Pakistan is one of the few countries of the world that provide ample opportunities to explore and carry out business in any field covering a vast business spectrum. Being exceedingly rich in natural and human resource with reasonably good infrastructure and a very large young population, Pakistan presents a tremendous potential for entrepreneurs who seek to undertake and avail the benefits of making their investments in this country and earn handsome dividends. There is no doubt that Pakistan has its own set of problems as any developing country may do and it seems that an awareness has already taken place to change things and now it’s a matter of time that conditions should get more conducive to attract major investment in the country by its own citizens. Historically, it is a matter of experience that people who had long term commitment and trust in this country have done quite well and many of them, by their sheer hard work and business acumen, have progressed by leaps and bounds and have contributed substantially to the overall economic growth of the country. It will not be an exaggeration to say that without their untiring efforts, the economy of Pakistan would have never progressed so well as we see it today. One such name that has become synonymous with hard work and commitment to purpose is of Yaqoob Ahmed, chairman of Artistic Milliners, the largest Denim producer in the country. Yaqoob Ahmed does not fall in the three categories, which in the words of a veteran scholar and columnist, Hasan Nisar, are either those who were established businessmen in the undivided India and after partition, they invested in the newly independent country and set up their industries. He doesn’t fall in the second category too of those who had nothing worth mentioning before the partition but Pakistan gave them the chance to own industrial empire, after they filed false property claims and became industrialists by getting hold of large tract of land. He is definitely not amongst the people who, through corrupt practices, established their industrial empires. All he has to show to the world for his feats as an industrialist is his consistent hard work, uncompromising honesty and diligence. While going down the memory lane, with The News, he had a lot to share when it comes to his present name and acclaim. Having started with a small leather business in Bombay, his father, Ahmed Umar shifted to Karachi after independence with his business. In 1949, he established Artistic Milliners and continued with the same line of business in his new homeland. It was not until 1967, when Artistic Milliners was established as a textile business doing apparels, aspiring to export Pakistani products to the western world. His relentless hard work soon gave the company the required exposure and an ability to successfully compete and be accepted internationally. From the very beginning, we also always kept three words in mind and that are Quality, Service and Innovation. These are the core values of the Artistic Milliners. Established in 1949, the company has since expanded to become a complete vertically integrated textile set up with the aim of providing high-end customer with premium quality of denim fabric and garments. Mr. Yaqoob Ahmed said He further said that Artistic Milliners spinning division was established in the year 2002 and now with a daily capacity of 160,000 pounds. It is equipped with state of the art machinery from Germany and Switzerland. The emphasis is to specialise in producing high quality yarn to assure the production of premium quality of denim fabrics. With years of concerted efforts, today, Artistic Milliners is considered as one of the leading trustworthy names in the export of garments, especially denim. It is the first company in Pakistan to be awarded with the prestigious LEED Gold Certificate by the US Green Building Council. Speaking about the initial days when the company took its trajectory towards success, Yaqoob said: “working with my father at a very young age, I had inherited his entrepreneurial vision. Exporting garments was his first vision. By employing the right strategies and action plans, we were able to turn this vision into reality, when we received our first order from Germany in 1968. It was, indeed, a moment of great joy for all of us and encouraged us to become more aggressive in our efforts to further enhance our business, in 1971, I exhibited our products in an international exhibition in Germany, being a part of Pakistan pavilion. As a young entrepreneur, this opportunity provided me with the required experience to work with customers from Europe, the results of this initiative were quite encouraging and beneficial to further promote our cause to take our business to the next level. Later on, after repeated visits to Europe and the United States, we were already on the move to carry out more meaningful business and take Artistic Milliners towards the echelons of success. I am grateful to the Almighty Allah for all this success which came as a direct result of His blessings on me and my team. Today, Artistic Milliners has large Spinning Mills, Denim Mills weaving fabric and garment factories, which, if not the largest, definitely is one of the largest denim manufacturing companies in Pakistan,” he said with a beaming smile on his face. Mr. Yaqoob said that Artistic Milliners, as of today, is operating on an area of 170,000 sq meter and employing about 7650 people, and has the ability to cater to specify the clients’ needs with package deals such as product development at source, design support, shorter lead times, on time deliveries and warehousing facilities. “Our latest addition is the new state of the art denim mill AM-5 extension, which now has a production capacity of 62 million meters per annum. The jeans division has a capacity of 18 million garments per annum. To reach this stage of production , we have made huge investments. Although some of my friends made comments that why I am making all my investments in Pakistan and I should also make investments in countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Dubai and or Malaysia, where investment is safe, but I tell them whatever I am today is because of my country so I will make investments in Pakistan only. In reply to a question regarding the main motivational factor behind his success, Yaqoob Ahmed responded quickly: “Honesty, integrity and passion.” “These features, inculcated in me since my childhood by my father, and are the key to accomplishing a strong business enterprise. My father was my mentor when it came to managing my business skillfully through wisdom. I owe all my abilities, to evaluate, internalise the situation and then act accordingly, to my father, and his advices were instrumental in getting my business off the ground. Another advice given by my father was never to compromise on quality even if it is at the cost of incurring losses. Simply, this is the quick formula for success for the company, which enjoys an excellent reputation both at home and abroad.” Yaqoob Ahmed narrated. Shedding light on the LEED Gold Certification that his company has recently received, Yaqoob Ahmed said this is to convey to the outside world especially brands, that we are a company who carry out sustainable production and are fully aware of our environmental responsibility. Furthermore, it creates a positive image of our country at the international level too. The recognition implies that the factory must maintain a necessary level of quality so as to meet high international standards while utilizing less energy. The company has state-of-the-art green factory where it manufactures garments. From the making of the fabric to the finishing of the product, Artistic Milliners strongly believes in environment sustainability”, he asserted. Yaqoob firmly believes in building strong and a reliable team. Artistic Milliners works on the principle of coexistence possessing high ethical and moral standards where the workers live like one large family. The congenial work environment, handsome remunerations and other facilities enhance workers’ ownership to their company. “When concepts and ideas on papers are materialized, it’s basically human efforts who turn these ideas into products and these products later become companies. There are two types of investments you make; one is monetary that is funding the ideas and concepts or in other words the vision of the company. The other one is the investment on human resource. Spending money rightfully is one challenge which an entrepreneur has to face, and I took up this challenge through the wisdom I inherited from my father, that is, instead of spending on too many ideas and then choosing the best one not only wastes money but also time. The true challenge is to reject all the ideas and concepts and channelize available resources to the best one and make efforts to materialise it in the form of your best product in the market. As for the human resource, we devise practical strategies to hire people and then retain them. We make sure that those who are great, stay with us, and the people who aren’t as good, get the required support and guidance from the company to become great. To me, my team is my best investment that is why I get good dividends,” he said with a sense of pride. On a general perspective, The company exports its products to UK, Germany, Spain, USA, Italy and Sweden, while the denim fabric is also exported to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam and a few African countries. “Our buyers include well-known names like Marks and Spencer, GAP, Zara, Espirit , H&M, Levi’s to name a few, he said. Highlighting Pakistan’s importance as a textile country in the world, he says: “As the fourth largest producer of cotton, Pakistan is the epicenter of textiles. Besides, due to its geo-political location, it provides direct route to every market in the world. With the facilities of road communication and dry and wet ports and shipping system and relatively cheaper human resource as well as viable government policies conducive towards exports, the future of textile exports in Pakistan is very bright. It has been observed recently that more and more business people from overseas are visiting. This phenomenon is quite encouraging unlike the past few years. We sincerely hope that this influx of customers will continue to this country that offers a lot of business opportunities and to meet very enterprising Pakistani businessmen. We sincerely hope that things will remain calm and there will be no untoward incidents that may cause disruption. We owe a lot to this country. As committed industrialists, we will keep on investing in this country as whatever we are today is because of our beloved Pakistan,” he said with great pride. Being an optimist, Yaqoob Ahmed foresees a great future for this country As for the future, Yaqoob Ahmed said that since his sons, Omar Ahmed and Murtaza Ahmed, both graduates from overseas, have taken up major responsibility and are looking after the business along with his daughter Momina Mustafa Teli, who works as a part timer to lend her support. Artistic Milliners is also seriously looking to venture out in other businesses as well. Expansion of business is our policy since its inception. We will InshaAllah, diversify our business along with its geographical expansion, while ensuring best quality of products to our customers who are our partners in progress. Exploring new international markets also includes in our future plans.” Sharing the most memorable moment of his life, Yaqoob Ahmed said: “looking back from the time when we first exported almost 50 years ago it has been a long uphill struggle but at the same time it’s been an exciting journey which I will always cherish and praise be on Allah for showing the right path. Artistic Milliners mission is to sustain reputation as one of the top denim mills in the world by striving for excellence in each function of our business.” he proudly concluded.
