"Newcastle engineering firm Hart Door Systems is
no stranger to the Middle East. The business, which makes
industrial doors, has a foot in no fewer than 14 international
markets, including the UAE where it has supplied automatic
doors for an Ikea furniture store among other deals.
However, as contracting export manager Alan Richardson
explained, the company is looking to expand its reach
across the entire Gulf region. He said, “We already
export to the UAE so we will go to Dubai, but we are also
interested in Qatar and Oman. We see them as emerging
markets to get into so we are going out in a three-pronged
attack to see how we can increase our coverage out in
those countries.”
As well as hosting a seminar for more than 100 in Qatar,
Mr Richardson has potentially money-spinning deals to
talk through with prospective Arab business partners.
“Competition is as fierce out there as it is here,
but you have to be proactive. I already have a seminar
lined up with a company who could become our agents in
Qatar. We just priced a job in Qatar for £200,000,
but you have to be patient as sometimes you might not
hear anything for seven or eight months.”
He says one of the most difficult aspects of breaking
into Gulf markets could be the variety of quality standards
in different countries. “Things out there have to
be made to certain standards and if you don’t meet
them, you won’t get work,” he said, “We
should be lobbying for British standards because at the
moment certain countries only accept US standards. “We
will be competing against companies from India and China,
so we will have to emphasise our qualities which meet
European standards.
He said, “We’ll be going out there to expand
our business, but the key thing is patience as things
can take a long time out there. Eventually, if you have
a good business partner, you will get your rewards.”
(article from Journal newspaper)
Contact: alan@speedor.com
