Young Saudi entrepreneurs have proved that dreams can come true if people have the courage to pursue them. The sixth Young Business Expo in Jeddah, inaugurated last Monday, was a hub gathering 200 male and female entrepreneurs representing small and large businesses, who shared their stories, ideas and achievements.

The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) organized the three-day exhibition as part of the Jeddah Week of Entrepreneurs activities.

Two Saudi young men Arab News met at the expo stood up as remarkable success stories. Both not aged above 28 years, they proved that the journey of a thousand miles starts with one step. Wa’el Al-Amoudi, 27, helped boost his family business to exceeding levels. As the vice president of the Al-Amoudi group, he remembers how the group started with one establishment and a capital of SR300,000 10 years ago. “The company only had four employees: My father, my brother, a sales manager and a purchase manager,” Al-Amoudi said.

Now with a capital of SR25 million, the company employs 95 workers, 50 of whom are Saudi. The group now has a strong presence in the market with six different companies specializing in advertisement, gifts, tires, food, construction, marketing and public relations.

A member of the “Excellent green domain,” the group's clients include Abdul Latif Jameel Group, Dallah Al-Baraka, Mohammad Bin Aboud Al-Amoudi Companies, Saudi Bin Laden Group, as well as hotels and other construction companies.

For Al-Amoudi, the journey wasn’t easy, “the government bureaucracy coming in the way of obtaining visas for workers,” Al-Amoudi said, adding: “Some people in the government didn’t accept that I was a young businessman in the field.”

The Al-Amoudi group hired many Saudis recently, and Wa’el hopes his experience will inspire his counterparts not to give in. “I was always determined to reach my aspiration, and this has given me the push to continue,” Al-Amoudi said.

Young Saudi photographer Tareq Al-Abdullah has been taking photos for 13 years. Saleh Kamel has been a permanent client of Al-Abdullah who photographed many of his private parties and events. Businessman Abdul Latif Jamil and singers Mohammed Abdo and Abdul Majid Abdullah, as well as famous footballer Majid Abdullah also like to have their photos taken by Al-Abdullah.

Twenty-eight-year-old Al-Abdullah owns a group of photo studios called Dokan Al-Mosawarati. “I started from scratch,” Al-Abdullah recalls, “An amateur photographing family and friends' events for not more than SR200.”

With time, Al-Abdullah decided to follow his dream and become a professional photographer, benefiting from his father’s experience who was one of the Kingdom’s earliest and most remarkable photographers. “I opened my first studio in Al-Balad area in Jeddah with a capital of SR30,000 and a 30-year-old camera my father gave me as a gift,” he said. Today Al-Abdullah takes pride in his success.

He now owns a set of latest camera equipment worth over SR250,000 and looks forward to further career advancement.