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French entrepreneurs Mathias Bricard and Btisam El Fartah have injected modern methods into the process of bargain hunting in a first-of-its-kind web concept in Bahrain bringing ‘together’ retailers and consumers.
Together, a name Btisam picked to represent the community working together to offer the best deals, presents an online audience with discounts on services and items, some of which are exclusive to the island.
The weekly-deal site aims to represent what the dot-com boom is all about; big sales, easy publicity for partners and a solid connection between retailers and online consumers with vendors offering the best deals in the country to its potential customers.
The togetherinbahrain.com domain offers a variety of products and services and is headlined under six tabs; weekly deals, activities & sport, restaurants, health & beauty, travel & events and shopping (electronics, jewellery, clothes).
Co-founder Mathias, 31, from Juffair, said: “The idea is simple – we sell everything online at a discounted price.
“We update the site weekly with new deals so that people can come back frequently and see what’s on offer.
“Together is a marketing agent. We are promoting different companies. At the bottom of every offer there is a section which tells customers about the partner offering the product. We promote the office, describe the company, and tell consumers where it is on the map.
“The ‘offer’ is only valid on the website and we take a percentage of what we sell. For the partners it is a huge opportunity because we offer results. It makes the customer want to know more about them, where they are located, what other offers they are giving and what services they provide.
“Something that differentiates us from our competitors in the region is that we select the offers before publishing them. We try the offers systematically to make sure it is good and is up to the value and quality for our customers. We must have the best deals. It would be very damaging to find a deal offering a lower price anywhere-else.”
Its monthly ‘killer deal’ has proved to be a major attraction offering a discount of 80 per cent or more on a specific product or service attracting many to snap it up within hours.
Mathias explained how the item is usually something ‘new and hot’. A recent killer deal was an hour-long massage from a leading beauty lounge and salon being offered for just BD1 … 90 per cent off the original price!
Many items on the site, such as watches and jewellery, are exclusive to the company and shipped in specially. These items can be delivered straight to a customer’s doorstep.
The idea of Together was born in June 2012. Mathias and Btisam moved to Bahrain four years ago and had no idea where to visit. Not only did they find the prices very high at many of the high quality establishments they visited, but they didn’t know where to find alternatives.
Both believe that the website will particularly help expats, like themselves, discover the hot spots and where best to spend their time and money. A section dedicated to what to do in Bahrain as well as to learn more about Bahrain is also available on the site.
As an architect, Btisam, 27, focuses on the aesthetic and design side of the website, whereas Mathias, who boasts a Masters degree in business studies, focuses on the everyday operations and production side.
They both encourage customers to act fast when they see a deal they like as there is usually only so many hours before the offer expires, with a timer at the bottom of every offer counting down to the second when the promotion will be taken off the website.
Together’s social media Facebook page has already attracted 8,000 friends and word-of-mouth continues to grow the business which has its headquarters in Juffair.
The team of six features the two co-founders, two sales representatives, a marketing executive and a secretary. They receive an average of 500 hits daily and 15,000 monthly.
To purchase an offer, the consumer (who must be aged 18 or above) is required to register for free beforehand. After they find a deal, have read the conditions and want to buy the offer, they have to either pay by credit card or use a cash-on-delivery service.
“The cash-on-delivery service is important because some people do not trust the internet these days. It is also important to read the conditions surrounding any offer,” explained Mathias.
“It tells the customer when the offer is valid until, if they need a reservation prior to going to a place and some of the offers even have a limit as to how many you can purchase depending on how many are available.”
The site continues to develop by adding new categories within the tabs.
For further details email contact@togetherinbahrain.com or visit www.togetherinbahrain.com
