Reprint: R1103A
In 1984 the express delivery company Aramex had launched several small offices in the Middle East, hoping to become the first courier company based in that region. Money was tight, and cofounder and CEO Ghandour describes Aramex in those days as a scrappy, hand-to-mouth business. Global courier companies shied away from the Middle East, in part because there was little market demand for their services, and in part because civil wars and complex political relationships presented enormous logistical and bureaucratic challenges. Often the local postal authorities had a virtual monopoly on deliveries.
In this context Aramex approached the Seattle-based Airborne Express, a respected logistics company, offering to sell a 50% stake for $100,000. Airborne turned down the offer but promised to send some regional business Aramex’s way. That gave Aramex the credibility to approach other leading couriers; by 1987 FedEx was also a client.
Over the next two decades, the start-up took full advantage of Airborne’s experience, technology, and global reach to learn and grow. It became part of Airborne’s global alliance of regional courier companies, and access to Airborne’s package-tracking technology gave Aramex an enormous competitive advantage at a very low cost. In 1996 Airborne acquired 9% of Aramex for $2 million, and the following year Aramex became the first Arab company to trade on the NASDAQ.
In 1984, two years into building the express delivery company Aramex, I was preparing for the most important meeting I’d ever had. My partner, Bill Kingson , and I were hoping to persuade the Seattle-based Airborne Express to buy 50% of Aramex for $100,000.
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