It would be a pretty safe bet to say that you have never heard of Seroshi Ahmed (Roshi to his friends). By his own admission he has kept a low profile in the automotive world despite running his own prestige car business since leaving college.
Roshi is a car importer/exporter and broker to the rich (and probably famous). His phone constantly pings with messages about cars being sold around the world and calls from suppliers and contacts looking for the latest clients dream car. It might be a Rolls Royce, a Lamborghini or a Ferrari, Roshi is very much about the top end of the market.
It all started by accident when he was studying business studies at college. One of his friends moved to Japan and got into the car scene there. He suggested that Roshi import some cars and sell them in the UK. His first import was a Mitsubishi Pajero (a Shogan in the UK) and he paid £3 000 for the car and importation to the UK.
A punter knocked on his door asking if the car was for sale and a deal was done for £6 000, he had doubled his money. Unfortunately before the car was collected it was in an accident flipping over and causing substantial damage. Roshi returned the deposit and sold the car to a salvage company for £5 500. Still a good return on his investment and a nice sum for a student,
However Roshi returned to his studies and a couple of part time jobs leaving the importing on the back burner. It was another three years before Roshi returned to it with a Nissan Skyline with a blown engine. He put it on ebay and it sold immediately for £2500. He mad a straight £500 on the car but more importantly he made a contact in Holland who wanted a steady supply of cars. For the next three years he imported lots of cars from Japan through his new company Sabe imports.
Then in 2008 there was crash and demand fell away. But in every crisis there comes opportunity and as the pound fell British cars became attractive to overseas markets, especially those which drive on the left. There are a surprising number of countries which drive on the left and a lot of the business was with Barbados and Malta.
As Roshi’s business grew, so did his reputation and people started to approach him to buy specific cars for them (brokerage). Roshi now travels extensively abroad looking for stock and cars for clients. As the market changes so the business has had to adapt finding new sources for cars and offering new services.
Roshi’s son Aryan has now joined the business and is building the companies profile on Tick Tock and other social media platforms. Roshi is keen to grow his own and the business profile.
How difficult is it to import a car? Well not that difficult if you have the right contacts. First you need someone in Japan to source a car and deliver it to a shipping company. Once it arrives in the UK you pay Customs duty, take it for an IVA test (if under 10 years old) or an MOT if older. But of course it is all about your networks and Roshi has spent years building those networks all around the world.
If you are looking for a good value, prestige car then importing from a country which drives on the left, makes some sense. But if you are doing it for the first time I would consider a broker. As an added bonus Japanese imports are often equiped to a higher spec than the British equivalents.
Take a look at Roshi’s web site to see whats on offer, http://www.sabeimports.com
Tomorrow we will be looking at Roshi’s Toyota Century.