Interviews

Dr. Mohammad Omar Bin Haider is Founder and Chairman of Mohammad Omar Bin Haider Holding Group (MOBH), one of today’s leading business groups in Dubai. In this interview, Bin Haider discusses the origins of the family business, starting with the activities of his grandfather who emigrated from Yemen. Mohammad’s father, Omar Ali Bin Haider, was brought up in Dubai, and developed a business in trading and serving as an agency for automobile components and refrigerators amongst other consumer goods. He also had a factory that built housing blocks, and supplied pipes that were crucial to transporting water to and throughout Dubai. As his business grew, he became close to the Sheikh Rashid, Dubai’s Ruler after 1958. In this interview, Haider explains the growth of his business against the backdrop of the changing economy of the United Arab Emirates, especially after the development of the oil industry during the 1970s. Bin Haider’s father died when he was still young. During the 1970s Sheikh Rashid oversaw the distribution of the family assets between him and his brother. Most of his father’s businesses went to his brother; he only kept one office for himself. In the late 1970s, Bin Haider started his first company, Dubai Equipment. Thereafter the firm progressively diversified from logistics into hospitality, healthcare, education, manufacturing, automotives, and insurance. In 2000 Bin Haider diversified further into real estate. Bin Haider describes how he expanded internationally, including to Britain and Germany. To conclude the interview, Bin Haider focuses on the importance he places on philanthropy and giving back to society. The Mohammed Bin Haider Holding Group currently employs over 5,000 people in over sixty affiliates and subsidiaries worldwide.

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