A to Z Work Travelogue - Dazzling Dubai (& Rest of UAE)

Dubai was business nerve centre for us. A critical gateway to CIS countries and North Africa and with a reasonably good local demand, it was very important for our international business vertical. I made several visits, there, over a four year period from 2001 - 2005 for bulk-purchase deals, enroute to CIS countries, to catch up with other distributors from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, a local dealers' conference, part of a CII business delegation and also for an Auto major's vendor conference. Every time, I went back to the city I marveled at the change, the energy and the vision shared by our business partners and local administrators.

 

The desert safaris, dune bashing, belly dancing, stroll along the Abu Dhabi Corniche, the white sands of Al Fujairah, sunset cruise at Dubai Marina, the Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah beach, indeed, there is a lot to see. Given my several visits, I was able to phase all this out.

Strolling down the streets of  Bur Dubai, it is hard to remember that the city is built on a desert. Vision lay strong in conceptualizing, whether it was the Al Jumeirah to be built such that it could be seen from space or the falcon symbolizing Abu Dhabi's virtual drive. This was brought home to me while accompanying a government delegation and some industrialists from Kolkata. The then Eastern Region CII director suggested that business visitors to Dubai might like to enjoy tourism with their families in a Jaipur or Delhi, suggesting a probable area of cooperation. A very senior official we were meeting, gave a gentle smile and responded,

"We are in agreement that in years to come, business and recreation will increasingly merge. We are also clear that business will only go to those countries where there are recreation options and we are focused on creating such an ecosystem". 

I saw a lot of this change pan out over the 5 years UAE was my market.

 

Dubai, however, is one place I will remember for business first. In the battery trade there are a large number of dealers from Bangladesh and market visit actually made sense. The dealers were candid and one received useful insights. Our product carried a six-month (from date of sale) warranty and to monitor misuse we implemented a settlement mechanism of 9 months from date of manufacturing with our distributors. Obviously there was a push back (as dealers wanted a clear settlement of cases within six months of sale) and I went to understand if it was actually affecting the dealer. At one counter with dis-arming frankness a dealer showed me some tally marks on the last page of a copy book. 

"I face no problems, he said". "Mostly the rich Sheiks do not bother to check on the warranty terms and if a battery fails under 9 months they simply buy a new one. I keep these discarded batteries aside and that is the top line of tally marks. Sometimes I face a sticky customer and have to provide a free replacement i.e. the bottom row of tally marks. I simply substitute one for the other as a claim. Company is happy as replacement is within agreed date code and I am happy knowing that I have played fair"! 

 

Amidst such business nuggets, one met customers from various countries. One buyer from Afghanistan, joined us for lunch at an Indian restaurant. We had ordered a biryani, which to our palate was bland with a capital B! Our buyer, however, was sweating profusely and had found the dish pungent. His story was that in his village they dressed a kid goat with some oil and salt and buried it several feet under the sand for some days. When baked to perfection, the same was largely eaten with local bread and dry fruits. 

 

I remember well the magnetic presence of the founder of  Easa Sales Al Gurg, our distributors in the UAE (and regret deeply having misplaced the photographs with him taken on the rooftop of the ESAG towers with the Dubai skyline in the background). A dynamic personality into business, politics and diplomacy, he was the Ambassador to the UK for over a decade. When he stepped down, his daughter Dr Raja Easa Sales Al Gurg picked up the reins of the business. She embraced me warmly as one of the tribe and we had an engaging conversation about women leadership.

Matching, equally, such exotic stories, one had the opportunity to sample world cuisine. You could be seriously spoilt for choice, here. 

My last trip was in 2015, after a 10-year gap, taking our cement dealers for the Annual Conference. By popular choice, the main event was at the Atlantis. The dealers were chuffed over the experience of arriving at the Atlantis in limousines. This, probably is the last few memories I carry about the UAE. As mentioned before, I changed companies thrice and, somewhere misplaced a host of photographs. In fact, my first digital camera was picked up at the Carrefour in Dubai!