We recently had the privilege of interviewing Hussam M Al Shahari, a Traffic and Car Parking Professional, and the Founder of Parking. With expertise spanning over two decades in several sectors, Hussam M Al Shahari realized his passion and found a new vision for the Parking field.
With Parking, Hussam has become a pioneer in this field and has established parking fields at over 18 locations over the years. In this insightful interview, Hussam M Al Shahari shared his career journey, challenges, goals of his business, current services, and staying updated with the latest trends, while offering invaluable suggestions for aspiring entrepreneurs.
The Beginning
We started the interview by asking, “Could you start by telling us about your career path?”
Hussam shared, “I started my career back in 2002 in a different field but found a parking field as a new vision and culture and no one focusing on it. So, I started learning and operating these projects by establishing King Abdulaziz Parking Airport in 2009 and then Jeddah Private Aviation Airport. It was a great journey until I found myself operating and setting up around 18 locations between Jeddah and Riyadh within 15 years and now, I am a part of a committee managing companies in the same fields.
Moreover, the Center is a strong part of our team, including Mr. Luay Bin-Ali as CO founder & COO, Mr. Abdulaziz AL Fayez Co-Founder & Support Services Manager, and Mr. Salem Basunbul as Co-founder and Legal Manager.”
Spark Behind the Journey
To learn more about the factors that inspired Hussam M Al Shahari to venture into this industry, we inquired, “What inspired you to develop the idea of your company?”
He shared, “Human culture and nature tend to be divided into those who like organization and those who don’t, depending on the environment. As a result, the culture is shaped by the environment and its rules, and parking is one aspect of this environment. This inspires me when I see many businesses and owners who are unsure of how to handle their frequent visitors, employees, commercial clients, etc. At that point, I ask why we don’t set up a consultant center to help interested parties understand the concept of parking and its services, train staff on how to handle it, and create a customer journey that benefits both the interested parties and the kingdom as a whole.”
Shifting Priorities
After years of operating, businesses tend to shift their goals and visions. We asked, “How have your priorities in business evolved since you first started?”
Hussam responds, “My priorities started largely as to how to run this field by project and then it constantly evolved, becoming weaker competitions, plans, systems, laws, major bodies and major companies in the business exchange with relevant contacts.”
Adaptability Amidst Adversities
Challenges are an inevitable part of any business journey. To learn more about such hurdles faced by Hussam M Al Shahari and how he overcomes them, we asked, “What are the most challenging situations that your company overcomes?”
He shared, “The companies and agencies that hired employee’s incapable of understanding anything about the meaning of organizing and managing parking. It is not a part of facilities management, but it must have a separate department specialized in organizing movement and parking, concerned with educating visitors, employees, and workers and guiding them to the system that is considered essential and regulatory for the workflow.”
“What’s the key strength to overcome it?”
He added, “Educating people in the sense of organizing and managing movement and situations is the key to overcoming the above-mentioned hurdles.”
A Pioneer in This Field
Having a unique approach is quite essential to maintain a strong brand presence in the industry. So, we asked, “What makes your company stand out from other businesses in your industry?”
He shared, “What distinguishes us is being the first of its kind of business in the Kingdom. Being the pioneers in this field sets us apart from others.”
Measuring Success
“What KPIs do you use to measure your business growth?”
Hussam replied, “We have set strong performance indicators with the vision of the Kingdom and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, inspiring us to reach the first center specialized in this field in the Arab world with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.”
Current Offerings
We further asked Hussam M Al Shahari, “Tell us something about your services. What are you working on currently?”
He continued, “We currently focus on specific consulting, training (coming soon), and education solutions for parking and its services, including valet parking, customer journey, frequency transportation, electricity charging, car wash service, crowd planning, system organization services, movement service.”
Acing The Trends
To ensure a competitive edge as a business, it is crucial to stay updated with all the latest trends and technologies in the industry. So, we asked, “How do you stay on top of the latest technologies and trends in your industry?”
Hussam shared, “Technology and Research is a core project for us that increases the size of the center by 80% due to its reliance on innovative research.”
Tips For Beginners
Beginners starting in a similar field will find it inspiring to hear from an expert like Hussam M Al Shahari. So, we concluded the interview by asking, “What advice would you give to starting entrepreneurs?”
He concluded, “Dream, be creative, work hard, and avoid wasting a lot of time, as dreams come true with hard work and only work.”
Follow Hussam M Al Shahari on LinkedIn
Find Parking Culture Center on LinkedIn and visit their website https://www.Parking-Culture.com
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