Origin Oman - Buy Local Survey

This survey is part of research at the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (http://www.peie.om/) to understand the role that domestic manufacturers, shops and local food play in Oman. The objectives are to understand whether goods produced domestically offer benefits for local people and examine links between Oman’s business community and the general public.

All findings will be used solely for research purposes and this is a confidential survey.

1. In which store/market do you normally do your main weekly/monthly shop i.e. where you buy the majority of your groceries?

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2. In which store/market do you do your secondary shopping (if different from above) i.e. not a large weekly/monthly shop?

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3. How much on average do you spend on groceries in an average week?

RO0 - RO10  RO35 - RO50 
RO10 - RO20  RO50 - RO70 
RO20 - RO35  RO70+ 

4. How do you normally travel to your main grocery store?

Drive  Bus 
Cycle  Walk 
Taxi 

5. Approximately how far do you travel?......................................

6. What is most important to you in your local store/market?
Please grade on a scale from 1 – 3, where 1 is the most important

Friendly staff / good service  Location 
Community engagement  Product range 
Availability of specialist produce  Price 

Other:..............................................................................................................................................................

7. What are the main incentives for you when choosing between locally made and international products? Please grade on a scale from 1 – 3, where 1 is the most important

Price  Known brand name 
Quality and taste  Advertising campaigns 
Organic or health related  Special offers 
Locally produced  Recommendations 
In season produce  Attractive packaging 

Other:.............................................................................................................................................................

8. In general, do you know where the products you buy are made?

Yes  No  Sometimes 

9. On average, how often do you buy locally made products (those that are produced in Oman)?

Weekly  Monthly  Yearly  Never 

What are these local products (if applicable)? Please specify

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10. What do you feel are the biggest barriers for you to buy locally made products?
Please grade on a scale from 1 – 3, where 1 is the most important

Lack of availability  Quality is low or inconsistent 
Don’t know what is locally produced  Would rather buy a brand I trust 
Too expensive  Don’t see why it is important 
Poorly packaged and presented 

Other:............................................................................................................................................................

11. I buy locally made products because

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12. I don’t buy locally made products because

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13. Do you think shops in Oman do enough to promote Made in Oman goods?

Yes  No 

14. How important are locally made goods to Oman’s economy?

Essential  Unimportant 
Very important  No opinion 
Neither important nor unimportant 

15. What kind of reputation have Made in Oman products?

Excellent 
Good 
Fair 
Poor 
16. How are Made in Oman products packaged?

Excellent 
Good 
Fair 
Poor 

17. Is there sufficient labelling on Made in Oman products?

Yes 
No 

18. Are Made in Oman products easy to find in local shops?

Yes 
No 

19. Would you welcome a Buy Local campaign?

Yes 
No 

Thank you for responding to the questions about locally made products. We would be grateful you could now answer some about you, and remember that all information will be treated as confidential.

20. Gender:

Male  Female 

21. Age:

Under 16  16-19  20-29 
30-39  40 – 49  50-59 
50-59  60+ 

22. Family Composition

Number of adults: 
Number of children 0- 3 year  4-10 year  11-18 year 

23. Occupation:

Full time employee 
Unpaid family worker/ carer 
Part time employee 
Student 
Self employed 
Retired 

Other:.............................................................................................................................................................

If you would like to receive further details on the forthcoming Origin Oman campaign please provide us with your contact details.

PO Box:..................................................................................

Postal Code:...........................................................................

E-mail:...................................................................................

GSM:.....................................................................................

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION!

Please e-mail your completed survey to Mulkie Al Hashmi on: info@peie.om

If you would like more information about the Origin Oman project or would like to get involved please contact Mrs. Ibtisam Al Faruji on: ibtisam@kom.om

Blog contents copyright © 2007 PEIE

2006 BBIC Winners Talk Shop

Can you give our readers some background details on the Qumreiyat idea and the people involved in the start up?

Qumreiyat is a portal that provides information on Oman. In simple terms, it aims to answer all the questions a potential tourist may have before heading to the sultanate – the portal will enable and empower interactivity between potential tourists and organizations – in both the public and private sectors – working in the tourism industry. The Qumreiyat team is: Majda Al Hinai, Maha Al Bulushi and Zawan Al Sabti.

How and why did you come up with the idea of the Qumreiyat?

From an international perspective, there is still a lack of awareness of Oman as a tourism destination – though with full credit to the Ministry of Tourism, this is changing rapidly which makes it a particularly good time for Qumreiyat to be launched. We see a niche in the market for a portal such as ours and we want to fill that gap.

Why did you enter the TKM- Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition?

As soon as we heard about the competition we decided to enter – we thought that even if we didn’t win the feedback from the judging panel would be invaluable. We were also keen to attend the business plan workshops that were offered by Ernst & Young staff at Knowledge Oasis Muscat.

To be honest, we’d had the Qumreiyat idea for quite some time, kicking concepts around and discussing how to take it forward. But the main obstacle was start-up finance and with RO6,000 on offer to the BBIC winner we decided to enter.

You’ve won RO6,000 in start up finance and 12 months rent free office space in the TKM incubator program – what impact is this having on taking your company forward?

The RO6,000 in start-up funds and the 12 months rent free office space in TKM is pushing us on and up. It’s been an ideal start for us. We're already networking with start ups in the TKM program as well as other tenants on the tech park.

A survey carried by the TKM incubator program shows that – at college age – a high proportion of Omani students want to become entrepreneurs. But the reality is that, later on, few actually do it. Why is that? What were the key factors to sustain your motivation?

Being an entrepreneur is all about taking risks and perhaps young people don’t have the necessary skills or experience to manage risk – this is an issue we should be addressing in schools and colleges – switching young people onto the enterprise culture – preparing them to think about starting their own business.

Finance is another obstacle that fresh business-oriented graduates face. Naturally, graduates are looking for a secure job and a guaranteed income. This brings us back to the issue of risk and what people are prepared to do with their careers. We’re looking for a challenge and an opportunity to fulfil a dream – we want to run our own business, this is what drives us forward.

What obstacles or challenges do you expect your start up to face over the next 18 – 24 months?

Time – there are never enough hours in the day.
Building creative and interesting content for the site that will appeal to all nationalities.
Getting clients to join the portal and believe in the concept.

Did you accept any advice along the way? Do you believe start ups should be open to advice?

Yes, we’re always open to advice. The BBIC business plan workshops were very helpful and so were staff at KOM.

Start-ups need to be patient – it isn’t going to happen over night. Perhaps most importantly, you’ve got to be willing to take criticism, no matter what shape or form it comes in.

What kind of relationship do you expect to establish with your customers?

Customer is king, right? Our relationship with customers will be highly professional. Responding to their needs quickly and appropriately is imperative. We’re here to solve a problem and that’s what will differentiate us from other tourism websites.

What advice would you to pass on to our young entrepreneurial readers?

Never lose your enthusiasm or sense of humour.

Blog contents copyright © 2007 PEIE

Big Business Idea Competition Gala

Entries to the TKM–Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition (http://www.kom.om/), the largest technology-focused business plan competition in the Gulf region, closed late last week. Backed by Ericsson, Nawras, NCR, GroFin, Infocomm and OER, this year’s competition final and Gala Dinner will take place 28 October at the Crowne Plaza Hotel under the patronage of HE Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce & Industry.

“The four finalists will present power pitches to the judging panel at the Gala Dinner. The panel of judges will then make their final deliberations and announce the 2007 winner,” said Mohammed Al Maskari, Director General, Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM).

This year the competition has a top prize of RO6,000 awarded to the winning business plan. The winner is also granted 12 months rent free office accommodation in the TKM incubator program based at KOM.

"We welcome entries from anyone - individuals, teams, new companies, colleges creating spin-offs, scientists, students and entrepreneurs - with a good, innovative idea for a science, technology, medical or design-based business," commented the KOM Director General.
The TKM–Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition is not just about the competition itself. Former entrants have used the event as a launch pad to raise investment for their ventures, and the competition’s finalists, particularly, benefit from the additional exposure they receive at the annual Gala Dinner, which provides them with instant access to an audience of influential business angels and venture capitalists seeking new investment opportunities.

One company that has benefited in this way is Qumreiyat who is developing a dynamic tourism portal. Qumreyat’s Zawan Al Sabti was one of three responsible for presenting the prize-winning pitch at last year’s final, she commented: “The TKM–Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition provided our start-up with a great opportunity. We were able to present our initial ideas on business strategy and receive valuable feedback from experienced professionals on how best to take the company forward. Since presenting at the final in 2006 the team have followed up on interest expressed by several organizations who attended the event.”

Al Sabti’s colleague, Majda Al Hinai, agrees that the competition provides an invaluable opportunity for young Omani entrepreneurs. “Qumreiyat has attracted a significant amount of interest since its launch and taking up residency in the TKM incubator program at KOM. The competition provided the focus the team needed to define its business strategy. The document we had to produce was a valuable starting point on which to build the broader plan for the launch. Our appearance at last year’s final clearly raised the company’s profile to a national level, something we could not have achieved so quickly on our own.”

Al Maskari, organiser of the TKM–Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition added: “The quality of entries is very high and our experienced judges are not easily impressed, so getting to the final is a significant achievement, and one which is recognised by potential domestic and regional investors.”

The TKM–Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition has been helping to raise the profile of start-up and spinout organisations since its inception in 2006 by providing valuable exposure for growing businesses and access to a wide range of resources, advice and guidance through its seminar programme and networking activities. The competition is free of charge and open to all Omani nationals.

Blog contents copyright © 2007 PEIE

Infocomm Signs MoU with Saudi ISP

Oman’s leading m-Commerce firm, Knowledge Oasis Muscat-based Infocomm, is participating this week at GITEX, the Middle East’s premier information communication technology trade show in Dubai. "Last year's show was tremendously successful for us, so it was imperative that we participate this year, particularly since we have a range of new WiFI, M-commerce, e-Learning and e-Gaming solutions to present,” said Singaporean entrepreneur and Infocomm’s MD, Karim Rahemtulla. “In fact, the positive feedback from business partners, ISPs and telco operators strengthened our determination to expand our participation at this year's show and to make greater use of GITEX as an international, strategic platform for presentations and networking," comments Rahemtulla.

The first two days of the show have been highly productive for Infocomm and Rahemtulla is clearly enthusiastic as he describes them. “We were besieged on Saturday and Sunday with quality enquiries - people literally queued up one after the other to see our WiFi, M-commerce e-Learning and e-Gaming solutions.”

Saturday marked a milestone for Infocomm as on they signed an MOU to provide a full turnkey WiFi solution for 7i the Saudi-based ISP (pictured L - R: Karim Rahemtulla, MD, Infocomm with 7i's CEO, Eng. Anas Maisarah Taher) This is the second venture between the two companies since they meet at GITEX last year.

7i has also shown keen interest in Infocomm’s e-Learning content. The possibility of accessing this in the Kingdom on a pay per view basis has been suggested. “We’re providing businesses like 7i with solutions that allow business owners to get on with what they’re good at, running their own business. We don’t expect them to know all the latest WiFI, M-commerce or Internet-based learning strategies nor should they, that’s what we are here for,” says Rahemtulla.

Ibtisam Al Faruji, Head of Marketing at KOM commented from the Park’s stand at GITEX: “Infocomm is one of the region’s leading M-commerce firms providing solutions to organizations working in manufacturing, health, travel, leisure, tourism and education. They’re an extremely competent and proactive international firm. On the domestic scene, they’re certainly revolutionising the way in which Omani companies and government departments think about marketing their products and services. We’re proud to have this calibre of company as a tenant. The level of their participation at GITEX is typical of how they operate – absolutely top class and a credit to all the Infocomm team.”

Blog contents copyright © 2007 PEIE

KOM Spreads the Word at GITEX

A multi-million Rial expansion has recently opened on Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM), the Rusayl-based technology park. According to Mohammed Al Maskari, KOM’s Director General: “The RO3.8 million (US$10.4 million) expansion program provides an additional 10,000 square metres of office accommodation to support established and developing hi-tech businesses. Amongst a number of new tenants from Europe and the Middle East, the Park’s recently opened office space is home to Microsoft, Motorola, Qatar Airways and the Information Technology Authority (ITA).”

Announcing this next step in the development of KOM Al Maskari said: “There is a fantastic spirit of entrepreneurship and inspiration running through KOM. This has helped establish the Park and the wider Rusayl area as a centre of excellence for knowledge-based industries and a great place for innovative businesses to develop and thrive. However, it is vital that we keep that momentum going and continue to offer the facilities and support systems that allow our tenants be creative and thrive.”

The Rusayl area is fast becoming an area of growth for knowledge-based companies, many of which are in information communication technology (ICT) and manufacturing, clustering around KOM, PEIE’s Rusayl Industrial Estate, Sultan Qaboos University and the university’s teaching hospital.

Ibtisam Al Faruji, KOM’s Head of Marketing said: “The Park’s new office facilities will bring together science, industry and education in an environment conducive to innovation and entrepreneurship. We’re thrilled with the response from local as well as international firms to take up residency on KOM. ”

In an effort to reach a broader international audience and spread news of KOM’s continued expansion, the Park’s management will participate this week at GITEX - the region’s largest annual ICT trade exhibition.

But what does KOM want to achieve from its GITEX participation? “The obvious answer is our stand crammed with potential tenants, but more realistically it’s about maintaining momentum and quality face time with interested parties. Our main purpose is to meet potential tenants and demonstrate how KOM can meet their varied commercial needs,” says Al Faruji.

Given the sharp increase in the number of firms based on KOM and the additional office space that has come on line, Al Faruji believes the park has a strong and engaging message to deliver. In addition to a growing tenant base, KOM is also behind a number of high-profile ICT initiatives. For example, the TKM – Ernst & Young Big Business Idea Competition, a national business plan event aimed at raising awareness of the start-up culture amongst Oman’s youth. The Park’s quarterly Digital Nation seminars are well-attended networking events that help KOM tenants raise their profiles. “When you have multinationals like Ericssson, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard and Cisco backing your marketing initiatives then you know you’re on the right track,” commented KOM’s Head of Marketing. The Park’s annual eGames conference is another regional first, “we’re the only tech park in the Gulf that’s looking at mobile and serious gaming and their applications to areas such as education, tourism, heritage, the environment as well as oil and gas. There’s a tremendous amount of energy on KOM and we need to spread news of that at GITEX,” remarked Al Faruji.

Blog contents copyright © 2007 PEIE

KOM Tunes into Digital Media

Knowledge Oasis Muscat’s next Digital Nation seminar will be held 9:30pm, Monday 17 September at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Backed by Ericsson, Microsoft, HP, Omania e-Commerce, SAP Arabia, OER, Infoline, Nawras, Infocomm and Times of Oman the 17 September session will tune into Digital Media.

But what exactly is digital media? According to Ibtisam Al Faruji (pictured), KOM’s Head of Marketing “it’s anything from the traditional uses of the medium for creating and sharing rich content to the explosion of blogs for self expression and increasingly real time interpretation of news and breaking events.” Digital media is also about shared content via websites like Flicr, YouTube and blip.tv and social sites such as FaceBook and MySpace. It's a concept that's booming.

Today, consumers are more than ever seeking out information rather than following blindly. “We've moved away from an age of deference to an age of reference. The emergence of blogs and wikis ('what I know is?') clearly show the demands of an increasingly sophisticated and information-hungry public and are examples of how consumers are taking power into their own hands and creating their own new and trusted sources of information. The consumer really is becoming king,” comments Al Faruji.

Consumers are exercising more control, said Infocomm’s Karim Rahemtulla. Already in the US, 70% of personal video recorder users are skipping adverts, he noted. "People want to connect to information and connect to their friends," he said. "The focus will be on highly personalized experiences." Suggesting that advertisers might be missing a trick, he added: ""Today only about 5% of global advertising is online, yet 20% of media is consumed online. This is an amazing opportunity for advertisers."


The boom in social websites like Flickr and YouTube “clearly indicate the rise in collaborative usage of the Internet” said Ericsson’s Susie Houh and supporter of the Digital Nation program. "This is a social innovation and not just a technological one," she commented. “Collaborative editing of music and video content are the next likely trends, although this will depend on free licensing and the availability of easy-to-use software,” she added.


PEIE’s Dave Pender believes that consumers of news from the media are transforming themselves into providers of information. For example, the pioneering South Korean "citizen journalism" website Ohmynews now has over 33,000 citizen reporters, though it still used professional editors too, he noted. Pender cited a recent quote from News Corporation boss Rupert Murdoch - "We tell you less, you tell us more" - to illustrate how some of the global media were engaging with the potential power of citizen journalism.


In the not too distant future "content will be delivered anywhere to a growing range of devices. Indeed, a lot of that content will be available on your mobile," forecast Infocomm’s Rahemtulla. "The scope will exist for far greater personalization of all forms of content and end users will be empowered and have greater influence, controlling how, where and at what price they consume content." The feeling among many media commentators is that traditional media players, including public service broadcasters, still have a future, as long as they can reinvent themselves.


For KOM’s Al Faruji, the key to success for TV channels, radio stations and print media still lay in content. “Given the incredible growth of digital media folk in the media industry will need to take greater risks. In the end, it will boil down to creativity, that will be a key factor.”
To attend the free of charge Digital Nation seminar send your name and contact co-ordinates to: info@kom.om


Blog contents copyright © 2006 PEIE

Play & Learn with Infocomm

Karim Rahemtulla is the Knowledge Oasis Muscat-based Singaporean entrepreneur and a leading WiFi and mobile marketing specialist, behind the top-flight m-Commerce firm, Infocomm, and the Gulf region’s first value-add infotainment portal - isurf.co.om

Rahemtulla is enthusiastic about Infocomm’s participation at this year’s GITEX exhibition. “This is a huge boost for us,” said Rahemtulla. “GITEX provides us with a world-class profiling opportunity and a chance to expand our current client base by meeting potential customers from across the Middle East and North Africa, all under one roof.”

Infocomm will be exhibiting its existing products as well as a range of new e-Learning and e-Gaming solutions and demonstrating high speed WiFi internet access and mobile marketing services. “We had a tremendous show last year signing a major deal with Saudi Arabia’s ISP 7i and we look forward to repeating that success this year,” Rahemtulla said.

The Infocomm team is particularly excited about advergaming and will be demonstrating how the mobile medium can be used to market and brand products and services. “Advergaming is the new hot topic and it’s moving from the Web to the mobile and we’re eager to share its possibilities with our clients in the region,” remarked Rahemtulla. He went on to explain how the roster of companies that are relying on Web and mobile-based games to generate marketing buzz, or recently have done so, include Nokia, which fielded an online curling game as part of its sponsorship of the Canadian Men's Curling Championship; Fox Sports, with a World Series game in which visitors tried to "hit" a virtual ball out of a virtual stadium; a mobile video game on Audi’s website that allows players to download the Audi Q7 game coupled with Audi Q7 logos; and a coalition of major fast-food restaurant chains and packaged-food companies, including McDonald's and Kraft, that seeks to help curb childhood obesity by offering kids online games that teach nutritional concepts at a new site called Kidnetic.com.

Infocomm is developing in partnership with Nexgen, Singapore’s leading mobile and PC game developers, a number of advergaming solutions. “In this regard, I’m confident that tech savvy marketers will be interested in exploring what advergaming and Infocomm can do for their brand,” commented Rahemtulla.

In addition to the advergaming concept Infocomm will also be showcasing e-Learning solutions from Educomp, one of India’s top 10 companies. Educomp is estimated to be working with 3.6 million learners across Asia and the US and has a presence in over 6,400 schools. “Educomp packages cover a raft of subjects that include physics, chemistry, English, French, geography and mathematics, “they’re highly interactive and the graphics are outstanding,” says Rahemtulla. Indeed, online education is growing rapidly in the Middle East. For example, the market in Saudi Arabia alone is expected to increase at a compound average growth rate of 32%. “The region’s expanding academic sector represents a substantial market for e-Learning, from secondary to tertiary and we’re keen to capitalize on these opportunities,” says the Singaporean entrepreneur.