Design your own business

Damas Jewellery has signed an agreement with the Mohammad Bin Rashid Establishment for Young Business Leaders and the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) to provide a new, accredited jewellery design and business development programme.

The programme will train young entrepreneurs in the jewellery business and provide them with funding to establish their ideas after graduating from the course.

The aim of the partnership is to develop the industry, meet the need for new ideas in jewellery design that appeal to the UAE market, and support young entrepreneurs through the initial stages of setting up a business.

The idea is to create a new generation of young business people with a good understanding of the sector, from working with jewellery to devising a company plan, to managing their own franchise.

Damas is funding the costs of the training programme under an agreement that will see the first two groups through to graduation. These costs will include access to Damas retail outlets and workshops, as well as international field experience in Hong Kong, Bangkok and other jewellery centres.

Damas CEO Tawhid Abdullah says: "Historically the jewellery industry is a very strong part of Dubai's economy. It is very important to have UAE nationals participate in this industry and contribute their creative talents and in return gain the incredible economic benefit.

"Damas is a leader in the sector; we felt we should take the initiative and participate in the development of the Young Leaders programme of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Establishment.

"Damas looked for strong partners that are already contributing to the human resource development of the region, and found in the HCT the ideal partner for conceiving and implementing the programme. Needless to say, we have in our corporate objectives the necessary plans to incorporate these young leaders as they graduate successfully."

Where will it be held?

The jewellery programme will be taught on campus at Dubai Women's College, and will be part of a number of programmes run by the Mohammad Bin Rashid Establishment. Dr Howard Reed, Director of Dubai Women's College, welcomes the initiative.

He says: "The jewellery industry is one of many industries that has very few nationals. This programme is designed to support the emiratisation of the jewellery industry."

Getting financial support

On graduation, the Mohammad Bin Rashid Establishment for Young Business Leaders will provide access to funding to set up graduates in their own businesses. There will be no handing out of cash on request; financial support will depend upon submission of a business proposal and assessment of its likely success. Damas will provide support and branding to facilitate the growth of new businesses.

Accreditation

The HCT has accredited the programme and employed a manager to recruit students and write the curriculum. He is Dr Naji Ahmad Al Mahdi, the former director of the Bahrain Training Institute, which has established its own jewellery-training programme.

Dr Naji says the aim of the initiative is to prepare nationals for positions in managing their own jewellery enterprises. He explains why he has come from Bahrain to manage this enterprise: "It is a very high added-value industry, led by the private sector.

"In education things are often led by the public sector. If the private sector is willing to pay for it, it must be good. And the proposal addresses the problem properly. Rather than focusing on getting employees at the lower end of the market, this will create employers."

Dr Naji says the HCT is looking for students who want to have their own businesses and not just work for somebody else. "At the moment there is nobody to nurture these people, and give them the skills and knowledge to translate their dreams and ambition into reality."

This programme will suit many women because they will be able to establish their businesses from home." He says many women have already become successful in setting up their own jewellery businesses around the world.

20 students a year

The programme will take 20 students a year, and aims to recruit talented, entrepreneurial men and women who want to make their careers in the jewellery business.

As part of the programme, these students will undertake courses in jewellery design, marketing management, advertising and promotion, learning the basic skills of jewellery-making and being a goldsmith, financial planning for small business and gemmology, together with industry internships and project work that will make up at least half the programme.

Initial entrants will be from the graduates of the business programmes of the HCT, but entry will be open to people who have the right experience, talent and commitment. The HCT will test applicants to determine the right mix in the programme. Dr Naji says the course will be enriched by a variety of ages and experience on the part of the students.

Students will have access to additional courses such as gemmology offered by institutes around the world, which provide international qualifications in the field.

The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group will provide students access to its training programme, which includes short courses on coloured stones and polished diamonds, retail selling, diamond grading and customer service.

Programme planning is well developed, and the industry is being consulted to provide advice and support. The curriculum for classes and on-the-job training will be developed in consultation with international bodies such as the World Gold Council and the Diamond Council, as well as specialist education and training bodies in the area such as Gem-A, the leading training organisation in gemmology from Britain.

Dubai is one of the world's hot spots for jewellery, with a retail business worth $1 billion a year, with another $1 billion worth of wholesale and re-export business.

The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group aims to double these figures within five years. But marketing and promotion strategies, important though they are, are only part of the solution to developing the industry. Critical to its future is creating opportunities for a new generation of young entrepreneurs, who have the commitment to a career in the industry and the skills to make a difference.

Application

The writer is the head of the career division at Dubai Women's College