Dama Labs was founded in March 2020 to design and develop products that are inspired by the Arabic culture and traditions. The first product released is Sibha, a handheld fidget device inspired by the traditional prayer bead. The device is made out of five unique parts using CNC machining and Injection moulding processes. In addition, three parts were sourced from various vendors in Asia. Specific attention was paid to the finish and quality of the product. An anodized matte black Aluminum frame is precisely fit with translucent PC cover; attached to it are 11 black onyx gemstones.
I have always loved entrepreneurship and the idea of staring my own company. Similar to project management, there is a particular joy that comes with handling multiple moving parts, exacting the fine details while maintain focus on the bigger picture. With Dama I was able to pursue my passion of making great products while testing the waters for my interest in business. At the time of starting this project, my employer Ghost Vapes had just filed for Chapter 7, and I was in the search for my next venture. What seemed an unfortunate situation at first soon became one full of passion and hope to release a debut product to the market and learn in depth the process of New Product Introduction. Success was defined to learn about various aspects of releasing a product the market while gaining experience in product management. This journey was one of great learning and tremendous amounts of self improvement. Along the way I learned how to deal with ambiguity, multitask carrying different aspect of the project, and grow my focus and drive towards an important project.
Dealing with ambiguity:
From dealing with delay of manufacturers to prototypes not performing as expected, there were tons of ambiguity and uncertainty to deal with on a regular basis. This project was a great teacher and test of my ability to navigate through and carrying the project forward towards success. I learned how to quickly shift gears when necessary and act on decisions to my best judgment without having a complete picture. Most problems do not have one single best solution, and considering what is best from the project prospective was important to find an optimal answer.
Multitasking:
Being a sole founder of a company necessitate one to rigorously learn about various subjects and wear multiple hats to make progress on different fronts. Besides product development, I dove deep and learned about marketing/website creation/photography, operation/logistics, and customer service. It was important to exact time management, focusing on one task while keeping track of the other aspects of the project. The decision of what to work on and when to work on it I realized is as important as the work itself.
Focus and Drive:
Some of the skills that I strengthened during this project it is focus and drive. In order to move the project forward and deliver results, I needed to maintain my concentration over a long period without getting distracted on other projects. It was hard at times when things seemed to be stagnant and obstacles were placed on the way. Moreover, especially with a sole project, drive becomes very important and the lack of it is even more evident. I found myself more determined towards success and self motivate to my greater goal to achieve success.
All in all, this journey brought to me so much joy, learning, and development on the soft and hard skills. I especially learned more about early stages of product development in terms of customer interview and later stages in the product validation stages. This project not only taught me about the process and NPI but also gave valuable insights about my strength and weakness that I needed to work on. The product is still on the market in Kuwait, it is available on Dama Labs website as well as the Instagram page. Although sale are generally modest, customers who bought our product are very pleased with it and delighted with the finish and quality of the product. I received positive messages of encouragement especially that the hardware industry in Kuwait is frail. I hope this would be a step forward towards a thriving industry in the future.
Dama Labs website www.dama-labs.com
Instagram page @damalabs
