The competitive nature and monopolisation of industries makes it challenging for newcomers to capitalise on an incumbent few. This is even more apparent amongst the south Asian business community. It takes a special type of person with an inspirational vision to set their sights on such success and more importantly, work incessantly to achieve it. Asian World sat down with a man who is looking to do just that.
We caught up with BBC One’s The Apprentice star, Syed Ahmed to chat about his innovative eco friendly product and to learn more about what drives him to pursue such ambitious goals. Syed became a well-known personality after The Apprentice UK broadcast in 2006. Since the show, Syed has been busy building his successful brand and company, Savortex.
1) You were on The Apprentice 8 years ago and since then you have been involved in various projects; talk us through some of your key achievements?
Prior to The Apprentice, I was running a business already so that’s always been my interest and passion. Since I finished the show, I realised that my head hunting business wasn’t challenging or creative enough. That’s when the whole idea of energy saving technology and sustainability became very appealing to me. It was in a conversation with a few friends, that I decided I wanted to create technology for that space and also a business that was ethical which saw the birth of Savortex, a technology company developing eco friendly hand dryers.
I spotted an opportunity in an industry which was then very dated and I remember about 8 years ago, going to Heathrow Airport with my dad and it took a ridiculous amount of time to get your hands dry, so I thought it was a really good time to come up with new technology for this field. And that’s where it all started – fast track 7/8 years to now and I have no idea how it’s gone by so quick.
We now have a successful business supplying technology to the UK but also expanding to Europe and internationally. Not only do we have the most eco friendly hand dryer – it’s also got a smart element built in to it. As it dries your hands it also converts that in to cost and energy data. We supply to everyone from SME’s and big businesses but our core market is large corporates to whom the data element is very important, as it can monitor how many people are going in to the wash room and that intelligence can help with all kinds of cost savings.
2) Tell us more about your company Savortex which you founded in 2007.
I’m the founder, and now we have a board of directors, a managing team, and offices in Canary Wharf, and our factory is based in Wiltshire. That’s the lab- where all the technology is built. The actual design is outsourced to leading companies in that area. However we have in house electronic gurus and electronic engineers.
3) How does the technology work?
It’s a hand dryer and the technology for it is patented– the majority of hand dryers use a heating element to heat up the air so for example in a kettle, there is an element at the bottom that heats the water and that element consumes the energy. Our product, the eco Curve heats the air through a patented method by compressing the air in a motor. It’s for that reason our dryers are so eco friendly and saves about 80% of energy. It’s very quiet and it has anti-bacterial additive on the casing so when you touch it, it cleans itself.
The shell – the outer casing is sleeker than your standard dryer. The design of the Eco Curve caters to the needs of the clients. Large companies like Hilton want luxury so we ensure that we put a lot of thought in to every aspect of this product including its design. From a design point of view, we have created something that is wow to look at. Our product has added value – it uses sustainable plastic material for recycling, the best brilliant white colour and all the technology is designed by us from scratch. That creativity and thought element is a reflection of the whole brand. The reason why companies like Apple and Dyson are so successful is because they put extensive thought in to these personal things- and that’s what we have done. It’s important to distinguish yourself from the offset. Even the packing is highly creative- being creative is a key message of our brand that emulates across every aspect of our business. It’s insane that we have put so much thought in to it.
When you use the dryer, it monitors your hands – through the sensors where the air comes out – it sends the info back to our servers – we give clients individual login details and then they can see what the cost element is to them. They can monitor their building and the traffic coming into their washrooms. It helps them understand their spending – if you imagine a building when you have thousands of staff- using washrooms – every penny counts. In this day and age, it’s all about sustainability targets and measuring energy lighting, gas, and usage because if you don’t understand what you are consuming then you are susceptible to waste. It’s been very successful – our customer base includes companies like RBS, Carillion and ABN-AMRO.
The Eco Curve dries hands very well in 10 seconds. We can dry 70 hands for the electricity cost of 1p. That’s the cost of a single sheet of a paper towel. Even for local restaurateurs – the paper towels costs in comparison is far greater than using our eco curve – It’s for life- 7yr guarantee but technology is designed to last way beyond 15 years – for life.
It’s extremely user friendly – there is nothing to do once its fitted, and as I said earlier it even cleans itself.
4) Last year you raised 1.5mil to help launch your product – that’s a big sum, what is your secret to gaining such big levels of investment? I’m guessing perseverance had something to do with it, a key tool for entrepreneurs?
It sounds like a lot but isn’t actually a lot of money in terms of the technology industry but having said that, the way to raise investment of that level is over a number of years –you set a target then put in lots of hard work, continuous pitching and talking to lots of people. If people can understand the business and like the product, then they will approach you to invest.
5) You’re an entrepreneur – what was your first entrepreneurial activity?
It was at the local Asian grocery store with my dad- he showed me how to bargain. The guy says £10 – you say £5 and you agree on £7.50 – dad used to check the quality of the vegetable before bargaining. Also, at the age of 13 years– I created an invention to make sure your Windsor knot was perfect.
6) What are the differences between an entrepreneur and a businessperson? Can you be either/or, to be successful and which are you?
I think you have to be an entrepreneur and a businessman. Entrepreneurs take a bigger risk and businessmen take measured risks. If you can combine both then you are heading in the right direction. But it’s also other things like resilience, self belief, its intelligence, its knowing that what you are chasing makes business sense is important – as well as have commercial appeal.
No entrepreneur can get to a very successful product without having a few failures first. It’s those failures that make you a success.
7) As an entrepreneur – is it hard to stick to doing one thing? Do you always feel the need to do something more?
Absolutely – one of the weaknesses and strengths of an entrepreneur is that you spot a gap and you go after it and then you spot another gap and then another gap, but if you’re good at multitasking and you have the time and energy and money to go out there and create opportunities then that’s great. However what I’ve learnt is that it takes time to build a brand and credibility and trust. Savortex are in our 7th year and my chairman in the early days said to me that it takes 10 years to make a successful brand and that to me makes perfect sense. You have to be in it for the long haul.
8) As a south Asian business man, how important is it that ethnic minority groups are recognised in the mainstream trading platform?
I think ethnic minority businessmen and women are transforming business on a global scale. My parents came as immigrants to the UK, I was born in Bangladesh, but grew up here. My dad was a tailor; his English wasn’t that great, he had to learn life in the UK on the job. I remember seeing him at work one day and it’s a tough job cutting leather all day. That was a start of me wanting to help him provide for the family. Coming from very little naturally helps you develop a survival of the fittest personality, which I think is a really good thing. Most successful business people I have met have that drive – a lot of successful footballers for example come from a platform of nothing, which gives you a drive and gives birth to successful people.
We have here a few questions off Twitter from budding entrepreneurs for you– hopefully you can help answer them for us?
I have lots of great ideas but I worry that I won’t be any good at the business side of things – should I find someone to take care of the business while I deal with the ideas/product side?
I think that’s a good plan – it’s about surrounding yourself by experts where you give the leadership and direction and your team use their expertise to provide you with the technology that you then push forward.
I have just started a new business and I have complete faith in the product. How do I make others believe in the product as much as I do?
Enrolling and share share share, through word of mouth, LinkedIn, social media, TV– that’s why I am here.
What in your view is the most important aspect of being an entrepreneur?
Ambition
What does the future look like for Savortex?
The company received funding through the UK government a platform called the Technology Strategy. Because of the success we have launched which is the world’s most eco friendly hand dryer – so we have an excellent relationship with that team and there is a lot in the pipeline.
Quick Fire round
Android or iPhone?
iPhone
Laptop or desktop?
Laptop
Tailored suit or off the rack?
Tailored
Email or face to face?
Face to Face
Tea or coffee?
Coffee – because it’s a bigger hit but if its tea then it has to be Bangladeshi style chai.
Throughout his life and career, Syed Ahmed has shown a special kind of drive that has lead him to become founder and CEO of an innovative technology company which is breaking boundaries within the hand dryer industry. Watch this space for more from Syed and Savortex. Follow him on Twitter to stay updated @syedahmed and @savortex.
