Family Support is Key to Being a Successful Entrepreneur

By: Malak El-Khatib

@MalakElKhatibb

Sheriene Shatta remembers facing challenges and pitfalls in her pursuit of her own home decor startup at the age of 17, but stresses that she wouldn’t have succeeded without her family’s support.

Shatta, a business entrepreneurship senior, joined with Professor of Marketing at the School of Business Ibrahim Al-Sahouly to share her experiences starting a new business and how to make the best of challenges which may arise.

When Shatta started her business, Sherry’s, as a teenager, she chose to sell cushions and canvases in a mini-booth in Carrefour El Obour. 

Shatta explains that in the first month, Sherry’s did not break even leaving her in debt paying of over EGP 5,000.

But she was at the time a board member in her family business “Shatta” a 30-year fabric manufacturer retailer, and this gave her the edge she needed.

She was able to make a decision of distributing her products within the company’s retail stores instead of working independently. 

Her father supported her startup initiative and  allowed her to sell her products under the family business’s name. 

“It was better for my startup this way, as I depended on the company’s resources,” Shatta said.

Pretty soon, with her items taking off, she had to hire more staff.

Shatta mentioned that there were two important factors that allowed her startup to succeed. The first being the external environment, which includes brand awareness, identification of the of the four P’s (product, price, promotion, place), and a good marketing strategy.  

“Entering the Mother company of Shatta at the age of seventeen trying to convince people who are full of experience and are triple my age was so difficult yet so rewarding at the end,” she said. 

During her talk titled How to build a multi-million pound business in your early twenties on March 2 at Mary Cross Hall she shared advice on how to pursue a career as an entrepreneur and provided tips that are essential to build a startup at a young age.

One of those tips is to have a plan one wants to pursue and a method of pursuing it. 

Dreaming big is one of the most important pillars to success, Shatta said.

She explained that one of her goals is to become a multinational home design retailer like IKEA and Zara Home.

Shatta explains that one should consider the different tastes of the market and aim to reach a larger consumer base by offering a wider array of products.

“The talk is going to give them [students] motivation, they are now aware of what they need to do if they choose to build their startups, it will help them value the courses they’re taking now and concentrate in them, to build a better future,” Al-Sahouly said.

Freshman Farida Gamal, who is intending to major in business, found the talk to be beneficial for someone looking to start up a business.

“[The talk] helps the individual understand how to run a successful business and how dreaming big provides us with a prospect of growth and success,” Gamal told The Caravan.