It's showtime for foreign firms!

By Meera Ravi   »   Do you want to tap into a prosperous regional market that will buy a whole range of goods from sophisticated oil drilling equipment to designer jewellery and also offer niche markets for health tourism services and consumer goods from around the world? Then the people at the Bahrain Convention and Exhibition Bureau (BCEB) are the ones you should talk to.

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Bahrain's success stories reveal secrets

In this inspirational series, we explore the lives of some of Bahrain's most successful people, and find out how they got to where they are today. The people featured here include both Bahrainis and expatriates living and working in Bahrain. The list is alphabetical, by last name. Farouk Almoayed: As a child, he had a fascination for cars. But while other children pictured themselves behind the wheel, Almoayyed's head was planted under the hood, so to speak. Karlheinz Aumann: Meet the Bahrain Sheraton general manager whose luncheon for taxi drivers has become an annual tradition since he introduced it in 1983. More Mohammed Buzizi: It took a brazen and audacious act to get Buzizi started in his hotel career. But once he had his foot in the door, he was always on track to reach the top. Mohammed Dadabhai: At the tender age of 14, when most children are starting to grow out of toys, Dadabhai was just discovering them. Not to play with though, but rather as a toy seller. Ebrahim Al Dossary: An accident early in life which broke one of his legs made him physically weak, but as Al Dossary explains, it gave him more mental strength to face life's bigger trials. Haji Hassan: Ataba, ataba... step by step. That's how Hassan described his progress from a 7-year-old pulling a donkey for miles, to his position as one of Bahrain's leading businessmen. Ahmed Janahi: It comes as a surprise when the man behind some of Bahrain's finest architectural landmarks proclaims there is no such thing as the perfect building design. Faisal Jawad: He was a bright student and when he applied for a course in medicine, he was accepted. But the day, he got his acceptance letter, he decided to go into business instead. Fahmi bin Ali Al Jowder: What does it take for someone to make it to the exalted position of a government minister, in charge of the important Works & Housing portfolio, at the age of 36? Khalid M Kanoo: A schoolboy athlete, a pioneer in Abu Dhabi when there was nothing there but sand, and now a top businessman, Kanoo is one of the most refreshing personalities you could meet. Saleh Al Kowary: Kowary often pictured himself in the CEO's chair at HSBC. Nothing wrong with that, except he was employed there as a typist and was just 14 at the time.But whoever said dreams don't come true? Iqbal Mamdani: From a small-town boy to an international banker of stature, Mamdani's story is one of calculated risks and an unending desire to go further. Mohammed Al Mannai: At seven, he braved storms and the threat of pirates as he 'crewed' on vessels buying pearls in the Gulf. By 15, he was already starting to fulfil his passion of designing jewellery. Akram Miknas: Seven friends, 7,000 dollars and one man's dream and planning - that's how Fortune Promoseven was born in 1968.Today, FP7 is the Arab world's largest advertising agency. Osman Morad: His childhood dream was to become a pilot, but less than perfect eyesight meant he had to look elsewhere to ascend to heights of success. Abdul Rahman Morshed: He was one of ten children, born into a poor family. Yet Morshed rose to become general manager of the National Hotels Company. Khamis Al Muqla: If you love what you do for a living, you will never work a day in your life. If that adage is true, advertising man Khamis Al Muqla has had the pleasure of never having to work at all. Mustafa Al Sayed: He started off with so many hard knocks in life - including a fire that left his family homeless - that he felt like Oliver Twist from the Dickens novel. Look just where he is now. Abdulnabi Al Sho'ala: As a child from a poor family, he would even collect unmarked stamps from used envelopes and sell them for extra money. Today, he is Bahrain's State Minister. Engin Turker: He was born with a love for the arts. He grew up with the desire to be an architect. What he did become was Turkey's Ambassador to Bahrain, a career, he says, that was just a 'widening of his canvas.' More Jamil Wafa: This Palestininian refugee's formative years were marked by poverty and adversity, but that didn't stop him from becoming the architect of one of Bahrain's big success stories. Johnny Young: The odds were heavily stacked against a black kid born into abject poverty in an America where equal rights were still a dream. Yet Young is now a US Ambassador.      Khalid Al Zayani: He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but when offered a top position by his father in the family's auto business, he declined. "I'll start at the bottom," he told his father, and was true to his word.