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Success in Woodwork
Taleqani Wood Industries has taken the initiative to combine
handwork and machine work in crafting fine items |
Back in Iran Taleqani spent a number of years teaching at the university, then launched
his export and import business, working on such items as agricultural pesticides,
construction materials, etc., and then pursued his career as a manufacturer of furniture
and kitchen systems. “My ancestors also used to export rice to Russia,” he
recalls laughing.
Interested in management books and sports, Taleqani has organized some teams of his
workers in volleyball, football and swimming. In a recent interview with Iran
International, Taleqani shared his passion for his business as well as the secrets to his
accomplishment:
Since childhood, I was very
interested in drawing, and I usually got the highest score for drawing at school. One of
the renowned artists of our country, who was a classmate of mine, recently reminded me
that those days I got an “A” in drawing, while he got a “B”! Maybe my
interest for drawing was a reason to enter the furniture and decoration business later in
my life.
Another motive for me to start up this business was that our country was a consumer of
furniture products in the past. Foreigners were pioneers of the business and even kitchen
cabinets had to be put up by foreigners due to the fact that there was no expert in that
field in the whole country.
In addition to motives, a secret to success is setting objectives at the beginning and
looking at objectives as your own “wishes”. With the wish to progress the
furniture industry in my homeland, I established two modern factories prior to the Islamic
Revolution in the country in which we were even able to build machinery with the help of
Iranian experts.
I am pleased to inform you
that today we have gained relative advantage over foreign rivals in the wood industry in
terms of machinery, equipment, skilled human force and designers, raw materials, tax
holidays, demand and even in terms of tariff barriers. I am optimistic that the Iranian
wood industry would find a satisfactory level on the international scene, as did the
Iranian pistachio trade.
As an Iranian, I felt a duty to launch an industry to manufacture furniture so that the
country would not need to import such items from abroad. I had enough self-confidence.
“God has created us as capable human beings; I am no less capable than any one else
in the world,” this is what I always say to myself.
Another reason for me to choose this profession is its unique “nature”: Since
wooden items are massive, they are quite in harmony with the human feelings. Wooden
objects create a sort of love toward themselves. Another feature of woodwork, which is
quite fascinating to me, is that they become “antiques” over time. A 20-year-old
wooden table, for example, is more expensive than a new one. As the time passes, these
objects get older like us. Wooden articles talk to you like a human being.
Another feature of the Taleqani Wood Industries is that our production line enjoys a very
high capacity through using specific methods. We produce over 300 tons of furniture and
kitchen systems and use special designs such as fretworks. Taleqani Wood Industries has
combined such designs in building doors and tables and other types of furniture and has
exported its products. These methods of combining both handwork and machine work are
exclusive to Taleqani Wood Industries, and items produced in this way are very popular
among the elite all over the world. We can also tailor-make the products based on our
customers’ demands. So far, we have exported our products to the U.A.E., Oman, the
Central Asia, Europe, etc. |
