next, the Almatwiz plan to take their made-in-Qatar products across the GCC and into international

11:28 markets.

11:29 Established businesses in Qatar have solidified their status as the country's main pillars

11:37 of sustainable growth, while a supportive ecosystem is also spurring the emergence

11:42 of small but ambitious entrepreneurs.

11:46 And that's all the time we have on this episode.

11:48 For more, check out euronews.com and connect with us through our hashtag.

11:52 Thanks for watching, and we'll see you next time on Qatar 365.

11:56 (upbeat music)

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