ALKHOBAR, 23 September 2005 — In a place as terribly hot as Saudi Arabia, fireplaces seem more than a little out of place. But sure enough there in downtown Alkhobar sits Saleh Abdullah Hassan in his shop, Asabaq for Fireplaces. The owner and general manager of this most incongruous of retail outlets is proud of the fact that he has built a thriving business basically selling heat in a land where temperatures often approach 50 degrees C.
“I realize it seems like fireplaces don’t belong in Saudi Arabia but that’s simply not so,” explained Hassan. “Before modern times people depended on wood and charcoal for cooking year round. In the winter months it often became bitterly cold after sunset and again the fireplace was there to warm the home. Even now some people still prefer to make their own tea and coffee on charcoal. They claim that the taste is different and I have found this to be true.”
The fireplaces Hassan sells from his shops in Alkhobar and Riyadh are quite different from the much smaller traditional Saudi fireplaces — although they sometimes still get requests to build old-fashioned brick fireplaces. Modern fireplaces are based on imported fireboxes, which are inserted into the decorative mantelpiece and isolate the heat and flame and channel the smoke. The firebox makes a modern fireplace very safe.
Asabaq for Fireplaces offers all types of fireplaces — wood burning, charcoal burning, electric, gas and even light and sound only. That’s right, there are imitation log inserts that when turned on simulate the sound and light of a fire without creating any heat. These may be coupled with electric blowers to produce heat whenever required. For those families planning to use the fireplace as a heat source, Hassan recommends the installation of a gas fireplace. The newest models don’t require a chimney for ventilation so they can be installed anywhere.
“A gas fireplace used four hours daily for a two-month period will burn about SR280 in natural gas. The fireplace is healthier than using the heater incorporated in airconditioning units, which tends to over dry the air, making it very difficult to breathe and normally resulting in a proliferation of upper respiratory tract infections,” said Hassan. “I try to discourage people from installing wood burning fireplaces because it is just too hard on our environment. Saudi Arabia is a desert country, rich in petroleum and natural gas. So should we be burning trees or gas for heat? The answer is obvious.”
The fireplaces for Hassan’s shops come from Italy, China, the United States and Canada. Many models are designs he creates himself and then has manufactured abroad. While the business is thriving now it was a struggle for many years. Hassan opened the shop in Riyadh 15 years ago and in no time at all eight other shops selling fireplaces had sprung up nearby.
“Everybody thought I must be making lots of money since mine was the only fireplace shop. Actually I was having a very hard time but nobody really researched the market to discover that. It wasn’t until about eight years back when the gas fireplaces started to become popular that the business became profitable. One thing we did which gave us an edge on the other shops was that the purchase price includes installation anywhere in the Kingdom. Early on I decided it was much safer for the customers and more reputable for the business for our technicians to install the fireplaces since they have the experience. I really love this business and so I was willing to invest in it and give it time to grow. All the other shops selling fireplaces in Riyadh have closed but mine is doing well. Love what you do and you will do it well and people will recognize that.”
Another reason that Hassan’s business is thriving is that he tries to make the fireplaces affordable for every family. He believes that fireplaces are for people with a certain romantic feeling about life. That feeling isn’t just found in the very rich.
“A small complete unit used to decorate and heat the yard in winter would cost SR4,000. An indoor handcrafted marble fireplace mantel can cost SR9,000. Some especially fine handcrafted mantels cost tens of thousands. There are cheaper also. Some are as little as SR4,800. We want to have something nice that will fit every budget. The fireplace inserts run another few thousand. Our prices are so reasonable that expatriates are even taking the our fireplaces back to their homelands.”
The busiest months at Asabaq for Fireplaces are September through December. The fireplace business is better in Riyadh simply because it is colder there more months of the year. Hassan remarked that more than 80 percent of the time women are the driving force in a family getting a fireplace. The ladies might not be the ones paying for the fireplace, but they know what they want and Hassan long ago learned that when a lady is involved in the purchase she should leave the shop satisfied, or else!
“Some men are really not convinced to buy a fireplace,” Hassan commented. “One time a couple came to my shop in Riyadh and early on the woman indicated that she wanted to buy a nice, expensive fireplace mantelpiece. Her husband wasn’t too excited about that idea. He wanted to buy a very inexpensive model. They began to have a little fight right in the showroom with her threatening to make his life miserable if he didn’t buy the fireplace she had picked out. Things really began heating up and so the couple went outside to the car.”
Hassan had seen similar incidents over the years so he was certain that the couple would soon be back. Sure enough, half an hour later, they returned, but neither husband nor wife looked too happy.
“I decided that it was time to step in,” Hassan continued. “I took the husband on a little walk around the showroom and reminded him of the facts of married life. I advised him to buy the fireplace his wife wanted or the nagging would never cease. I’d seen it before and I knew that the wrong choice would cause him to lose twice. In the end he was a smart husband and bought the expensive mantel. I told him with a wink that he’d made a fine choice. To be honest, I believe that investing in beauty is one of the best decisions anyone can ever make.”
