The realm of successful dreams

Wissam El Kassis CEO, Drum Express Trading DMCC, shared his journey and valuable insights on following one’s dreams with full determination

Wissam El Kassis started his career in 2005 in industrial management with a background in business management. After gradually climbing up the ladder, he decided to move in a different direction by venturing into petrochemical drums and chemical packaging and opening his own business in 2009.

Core area

After establishing a name in the business with an impeccable record of 12 years, El Kassis spoke about his business journey. "I started the business with Recon and New Drum Trading, then extended it in 2012 by opening a manufacturing line of petroleum metal drum and packaging. Today, the company has the capability to produce more than 250,000 cans and petroleum drums monthly." Speaking about the competitive edge that makes them stand out over their competitors, El Kassis added: “We rely on our fast service and stable quality in order to maintain a good reputation in the market.”

Coping with the pandemic

El Kassis explained how successful companies need to be agile and fast enough to pivot in times of uncertainty. “When the pandemic started affecting our regular business, we introduced a new product range which suited the needs of the pandemic by coming up with sanitizer packaging”, he added.

Highlighting their achievements, El Kassis spoke about his journey. “I started in 2009 with a capital of Dh40,000 with only two people as staff. Today the company value is more than Dh50 million, with a staff that has grown to more than 150 people.

Future plans

Looking into the future, El Kassis discussed the upcoming initiatives for the new year. “We are planning to invest Dh2.5 million in 2022, with new lines that will increase the capacity of production and will give us the leverage to cover additional market. We are also planning to extend abroad with new manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia”, added El Kassis.

“There are no limitations to dream”, he concluding his thoughts on a positive note for the upcoming generation, saying: “Always dream big in order to achieve big in return, and keep trying. Never give up no matter how hard the journey is.”