1.   Please tell us about yourself.

My name is Mohammed Akhter Parvez and looking back, upon completing my O’ levels, I traveled to Canberra, Australia to get my college degree. From there, I got myself admitted into the University of Canberra and completed my graduation. After that, I returned to Bangladesh on 8th August, 2004, and joined PHP Family the very next day. These past 16 years, I have been at PHP Family, serving as its’ director. During 2012-13, we founded Pelican Properties, and we started working with automobiles in 2014.

Besides the professional arena, I enjoy traveling very much. I also love spending time with my family and I like staying with my parents. My childhood passion was playing cricket; I played 2nd division and 3rd division cricket.

2.   Currently you are playing the role of Managing Director at PHP Automobiles Ltd. Did you always have a passion or a kind of attraction towards automobiles or is this like another responsibility that came to you? 

I used to be very much involved in shipping related activities. When our PHP shipping line launched, I was taking care of PHP stocks & securities. At that time, we invited Mahathir Bin Mohamad in Bangladesh to be a guest lecturer at a convocation of University of Information Technology and Science (UITS), a Sister Concern of the PHP Family. He is extremely workaholic and has a strong personality. Despite his busy schedule, he was very much happy to accept the invitation.

One night, our families were spending time together and he invited my father to visit Malaysia as his guest. Following the invitation, my father and I visited the Proton factory. At that time, Mr. Mahathir was not the Prime Minister but he was the president of Proton.

We were exploring the factory and later met Mr. Mahathir again. During our conversation, he had suggested that we start an automobile company in Bangladesh. My father replied with a smile that we were in the business of textile, shipping, etc. and had no plan for automobile production. Mr. Mahathir replied we would not have to worry, that he is beside us and will support us through the whole process.

With this new drive, we started acquiring land, learning about cars, researching about factories, etc. We bought land in Anowara but the locals did not allow us to set up a factory there. There were times during my travels when I would hear people expressing negative opinions. I had to endure with my head bowed down. But, luckily, we found a location near the city and redesigned and restructured the factory according to the region.

We submitted the designs to CDA for approval. At that time, the chairman of CDA was Mr. Salam who was very cooperative, but the local people were still very unwilling to allow the setup of a factory there. I was very disheartened due to this, thinking that we would never be able to manufacture cars in Bangladesh, but Mr. Salam was able to expedite the whole process and passed the plan within a short period of time.

It is a matter of pride that we pioneered automobile manufacturing in Bangladesh and I was honored to be a part of it. After we got the approval, we started to work with enthusiasm, and Proton fully supported us through this process.

Initially I struggled a lot. There was a process where I had to sit with the authority regarding necessary permissions & policies to manufacture cars in Bangladesh. Sometimes, I had to wait for 6-7 hours a day before being able to sit for a meeting. I kept contacting them on a regular basis.

It was the month of Ramadan at that time. I prayed Taraweeh in Chattogram on the 1st day of Ramadan, and then on the 2nd day of Ramadan, I had to go to Dhaka. I had to sit in an office all day, and head back to Chattogram to pray Taraweeh and again go to Dhaka the very next day. I used to have my iftar on the plane, it was quite a tough time for me since I had to keep travelling on a regular basis. Finally, I was able to set all the terms with the authorities, and everything unfolded smoothly.

A dream is not just something that you see while sleeping but it’s also something that doesn’t let you sleep until you complete the mission. I dreamt that we would be able to manufacture cars in Bangladesh and that within the next 5 years, we will not have to use imported cars in Bangladesh, we will be exporting cars!

3.   Let us know about the automotive industry and how it feels to be the first one who manufactured automobiles in our country? How was the journey so far and who came up with the idea? What were the challenges?

There are about 92% reconditioned cars in Bangladesh, including Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mahindra, Tata, Proton, Volvo, Peugeot, Ford, MG, Audi, BMW, Mercedes. Only 8% are new and it is time for a change in Bangladesh’s Automobile Industry. Previously, there were no restrictions in the sale of reconditioned vehicles but now the government is imposing strict rules and regulations against it.

If you look at PHP motorcycles, they do not have much market share but are actually doing a very good job by contributing to the country’s economy. The workers here are getting their proper wages and are able to lead a proper life. Previously, when reconditioned cars were imported, there were economic benefits but there was no impact on the overall economy.

Recently we faced some challenges, like when we had to convince buyers to buy our cars, they said that they had to wait at least 3 month for any spare parts if they requested and in case of Proton, they would have to wait at least 6 months. We had to listen to these types of feedback regularly but not anymore.

Toyota parts are readily available in the market which is not the same for many other car brands. We came up with a solution called PVS (Purchased Vehicle Solution). You can download the application on your phone – both iOS & Android, and check the price of spare parts and buy them through the application. You can avail cash on delivery system or bKash the amount as well. We also maintain a warehouse in Chattogram as well as in Dhaka. We provide home delivery within 24 hours for a very small fee, and if the delivery takes longer than that, the delivery cost is cancelled. You will not even have to visit a shop for spare parts, PHP will deliver them to you!

4.   Your father, Alhaj Sufi Mohamed Mizanur Rahman is being considered as one of the philanthropic industrialists of our country. How do you see his vision and how does his work influence you?

My father is my idol but I do not know if I would be able to accomplish any great task or activities like he did. When we sit in a board meeting with the chairman, each of us seven brothers are assigned a target. Our target is not to maximize our profit, it is to maximize our contribution towards society and the people. That is what we have to achieve.

Our Chairman’s target is to emphasize on the long term goal and he is indeed a visionary who lives a very simple life. One advice of his I always try to follow is, “Divine blessing, mixed with hard work and backed by good intention can create miracles.” So you will not only have to work hard, your intentions will need to be pure and you need blessings from the Almighty.

To be honest, I also feel a bit pressured working alongside him. When I went to Hajj, a haji surprisingly asked me, “Aren’t you the son of Mr. Sufi? Did you recognize me? I am Liyakat.” I was surprised but I really did not recognize him until he mentioned that my father had set up a mosque in his vicinity and Mr. Liyakat was in charge of the entire project.

My father has contributed in many charitable causes and took part in numerous philanthropic activities. My father set a standard that I can continuously strive to achieve, and I feel proud and am willing to face the challenges head on. I always advise my nephews and my children to be humble, and try their best to be like their grandfather.

5.   According to you, what are the biggest accomplishments that you have achieved? And what is your ultimate goal?

To be honest, I believe the best is yet to come. But there are some small events that make me happy, and I’ll share those with you. During this pandemic, PHP Automobiles Ltd. was able to stand beside 10,000 families. Even during this pandemic, many companies and banks were reducing salaries and sacking employees to cut costs. You’ll be very glad to know that we haven’t done either of those. And, what also makes me happy is that, at PHP, we do not believe that each person works under a superior, everyone here is for each other, and together we are PHP – we are a family, the PHP Family.

6.   How technologically advanced is the automotive sector in Bangladesh? What limitations are we currently experiencing in this sector?

First of all, I would like to divide my answer in parts. If you see the importers, they just import the cars and sell them, there’s no value addition here. The cars are sold just like the way commodities are imported and sold. If you go one step beyond SKD, you’ll find that just painted cars are imported but the value addition here is still quite low.

Then, there is another way where there is no paint on the car. There’s a proper processing line for this in the paint shop. And, in the paint shop, we again sort these cars under different categories. The process that is going on is the transformation of technology here. The local engineers are learning it and applying the techniques, and thereby developing it for the future.

When you’re building the body of the car, you cannot initiate any other activities at that time. I do not want to build the engine of the car myself now, but if I can build 100% of the body of a car, I will be quite happy about that. There’s no guarantee whether octane based cars will survive in the next 10 years as there will be mass adoption of electric vehicles but there’ll be no change in the material or design for the body of the vehicle.

7.   Why are local companies not our first thought while choosing automobiles in our country? What is your approach towards changing this behavior?

Let us compare the Proton Saga with the most sold car called the Toyota Corolla Axio. I would sell the Saga for Tk.14,99,800 where the 5 year old reconditioned Axio is sold for Tk. 16,50,000. If your Axio shows engine problems on the day after purchasing it, you may have trouble getting support immediately. The seller will be providing you with minimal support for that. Whereas, if you buy Proton cars, we’ll be providing you 3 years of warranty as well as 5 free services. You will receive benefits like free engine oil, air filter, etc. It will be changed in front of you.

If your car faces any problems on the road, you can call us to have your car towed.  If you leave your car in our garage for servicing, after any major accident, you might even get a complimentary Proton Saga to use for the time being. The client is our priority and their safety and convenience is our main concern.

We are also providing resell service for your Proton car. If there is any paint issue at the time of reselling, we will repair it for free. We will also repair the shattered glass of your car without any service charge. We will display your car for sale in our showroom and for that, you will not have to bear any cost either. When your car is sold with your consent, we will then adjust the amount with your new Proton car purchase. So currently, our sales are quite good and growing at a steady pace as well.

8.   What is your observation on today’s youth and their involvement? Do you think that they need to be more engaged with social activities and entrepreneurship? 

The youth is our asset, they are our future. When I attend international forums or programs, I see that many people from other countries think that Bangladesh is a poor country, that there is a lack of opportunities here. However, when I shared information about how economically potential Bangladesh is, that surprised them and their perception about us gradually began to change. I strongly believe that if we can give proper guidance to the youth, our country’s future will be brighter.

9.   Tell us about your experiences visiting factories in other countries.

I have visited lots of factories in India, Malaysia, and China to understand their situations, like how to reduce cost, how to ensure proper quality, and how each process actually works. I was the consultant in the establishment of our own car factory. A new factory in Iran even approached us to be their consultant.

10.   How do you ensure talent for the automobile industry and what would be your suggestion?

It is quite difficult to ensure or find talent in the automotive industry. I always try to enlighten my team. I read a lot of books and watch educational videos as well. So, I advise my team to properly learn about different automobile topics like collision, painting, engines, etc. I advise them to visit sites or factories and to ask me for help if they need any. I suggest to them to learn something new every day. Each and every department should learn the best regarding their field of work. If they need guidance, they can learn from exceptional brands. Each member of the departments is taught and ensured that they will have their skills developed by experts on a one to one basis. We spend quite a lot for training and development but ultimately my team is performing well and the results speak for themselves. We also receive training from Proton on a regular basis.

11.   Since the COVID-19 crisis started 7 months ago, how difficult has it been for your industry? 

It has hit the industry quite hard. It was like making ends meet for a while. There used to be about 100 people visiting our showrooms everyday among which around 50 would buy our cars, but now the showrooms are quite empty most of the time. Still, we are making a great recovery and everything is going fine.

We have ensured the basic needs for our people during this pandemic. We are providing masks and sanitizers and have attended office on a rotation basis. And we have started regular office hours since last month.

If we found any employees sick, we tried to give our best for their treatment and supported them both financially and mentally. One of our executive directors was severely affected by COVID-19, and we had covered the cost for his treatment. He has since recovered and is doing fine now. Honestly, the cost was never an issue, his health was top priority, and we are willing to go to great lengths to ensure the well-being of all our PHP family members.

12.   What visions do you have? What is your ultimate goal in life?

One day I will export cars from Bangladesh. I cannot hit sixes at the last ball and capture victory for my team like Tamim Iqbal, nor can I fight in wars like the army or our freedom fighters. But one day, I will represent my country – my country’s flag will be waving in another country and that is the ultimate goal of my life.

13.   What advice do you want to give to the youth of this generation?

The youth should have a die-hard attitude. If you cannot fly, then run. If you cannot run, then walk. If you cannot walk, then crawl. You have to make sure that you keep moving forward. The youth must always maintain a can-do attitude! They must focus less on making excuses and more on creating opportunities.