Al Adil Trading plans to expand in India

Read the story of an enterprising entrepreneur...

Here’s an Indian who reached Dubai as a 20-year old with just three notes of 10 dirham in his pocket. And he soon managed to create a space for himself by catering to the taste bud of local people with Indian aromatic spices and condiments. Dhananjay Datar, owner of Al Adil Trading, with branches across 36 countries in the Gulf and a few-months old store in Mumbai too, shares with us his journey…

How do you differentiate yourself from the rest of the companies in the similar space?

My company is one of the very few all-Indian food stores in Dubai. The Al Adil Trading has been a passionate promoter of “Indian culture, good food and healthy living”. Its core ideology is to provide authentic Indian products easily to the Indians settled in the Gulf. The 100 per cent vegetarian  product range includes all kinds of spices and masalas, pulses, rice and flour, oil and ghee, pickles and chutneys, tea and coffee, canned and instant foods, ayurvedic herbs, cosmetics, dry fruits, mouth fresheners and savories, confectionery items and sweetmeats.

The range is sourced directly from the manufacturers to ensure the best variety. An ISO 22000,HACCP,GNP,GHP certified company, Al Adil not only has its legion of loyal customers but also some of the most prestigious names in the business as part of their client roster. The company has 19 stores and four manufacturing plants across the UAE and has completed 27 years of service to their rapidly growing customer base.

What kind of challenges have you faced while setting up your own venture?

I came to Dubai as a 20-year-old in 1984 to join my father Mahadeo Datar in setting up a small shop in the crowded alleys of Bur Dubai to sell Indian spices and condiments. I had only three notes of 10 dirhams in my pocket when my plane landed at Dubai International Airport. I made a phone call to my father and informed him of my arrival. My father had come to Dubai earlier in 1975 after serving a stint in the Air India, spending the next decade working as a grocer in Jebel Ali.

 That was the time when the emirate was moving into the fast track of development, with its Asian expatriate community growing in leaps and bounds. Away from home, these people longed for the taste of home-cooked food, creating a healthy demand for Indian spices, condiments, pulses and other foodstuff – an opportunity that was eagerly seized by the entrepreneurial Datars.

 The early days were not easy, as it involved a lot of hard work and patience for my father and me to establish our success. However, word-of-mouth publicity about the quality of our products soon began attracting a steady flow of expatriate clients from faraway Gulf countries like UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and India.

Encouraged by the tremendous response, we opened two more retail outlets in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, evolving from these small beginnings as a family run business into a modern, specialist supermarket chain selling the entire range of grocery and household items, including Indian spices and masalas, pulses, rice and flour, oil and ghee, pickle and chutney, tea and coffee, canned and instant food, ayurveda herbs, cosmetics, dry fruits, mouth fresheners and savories, confectionery items and sweetmeats, etc.

Right from saving enough to expanding our business, to gaining the necessary permissions to set up a business in the UAE, it was a tough journey. However, the UAE rewarded my hard work, honesty and integrity with a great fortune. From a small shop, we progressed and evolved as a multi-national business group and a chain of super stores. I was honoured with various international awards here. The UAE has given me complete contentment.

What kind of responses your own ventures are seeing? How has those contributed to growth since their inception?

The response to my business has been tremendous. Al Adil Trading has been instrumental in bringing 9000 Indian products in the UAE. In Dubai Investment Park it has set up a massive 150 thousand sq ft factory to manufacture and package spices as well as flour. It also has an Indian arm named Masala King Exports in Mumbai. Al Adil has a network of 31 outlets, two flour mills and two spices factories in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ajman and also a branch of Mumbai Export Division in the name of Masala King Exports (India) in Mumbai, India.

Dhananjay Datar

Al Adil is on an active expansion mode and has recently opened new outlets in Oman and Bahrain. The company has also diversified into import and export under the special class establishment with trade lines in the US, Canada, Tanzania, Kenya, Switzerland, Italy and Eritrea as well as Kuwait, Oman and the UAE.

My business in two and a half decades has become multi-million dirhams Business Empire, with 36 entities spread across the Gulf. Today the world calls him the ‘Masala King.’

How many members consist of your core team? Could you name them?

The core team comprises of my wife, Vandana who is the finance director. She takes keen interest in the growth and financial development of the company. New to the business block is my elder son Hrishikesh, who is currently the business development manager at Al Adil. I believe that the ideas, inputs and business approach of the new generation greatly support the growth and expansion of his business in the Gulf. 

What strategy had you applied to your business? What worked for you?

Our strategy is plain and simple – quality over quantity, and a honest business attitude is what we follow. Honesty, hard work and skill never go in vain. This is not only mere advice, but a value inculcated in him by my parents. Ice on the head and sugar on the tongue is the most useful rule when dealing with challenges and customers.Our expansion is fast, and this is because of our basic work ethic. 

What are your larger goals for the companies? What do you aim to
achieve in the next five years?

I was recently ranked 32nd in Forbes ME Honors. In the years to come, I wish to expand my business across UAE and other parts of the world. We plan to open a few stores in India too, depending on consumer response, over the next two years.

Have you ever tried your luck in business in a different land? Please share your experience.