Abha: Hard work and a nose for innovation helped Ali Said Al-Ahmari and his wife Jumai’ah to pool their resources to earn a quick buck.
The Al-Ahmaris kept it simple when they used their knowledge and skills to good effect during the holy month of Ramadan.
They hit upon the idea of selling food that included ingredients used by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and also include foods mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, Al-Watan daily reported.
Their efforts earned them SR3,000 to SR3,500 (approximately 930 US dollars) daily.
Ali holds a master’s degree in education and works as a teacher in one of the schools in Asir. His wife also holds a master’s degree and works as an education supervisor in the region’s Education Administration.
After work, they join forces to sell their specially-cooked food in the Ramadan market of Khamis Mushayt. Throughout the holy month, the 50-year-old Saudi national stayed in the market from 3.00 p.m. until sunset to sell food prepared by his wife Jumai’ah.
“I benefited from reading books on prophetic medicine and the scientific miracles in the Holy Qur’an as well as books on herbal cure. I used this knowledge to make some money for my family, and daily my take home was between SR3,000 and SR3,500,” Al-Ahmari said.
“After attempts to prepare special meals, most of which contain ingredients mentioned in the Holy Qur’an like ginger, sweet basil (raihan) and olives, among others, the idea came upon us to prepare and sell these meals.
“My wife, who is an education supervisor and holds a master’s degree, is the one who gives us inspiration in many of the recipes. She prepares the meals daily at home while I and my two sons Muhammad and Said sell the meals", he said.
Al-Ahmari joked that big firms too are making use of his ideas, but they rebuffed him when he approached them.
He said: “I approached one of the big dairy companies with a project for the production of special kinds of juices, but they rejected the suggestion. However, after some time I found similar types of juices in the market.”
Al-Ahmari, however, was happy with his humble serving. For, the stall got packed not only for the quality of food, but the additional services the owner provided.
Al-Ahmari went beyond selling the meals; he used his knowledge to provide eating tips to customers.
He asked customers about the diseases that afflicted them and he accordingly advised them to take certain foods that are beneficial and avoid some that could prove unsafe.
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