Mombasa ice-cream maker adds Italian flavour to his menu

Mr Ahmed Bahaidar (left), the owner of Gelato Divino, with chef Nicholas Reincke during the interview at his shop in Mombasa last week. PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT  

By SYLVANIA AMBANI, sambani@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Adventurous entrepreneur introduces Coast residents to Gelato Divino tastes after deal with Dubai firm

Ahmed Bahaidar links his rise from “a simple clerk” to owner of five firms to restlessness, travel and a special ability to see and grab business opportunities.

Just like entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson says he keeps a notebook nearby for jotting down useful ideas, Mr Bahaidar says interacting with people means interacting with great ideas.

The latest addition to his Buraq Group of Companies, Gelato Divino, was born out of curiosity when he visited Dubai to buy machines for making ice-cream and sought out a respected name in the industry.

This is how he was referred to Gelato Divino, who have a list of 24 flavours, including mango, banana, strawberry and kiwi.

“When I tasted their product, I knew that was the first time I was having the real taste of ice-cream. I bought the equipment and also returned home with the managing director of Alqubaisi (the owners of Gelato Divino) who is also a chef to prepare the ice-cream when we opened and also train my chefs to produce the same quality,” he said.

They sealed a partnership deal to open a branch in Kenya.

Mr Bahaidar, who doubles as the group chief executive, got a diploma in accountancy after leaving high school, got hired as a clerk at Kenya Calcium Product in 1983 and left in 2007 as a director of the firm.

“I am an adventurer and during my time at the company, I realised that there was a lot of potential in business. In 2007 I decided to take a risk and leave the comfort zone as director of the company and start my own business.

“Leaving Calcium Products was a move I dreaded but I did it anyway because life is all about taking risks. I started with a capital of Sh500,000, and a small network of people,” said the 53-year-old entrepreneur.

His first company was a ticketing company called Al-Buraq Hajj and Umra started because of his love for travel. He also opened a tours and travel company since the two businesses are in the same sector.

Savoy Real Estate Company was his third business. A property developer in Mombasa, it also offers real estate consultancy.

Mr Bahaidar told the Business Daily that he has never known rest, saying a wise person should keep trying one thing after another to survive in a fast-changing business world driven by forces of demand and supply and consumer taste.

Determination, he says, helped him to climb the ladder from employee to become a director of a company and get the steeliness necessary to survive in the rough and tumble world of business.

A travel enthusiast, the investor says meeting new people opens up the world of ideas to him, but these tips should be halal, or permissible in his faith.

Nicolas Reincke, a chef at the firm, says most ice-creams are industrial products that are either hard or soft, with a lot of fat and artificial ingredients.