Adam Dawood holds MBA degree from Tsinghua University, China. He is meticulous and gifted cyber entrepreneur having rich diversified experience in e-commerce industry. Adam is the founder of DYL Ventures and also the Country Manager of highbrow e-commerce site Kaymu.pk. Adam caught up in the interview with Technology Times
Tell us briefly about yourself?
My passion is always to take Pakistan’s startups and technology industry to the next level. Pakistan is home to some of the best startups in the world and I have been doing the best I can to promote these ventures. Pakistan’s e-commerce sector is set to boom and I am thrilled to be a part of this success through Kaymu.pk.
Tell us brief highlights of your career and your vision?
I have been part of Pakistan’s tech and startup culture for a while now. I was one of the first members of the online shopping platform Daraz.pk, the success of which allowed Rocket Internet to bring in more e-commerce ventures to Pakistan.
I also used to run a weekly Newsletter, Tech Week in Pakistan, which was a great experience. I also had the privilege of working on the first ever Pakistan Startup Report which was published in 2014.
In my current role as the Country Manager at Kaymu.pk, I am working with a great team to continue providing an easy to use, convenient platform for both buying and selling. We at Kaymu.pk are working to expand Pakistans e-commerce industry by bringing traditional offline sellers to our online shopping community.
How you recognized the need of creating an online shopping portal like Kaymu.pk?
Pakistan is an emerging e-commerce market with the potential to become a key player in the region. We recognized this potential and stepped into the market with Kaymu.pk, which is now a leading online shopping community, to cater to both buyers and sellers.
We felt that the easiest way to launch e-commerce and empower small businesses, was to bring existing online businesses online. This is where Kaymu.pk comes in; we have been able to bring over 15,000 sellers from all around Pakistan on a single online platform, giving buyers an unmatched online shopping experience with a highly diverse range of products at the most competitive prices.
We are growing aggressively in Pakistan and have now taken another big step with the launch of our first TV advertisement (TVC). We believe that Kaymu.pk. TVC, which started airing last week, will help increase consumer awareness and will not only benefit Kaymu.pk but the whole ecommerce industry.
How you were successfully able to inspire Kaymu.pk to become most popular e-commerce shopping platform of Pakistan?
Kaymu.pk success is down to successful execution of carefully planned strategies. We have a fantastic team in place with every member dedicated to working towards achieving growth and customer satisfaction. Every day when you enter the kaymu.pk offices in Karachi and Lahore there you have to sign a promise on our big whiteboard promising to make kaymu.pk. customers and happy and to grow the business for kaymu.pk. It is only with a very strong team that we are able to create a great shopping experience for thousands of customers every day.
We also feel that our community model is very well suited to the Pakistani market, and that is evident from the traction we have gained and thankfully continue to gain. We have products in every price segment, which essentially means you can find anything you are looking to buy at a price which matches your budget.
Is there any particular formula for your success?
Yes, hard work and focus towards a particular goal. The formula for our success is to always focus on the customer and do whatever it takes to make customers happy. We align all our processes and incentives towards this goal.
What is the distinguishing feature of Kaymu.pk that differentiates it with other online shopping portals? At which level do you want to further take Kaymu.pk?
Kaymu.pk is an online shopping community; that connects buyers and sellers. What is unique about kaymu.pk is our marketplace model. We dont have any direct competitors, as all online and offline shopping platforms are our potential partners and sellers.
They can list their products on Kaymu.pk and significantly increase their outreach and boost their sales. What needs to be understood is that being a marketplace both buyers and sellers are kaymu.pk customers, and we need to cater to both of them.
The marketplace model is very well suited for the Pakistani market; as we are able to provide products that cater to all segments of the society. We have quality products in every price segment because of the high number of sellers on our platform.
How did you manage to cope with the difficulties that hindered you in attaining your objectives, both professionally and psychologically?
You are bound to face challenges when you set out to change the existing state of affairs; especially if your objective is unique and untested. There are no shortcuts to success, and any challenges you face, must be met with a resolve to keep going and tackle each and every issue, one by one.
Very often, you cannot tackle a large problem on its own. At Kaymu.pk we rely on teamwork to tackle each and every issue coming our way. We are a young company and yes, we do face a lot of challenges and continue to do so. The teamwork approach has worked well for us and should do so for everyone else as well. This has worked really well for us and we have been able to cope with a number of unprecedented challenges and come out of them stronger and better.
What future of cyber entrepreneurship do you see in Pakistan? Is the current scenario encouraging?
Pakistan’s e-commerce industry is booming and this growth has given birth to a number of online ventures in the past few years. This trend will continue in the coming years as our online industry continues to maintain an upward trajectory.
In many ways e-commerce has been key in introducing the concept of entrepreneurship in Pakistan. Considering recent trends in our e-commerce, as well as telecom industry, there is every indication that cyber entrepreneurship will continue to rise. Infrastructural development in the IT industry, by public and private sector, in the past decade has allowed the e-commerce sector to grow at an exponential rate; which in turn has encouraged entrepreneurship in the country.
What factors do young entrepreneurs must take care of before setting up an online business?
The recent boom in the e-commerce industry has made it a lot easier, as compared to five years ago, for young entrepreneurs to enter the online industry. Just like any offline business, proper market research is essential before setting up an online business. You need to know how your platform will be unique and add value to your customers or users, which other online business do not provide.
Reinventing the wheel will not get you anywhere; young entrepreneurs should avail other online channels which can help in expanding their business. For instance, a number of online stores have been able to increase their sales and expand their business by listing their products on kaymu.pk platform.
Young entrepreneurs generally do not have the marketing spend to promote their business as much as they would like; hence, these platforms such as kaymu.pk can play a key role in promoting your venture.