Salam Market

It's all in the family.

Like many residents of Kissimmee, Mohammed Alaoui had to travel outside of the area before finding a food market that catered to his halal food needs.  Mohammed had over ten years experience in the food & beverage and retail industries, and saw a great opportunity to meet the needs of the increasing ethnic population in Kissimmee by opening Salam Market, a food market specializing in halal meat and international foods.  Because he had no previous experience with starting a business, Mohammed began exploring the path of entrepreneurship by asking various individuals about owning a business. Receiving only positive feedback, Mohammed was not convinced. Therefore, he turned to Commissioner Ken Shipley, who referred him to the Small Business Development Center at UCF in Kissimmee.

In October, Mohammed attended the SBDC’s “How to Start Your Business Workshop” and received not only basic information on licensing permits and business registration, but, more importantly, he was able to hear both the positive and negative aspects of starting a business.  “(This workshop) opened my eyes to new ideas and I obtained helpful information as to the requirements that one must meet to obtain bank financing especially for a start-up.”  Mohammed met with Janice Lopez, SBDC at UCF’s Kissimmee site manager and certified business analyst, to review and fine tune his business plan. For Mohammed, having a business plan allowed him to recruit his family to participate in the business. “I decided to turn to family to not only invest in the market but also to participate in the business.  The business plan allowed me to explain the business to my family in a clear manner and also present them with realistic projections and goals for the business.”   Salam Market had their grand opening in late January 2008.   Mohammed and two family members manage the day to day operation of the store and are amazed at the community reception.  He continues to utilize the resources and services of the SBDC to assist him with his business needs.

“I would recommend that anyone looking to start or expand a business take part in the services offered by the SBDC it gives you a different point a view, you get good ideas and resources so that you will not become part of the failure statistics but rather successful statistics.”

"(This workshop) opened my eyes to new ideas and I obtained helpful information as to the requirements that one must meet to obtain bank financing especially for a start-up"

Mohammed Alaoui, Owner
Salam Market