Q. 1 Kindly give our readers an introduction to your business. Please include what your business is all about, in which city you are located and if you have offices in multiple locations/ cities.
Ans: We are MUM Sports, a car wrapping company located in Fremont, California. Our services include paint protection, window tinting, chrome delete, powder-coating wheels, painting calipers and auto detailing in one convenient location. MUM Sports is an authorized installer of Ceramic Pro and Xpel (Paint Protection Film). Our immense attention to detail, hundreds of happy clients, and everlasting desire to perfection is why our slogan is “Quality is never an accident. It is the result of intelligent efforts.”
Q. 2 Kindly give us a brief description about yourself (it should include your brief educational or entrepreneurial background and list some of your major achievements).
Ans: My name is Sayed and I have been in the car business for over 30 years. I started as the owner of a transportation company in the 90s, then moved into sales, and I have now served as MUM Sports’ owner/manager for 3 years. I am passionate about cars and providing my clients with the highest quality of work achievable. I am married with three children who are 18, 28, and 30 years old.
Q. 3 What inspired you to (start a new business venture) or (to make significant changes in an existing business)? How did the idea for your business come about?
Ans: While working in sales, I stumbled upon MUM Sports, an 18 year old established business specializing in car wrapping. After years of working as a salesperson, I felt ready to be back in a managerial position, and MUM Sports allowed me to do just that. When I first came in, MUM sports was focusing on wholesale, and I felt that expanding to the retail level could really launch this business to another level of success.
Q.4 What three pieces of advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
Ans: First, you have to have the passion for any venture you want to succeed in. From there, you must commit yourself to achieving this goal you have set. Second, be consistent in your work ethic and the results will start to show. Last, always be honest with the customer, your employees, and most importantly, yourself!
Q.5 What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur?
Ans: I believe communication, whether it be with a manager, employee, or client, is key when attempting to succeed as an entrepreneur. Knowledge of the field is also necessary in order to ensure you are set up for success. However, time management is the most important skill for entrepreneurship in my opinion!
Q.6 How many hours do you work a day on average?
Ans: I work 10 hours a day, 6 days a week.
Q.7 To what do you attribute your success?
Ans: I attribute it to my ambition and consistency. Since day one, I have utilized my consistency to aid me in all my business ventures and have yielded a great level of success from this. Additionally, I have always paid immense attention to detail, which I believe has allowed me to triumph in multiple fields of work.
Q.8 How do you go about marketing your business? What has been your most successful form of marketing?
Ans: MUM Sports has an in-house marketing employee. We focus our advertising on social media and Yelp, with the latter being our most successful form of marketing.
Q.9 Where did your organizations funding/capital come from and how did you go about getting it? How did you obtain investors for your venture?
Ans: MUM Sports funding was brought in by a third-party investor initially, but since 2 years ago, the business has become profitable and all the funding now comes from the business itself.
Q.10 What is the best way to achieve long-term success?
Ans: Honesty.
Q.11 Where you see yourself and your business in 5 – 10 years?
Ans: I hope to be successful enough to retire once my youngest daughter returns from college in about 5 years. I see myself overlooking MUM Sports from an out-of-office position, as we expand to multiple locations around the Bay Area to allow for a wider range of clientele.
Q.12 Excluding yours, what company or business do you admire the most?
Ans: I admire Tesla for multiple reasons. First, they have revolutionized an already established industry: cars. Their switch from combustion engines to electric battery cars and the level of success they have achieved in such a short time is unprecedented. I admire how they have incorporated environmentally friendly tactics to craft a vehicle that has ameliorated the car industry’s effect on the environment.
Q.13 How important have good employees been to your success?
Ans: Good employees have been the backbone to any business venture I have embarked on. A business can not succeed without hard-working, dedicated employees,
Q.14 How long do you stick with an idea before giving up?
Ans: I have never given up on an idea that I have committed to, rather I refine the idea or my approach to it in order to achieve my goal.
Q.15 What motivates you?
Ans: My family and my desire to provide a comfortable, joyous life for my wife and kids motivates me to work as hard as possible.
Q.16 What are your ideals?
Ans: I believe in the three C’s: consistency, commitment, and communication.
Q.17 How do you generate new ideas?
Ans: I generate new ideas by looking at my business model and seeing how it can be improved. I take into account my prior business ventures and strive to go above and beyond what I have accomplished already.
Q.18 How do you define success?
Ans: When my clients are happy with the quality of work our business provides, I believe we have succeeded. Also, looking around me and seeing an active work environment with jobs coming in makes me feel successful.
Q.19 How do you build a successful customer base?
Ans: A successful customer base can be built through honesty and a high quality of work. While advertisements can bring in new clients, only reliable and reputable service can build and maintain a customer base!
Q.20 What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur?
Ans: As an entrepreneur, I have the freedom to do things my own way; I set my own hours and goals which allow me to take on the responsibility myself.
Q.21 What has been your most satisfying moment in business?
Ans: When I acquired MUM Sports, my goal was to make it not only profitable in wholesale, but also in retail. Two years ago, when the business became profitable in retail and I achieved that goal, I felt extremely happy with the work I had put in and the level of success I was able to yield.
Q.22 What do you feel is the major difference between entrepreneurs and those who work for someone else?
Ans: As I stated prior, entrepreneurs have a higher level of freedom and flexibility. While those who work for someone else are tied to a set method or hours of work, entrepreneurs are more likely to be able to adjust their work to fit their needs or schedule.
Q.23 In one word, characterize your life as an entrepreneur.
Ans: Laborious.
Q.24 How did you decide on the location for your business?
Ans: I decided on Fremont as my location, as it serves as the gateway to SIlicon Valley while also being accessible to big cities like Oakland and San Francisco. This way, I can attract clients from all around the Bay Area and beyond!
Q.25 Do you believe there is some sort of pattern or formula to becoming a successful entrepreneur?
Ans: I truly believe that with honestly, commitment, consistency, and communication one can achieve success in a business venture.
Q.26 If you could talk to one person from history, who would it be and why?
Ans: I would like to have a conversation with Henry Ford. His assembly line idea completely revolutionized the car business and was a huge part of the Industrial Revolution. I am inspired by what he did, and it would be insightful to ask him about his approach to business.
Q.27 What are your hobbies? What do you do in your non-work time?
Ans: I enjoy videography, photography, and learning about/working with animals. In my non-work time, I spend time with my family and film short documentaries.