Watching innovation

Mahesh Shahani has always had an innate curiosity about how things work. As a child he would help out with his father's many businesses, but he was interested more in electronics than other enterprises, which ranged from jewellery to restaurants. He simply couldn't wait to get his hands on VCRs and television sets so he could take them apart and explore the inner mechanisms.

His interest was in all electronic products in general, until the day his father came home wearing a Jaeger-LeCoultre watch. Shahani was mesmerised by it. He wanted nothing more than to open it up and discover its every cog and wheel.

It was from this natural curiosity that Shahani, now managing partner in Gems World, a UAE-based company which holds the exclusive distribution rights for Fortis, a Swiss watch-making company, began to develop his own ideas relating to the possibilities of watch designs. Two years ago he came up with the idea to create a watch with Arabic numerals.

Having grown up in Morocco, Shahani is no stranger to Arabic language and culture. "I have always had an affinity with its traditions and language. Being involved in the watch-making industry, I noticed there was a lack of watches that reflected this culture and so I was keen to try and produce one," he says.

The multilinguist (he speaks seven languages) was surprised by the fact that Arabic numeral watches had to be custom-built. He decided that this region should have a watch incorporating Arabic numerals. And the idea for a watch called the B-42 Al Tayar (meaning ‘the aviator' in Arabic) became a reality.

A man who believes in hard work, honesty and family above all else, Shahani is particularly proud of this watch. He feels he has createda piece for the region that not only keeps time, but will also prove itself to be a timeless collector's item.

I, ME, MYSELF

I was born in India. I was a year old when my parents moved to Europe andI spent the first five years of my life in France, then Spain. I then spent 14 years in Casablanca, Morocco.

We moved around a lot because of my father's work. He has quite a few businesses, ranging from luxury goods to electronics and restaurants, so my exposure to business was very diverse while growing up. I have a brother and sister, but they were never really involved in the family businesses when we were kids. ButI was. I joined my father as a helping hand at the age of 12.

I was in Morocco until the age of 18. After finishing my education there, I came to Dubai in 1988. My father had moved to the UAE a year before. We had very strong ties with the jewellery business over here even then, so when we set up business here I suggested to my father the idea of introducing watches to the store, which back then was in the Gold Souq in Deira. I have always preferred gadgets to jewellery.

I never studied a course in business or had any formal business education. Everything I learnt was on a practical level while working in the family businesses. Working from such an early age in the businesses helped me keep pace with the latest products.

I have always been passionate about gadgets, even as a child. At that time the Japanese watches were becominga global favourite and I was fascinated by them. When I was about nine or ten my father bought a Jaeger-LeCoultre watch (known as a JLT) and I was really enthralled by it. It was the first brand I learnt about and connected with and soon watches became my passion.

I wanted to know what was inside every watch I came across, what made them tick, what made their hands move - everything about how they worked. In the beginning I was fascinated by VCRs. In fact, my curiosity about how things worked was a constant, even as a child. At the age of nine, I remember opening up a VCR to get a better look at how it worked. I no doubt upset my father no end thanks to my habit of pulling things apart!

But it was mischief born out of harmless curiosity.

I have travelled a lot for business - from East to West. Travelling is invaluable in terms of life as well as business experience. Interacting with different cultures opens you up to knowing different kinds of people and ways of doing things. It's important to know and understand how different cultures do their business and get this knowledge first hand. In the UAE, you're constantly dealing with people from around the world. To this end, I have been fortunate that, having worked all over the world, I was able to adapt very easily to the systems of doing things here. So travelling has taught me a lot about dealing with people of different cultures, personally and professionally.

I'm something of a sponge for languages. I speak seven - English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Berber (a north African language), Sindhi, whichis my mother tongue, and Gujarati.I can understand German, butI can't speak it very well.

I, ME, MYSELF

Me and my philosophy

Hard work and honesty are the two primary principles in my life. They are extremely useful in my business - jewellery. If you gain - and by gain I mean earn - the trust of your client, they will never go anywhere else. It's that trust on which meaningful business relationships are built.

Me and the B-42 Al Tayar

I was a 100 per cent involved, from the beginning to the end, in the conception and actualisation of the B-42 Al Tayar: design, dials, choosing the casing, deciding on the kind of model, its marketing - everything. Previously, if you wanted a watch with the numerals in Arabic, you had to get it custom-made. I found this unusual considering we're living in an Arabic-speaking region. So I wanted to create something that would be easily available and accessible to people of all languages.

I always had people ask me why watches don't have numerals in Arabic. I had many enquiries about the availability of such watches. Being in retail, I seized the opportunity and pitched the idea over dinner to my business colleague Max Peter (business development manager of Fortis). Peter liked the idea and we decided to go with it. The success of the B-42 Al Tayar has prompted us to think of introducing a new model again next year. The watch is built to qualify for the specifications of the aviation industry standards, with a separate specification developed for the marine industry.

Me and Swiss perfectionism

The Swiss have a reputation for being the best in the watch-making industry because they are the ones who have been doing it for the longest.

When a country earns the reputation for being the ‘best'at something, it has a lot to do with the amount of time it has spentdoing that particular thing. TheSwiss were the first to have an automatic chronograph - thusbeing well ahead of their competitors in the industry.

I have been working with Fortis for two years now. We have a good relationship and are open to each other's ideas. Me and my family

I have a son named Rajiv, 17, anda daughter, Natalie, 12.

Rajiv reminds me of myself as a kid in many ways. He's a chip off the old block in that he also has a keen interest in electronics. He is passionate about watches too. He is always asking me questions about the various watch brands. To that end, he's very brand savvy. I remember when we were watching Iron Man 2, he whispered to me during the film: "Check out the JLT." He was talking about the watch on Robert Downey Jr's hand. I enjoyed that!

Natalie is on her own mission. She's always busy bouncing around with her friends as young people do. She does like electronics, but then I suppose that's normal for most children these days.

Her interests are more focused on mobile phones and iPods - or whatever gadget is hot on the scene at the moment! I work about 15 hours a day so I have very little time to do anything else. However, when I do find some free time, I spend it with my family. Maintaining strong ties with your loved ones is important no matter the speed at which you are going down the fast lane.

My father is still here in Dubai,as are my sister and my uncle, with whom I do a lot of business. My brother is in Casablanca overseeing our restaurant business. Sadly, my mother has passed away.

I, ME, MYSELF

Who did you have in mind when you came up with the idea for the B-42?

Initially I imagined it would attract about 70 per cent Arabs and 30 per cent expatriates in terms of market appeal. But what's been interesting is that the sales have been 50-50 across the board.

We've had a lot of interest from Europeans from abroad. Although the dial and the date is in Arabic, the day can be switched to English. The watch can be seen as something of a collector's item - a piece of the region. And in my view, most people are collectors at heart.

The watch was launched in Dubai on May 4 this year.

We've initially catered to the UAE market exclusively, but we're looking to launch in the rest of the GCC by the end of the year and then, eventually, go global.

Did your idea for the watch have anythingto do with sustaining Arabic languageand culture?

Yes, that was one of the objectives. Like many languages, Arabic is spoken all over the world as a result of globalisation. You will find Arabic language speakers in Europe, Africa, America… so pieces like this will not be restricted to being sought after only in Arab countries.

Having been in the UAE for over two decades, I have witnessed first-hand Dubai's exceptional growth. Yes, I do miss the old Dubai. But at the same time, I'm happy with where the city is going and how it's growing. It has plenty of potential and it is already considered one of the major cities in the world. That's something to feel proud of.

Having moved around so much, where do you consider home?

That's a very difficult question. Growing up I attended so many different schools - I've been to an American school, a French school, an English school and a Spanish school… So I really don't know.

I guess I could answer that question based on my mother tongue, but that alone also presents complications. The French say your mother tongue is the one you count your money in, and I always count in French. So does that make me French? Also, I do feel I'm part Indian, given that India is the land of my birth. But then again, I'm more fluent in French than in Indian languages. I could go round in circles about this! So I guess I'm in limbo. I don't think that being a child of globalisation is a problem. Your identity is not determined solely by your nationality. I think being exposed to so many different nationalities and working with varying cultural influences is a positive thing. Living abroad opens your mind and broadens your horizons, butI believe you can still keep your culture and heritage alive in your heart by upholding it at the home front and passing it on to your children. I think that having a globalised identity makes you more liberal-minded, more tolerant of others' beliefs and more worldly. Let's face it, being of a liberal mind, more tolerant and more worldly wise are always advantageous, whether it be in business or in personal relationships. For that matter, they are an asset to help you live your life in a better way.

Alex Westcott is a photographer with Gulf News