A millionaire’s success burnt to ashes

A booming business of oil and gas cylinders and a reputable store in Noakhali's Chairman Ghat, Md Saiful had all he ever asked for, but a fire in mid-2020 razed his successful business to the ground.

The fire, caused by a gas cylinder blast, claimed the lives of three people and also brought Saiful to his knees as he lost to the fire goods worth Tk2 crore and all the cash kept in the store.

Talking to The Business Standard, Saiful said, "I remember the day of the fire vividly. I had just come out of the store five minutes before the fire broke out. Otherwise, I would have been killed too."

Now Saiful, once a millionaire, having lost his successful business, sells mobile accessories from a small desk on a footpath in the Station Road area of Chattogram.

Having graduated from Open University, Saiful always had a knack for business and he had been involved with his father's business since 2003. Growing up experiencing the damage caused by river erosion in Hatia, Saiful learned the importance of persistence quite early in life which later helped him become a successful businessperson.

Reminiscing, he said, "We lost our home three times – in 2004, 2009, and 2016 – to the Meghna river due to erosion. Sometimes, we had to relocate our store twice a week to save it from erosion. So, the struggle is something I am not entirely new to."

Initially, his family had one shop in Noakhali's Hatiaghat, set up by his father in 1998, but after Saiful's father fell ill in 2006, he had to take over the business.

Not only did he handle his father's business brilliantly, Saiful also helped expand the business and set up another store in Noakhali's Chairman Ghat in 2018. The store gained wide popularity within a short time.

However, the fire brought a black cloud upon Saiful's life. Soon after the store at Chairman Ghat was burnt to the ground, the store at Hatiaghat was looted twice due to political reasons. Not knowing what to do, initially, Saiful looked for government jobs. But being 40 in 2020, he could not manage that.

Now, he is starting from scratch with his little corner of mobile accessories.

"I started this business only 12 days ago. I earn about Tk300-Tk500 per day. My younger brother gave me Tk25,000 to start something new and I am trying to turn my life around," said  Saiful, with a defiant smile, refusing to give up, no matter how hard life is.