Kozhikode: Teenager sets up a carwash firm

KOZHIKODE: A teenage student who owns a mobile car wash firm! Sounds unbelievable? But meet Naheel Abdul Basheer, a 19-year-old from Mankavu, near here. A BBA student at St Joseph’s College, Devagiri, he started a mobile car wash called MyCarWash, six months ago, catering to customers on call. And currently, he has employed two others to work when he is busy with his classes and orders are aplenty.

Being rich, Naheel did not need a job. His father, a businessman in Kuwait has recently given him a luxury car to attend to his customers on time. Born and brought up in the Gulf, his parents, Abdul Basheer and Sameena, taught him the value of hard work and emphasised there was nothing to be ashamed of in cleaning a car or washing plates, Naheel says.

“My classmates sometimes make fun of me saying ‘here comes the entrepreneur, or the kodeeswaran (billionaire). But I enjoy that. I enjoy working hard. Even from my class 11, I wanted to do this since there were no firms here offering a carwash on call. But then, when such a small boy does the job, no one takes him seriously. Now, my best promoters are my customers,” says a happy Naheel.

He charges Rs 390 for sedans and Rs 450 for SUVs. The customers need to call him half an hour prior to the appointment for convenience. However, his target customers are mostly those coming to restaurants, who park and dine inside. By the time they finish eating, the cars would be clean outside. Naheel got the contract of a few restaurants on Thondayad bypass, which adds up to a major chunk of his income. Every day on an average he has seven customers, with the maximum being on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

For the restaurant parking, he gives the owner Rs 25 per car washed. For the other clients, the water from their taps are used. In future, if the business expands, more staff will be employed to cater to the network. Once the venture started becoming profitable, he began to donate regularly to poor homes.  But he maintains a policy. “I will not donate money, but will give food or clothing to the needy. When I started thinking of starting this venture, I decided to contribute a portion of my profit for charity,” said Naheel, who is planning to register the firm next month, with the trademark ‘MyCarWash’.