026 – Share more than what you sell – Amel Derragui – #1

Think of growing up in a warzone. Now think about growing up in three war zones.

Amel Derragui, grew up in India, then Algeria, then Serbia, and then Uganda. Three of those nations faced their most difficult years while she studied, learn more languages, had fun with friends, and survived!

Since then, Amel has lived in France, Austria, and finally the best (but probably not last) New York!

Her company is called BLINKandC, and it has had to fit in her suitcase!  But now she’s taking it out.

With BLINKandC, Amel helps small and medium companies to attract customers, interest investors, and communicate like a big organization. B&C guides them to define their value – the essence of their brand.  She tells her two compelling stories of how she could help two companies reach the communities of their clients in profound yet simple ways. One story is of a jewelry company in Iran, and the other of a French pharmaceutical company.  The stories will give you great ideas for your company.  One of her favorite sayings is: "Share more than what you sell ".

In this episode, Amel gives her insights into how to bring people together and what companies can do to connect deeply with customers and their communities, and how to attract people to your enterprise. Her insights are founded in her own unique story of engaging so many cultures and languages. Her understanding of human traits is rooted in her observing people in unguarded circumstances, in so many places.

Amel tells a wonderful story, of how the strife in her Ugandan school yard (in the French Quarter) was getting completely out of hand, and not being addressed by the school’s supervisors.  She came up with a business idea, to bring the high school kids together.

Like other guests, she explains how her migrant perspective helps her to embrace and accept new cultures, while maintaining her own identity. How she keeps a routine no matter where she travels, which gives her own life consistency. You’ll learn the Algerian secret sauce, the French secret sauce.

Now she has arrived in New York, she has been carrying her company in a suitcase for some time.  As she now joins America, for her newest and biggest challenge to date she is thinking – how to help other wanderers like herself.

Update:  Join Amel on her lovely new podcast for spouses of expats:  Tandem Nomads!

TRANSCRIPT

The only way to keep moving every two years is not to look for a job every two years; is to create a company that you can take with you, yes. So this is what I have in my suitcase; I have my company.

(0:20-0:36 Introduction)

Think of growing up in a warzone. Now, think of growing up in three warzones. Amel Derragui, my guest today, grew up in India, Algeria, Serbia and the Uganda by the time she was 14 years old. 3 of these nations faced their most difficult years while she studied, learned the languages, had fun with friends and survived. I love her story about how the strife in her Ugandan schoolyard in the French quarter was getting completely out of hand and was not being addressed by the school’s supervisors. And she came in at 14 years old with a business idea, which bought all the high school kids together. Her company is called Blink and C and she has helped companies, you’ll hear, here and in multiple countries build strong relationships with their customers and their communities. Her company model is ‘share more than what we sell’; its pretty incredible and it’s founded on the insights that she’s gained by engaging so many cultures and languages. It’s based on her understanding of human traits, rooted on observing people in unguarded circumstances in so many places. I think you’re really going to love this. Let’s go.

2:03 Welcome, Amel, to The Immigrant Entrepreneur.

2:06 Thank you, Kent. I really appreciate it. Thank you for giving me this opportunity and I love your podcast.

2:12 Tell us about Blink and C?