Brand’s success relies on consumer trust, says Chairman, Blue Ocean Global Group
In conversation with Shahzad Ahmed, Chairman, Blue Ocean Global Group
Blue Ocean Global has significantly strengthened its online distribution and e-commerce business, with over 80 per cent of the company’s revenue now stemming from these channels. Could you elaborate on the strategies and initiatives that have driven this substantial shift towards e-commerce?
From the production facility to the consumer’s doorstep, distributors play a crucial role in ensuring timely delivery of goods. We are a key player in this supply value chain and preferred by many global brands for ensuring that retailers and consumers receive the products on time.
The world has been shifting towards digital for quite some time, as are businesses and consumers. This required realignment. So, while we were strengthening distribution to retailers, we also started focusing on e-commerce players early on to go with the new trend that had intensified after the Covid-19 pandemic.
We had realised early enough that businesses will have to shift to the digital space eventually in order to survive and grow. Growth will come more from digital and e-commerce. So, we followed the trend and perfected the work over the last few years. Our strategy is to acquire more local, regional and international brands for distribution and help them expand their market share. We now have the capability to help brands multiply their businesses through us.
With the UAE’s e-commerce market projected to grow at an annual rate of 8.39 per cent, reaching approximately $46.88 billion by 2029, how is Blue Ocean Global positioning itself to capitalise on this growth? What challenges do you anticipate, and how do you plan to address them?
Since we had realised this early on and realigned and remodelled our business in line with e-commerce distribution requirements, we have now reached at a level where we can optimise our work to offer maximum convenience to e-commerce operators so that consumers could benefit from utmost convenience. We now have a leadership role in this sector.
Going forward, we want all major brands to benefit from our distribution, marketing sales and data management to penetrate deeper into the market and expand their customer base through us.
Blue Ocean Global emphasises integrating advanced technology and innovative solutions to optimise global operations. Can you share specific examples of how technology has enhanced your supply chain efficiency and overall customer satisfaction?
Technology is a great enabler. However, the secret lies in knowing which
technology to deploy and how to use it to reduce cost and maximise efficiency. In addition to this, one has to keep on finding innovative ways to achieve greater cost efficiencies as the competition gets cut-throat. We had deployed the right technology and tools at the right time in order to achieve the economy of scale. Over the years, we have trained our professionals and perfected the art of achieving the best result. That’s what helped us to be on top.
With the company representing globally renowned brands, how does Blue Ocean Global select and nurture brand partnerships to ensure mutual growth and success in diverse markets?
It is very important to choose your partners – be it any brand. Quality, brand reputation, business policy, business ethics, focus on consumers’ benefits, etc. are key for us while acquiring brand distribution and how they support us with supply, logistics, convenience, etc.
Blue Ocean Global aims to be the global master distributor, leading with innovation, reliability, and exceptional service across diverse sectors. How do your core values of meritocracy, trust, transparency, and creativity influence the company’s strategic decisions and corporate culture?
A brands success relies on consumer trust and confidence. It is built on a number of factors including product quality, business policy, continuous improvement and how much support they give to distributors – all these play a great role in gaining customer trust.
