Annada have started a journey in partnership with various Middle Eastern artists who have allowed their beautiful works of art to be transformed into luxurious silk scarves. Annada brings together the essence of art, fashion and romance all in one medium.
Sisters Nada and Noor Alawi run Annada, a luxury lifestyle brand. Annada partnered with artists in 2011 to design beautiful high-fashion scarves that meld fashion, craft, and artistry, each of which tells its own story of beauty, color, and luxury. We sat down with Nada and Noor Alawi to talk about their business model and prospects for success.
Can you tell us how Annada came to be?
Noor and I have always loved fashion and art. With Annada, we wanted to create something luxurious and unique. We wanted something that could stand up to the global fashion benchmark, but also something that stood for Bahraini art and culture.
Can you talk to us about the uniqueness of Annada?
Our product has the feeling of luxury and the appearance of art. Every scarf is soft, colorful, and masterfully designed. We work with many local Bahraini artists as well as other artists from places like Austria and Iraq and continuously look to expand our network of artists. Beyond the unique designs, each style of scarf is produced in limited quantities. We sell to high-end stores and conduct a lot of our business through our online store. We also feature our product at international exhibitions. We’ve also worked directly with businesses and corporations to create custom products according to their needs. This model has helped us minimize overheads and create brand awareness.
What’s your next collection going to be?
We want all of our products to be timeless. We want to adhere to a classic but trendy look. Our upcoming fall collection will be exhibited in Jewelry Arabia Exhibition in November. We have lots of new products and accessories as well as some amazing new scarf designs. We want our next collection to provide instant gratification to customers and we want to continue the dialogue with them.
What made you believe that this business would work?
We went into this business prepared. We looked at every possible scenario – positive and negative and readied ourselves for them. Still, we maintained our positive attitudes and relied on support from others and our own education and business experience. Noor and I both have MBAs and have ventured into different businesses before. We wrote down all of our goals and ambitions before taking our first steps. We examined all possible opportunities and costs and figured out how to capitalize.
What are the most successful marketing channels for Annada?
Annada is a brand and not a product. Because of that, we market through highly regarded channels in order to increase brand awareness and reputation. We market mainly through social and print media. We also develop our brand through international exhibitions, magazine features, and by word of mouth.
Some people also recognize the artists with whom we work, so having them on board has been very helpful. Bahraini artists including Abbas Almosawi, Omar Alrashed, Ghassan Muhsen, Mariam Fakhro,Hassan Haider, and Ebrahim Bussad have designed scarves for us. Their work has brought some customers to us solely because of their artistic reputations.
Having a great and unique product has really been our best marketing tactic. Magazine writers, exhibition hosts, and regular people want to share Annada with the world.
Tell us about yourselves.
We are Nada and Noor Alawi. We are experienced businesswomen, and each of us has an MBA. We are two years apart in age. The reason we work well together is that we have complementing personalities. We balance each other very well, which is why the partnership works.
What have you learned from your previous business experiences?
We’ve learned how to run a business and try manage its risks. We’re still engaged in other ventures, but for now we are focusing a lot of our attention on Annada. There is nothing that can replace real business experience. University education with business experience and of course common sense can prepare you to run a successful business venture.
What is the most important thing about running a business?
You have to love what you do. If you love what you do, everything else falls into place. Of course you need to stay alert and manage everything well, but if you love what you do, the rest should come more easily.
What is the most difficult part about being an entrepreneur?
The most difficult part is also the most exciting part: That, as an entrepreneur, you are a master of your domain. This makes the entrepreneur hold a lot of responsibility and face the burden of delivery. Until a proper company and system are put in place, entrepreneurs are bound to face a lot of pressure.
In Bahrain, what parts of the entrepreneurship environment need the most improvement?
We’ve got to globalize, and to do that we need a good legal system in place. We also need to be aware of international trends. Once entrepreneurs in Bahrain start franchising, licensing and reaching out, we’ll start moving towards a better global market.
If you could leave one message with startupBahrain readers, what would it be?
As one of my mentors has taught me, Success is 1% Aspiration and 99% Perspiration. Which means, even if you have a fantastic idea, it will only succeed with real hard work. Also when doing a project, plan for it very very well, and then go ahead and JUST DO IT!