Tell us a little about how your business started
Door2Door Pickup Couriers started in December 2019, as an entrepreneurship project as a Ph.D. student at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John campus. Six months before the start date, I had resigned from my paid job as an insurance advisor at one of the Big 4 financial institutions and decided I was going to pursue a doctorate degree in entrepreneurship and population studies. To keep paying my family bills, I started delivery food for SkipTheDishes which had just started in Saint John. It was at that point I remembered the difficult experiences I faced as a newcomer in getting direct-to-home delivery services, and I thought many people are still going through same difficult experiences in getting same-day direct-to-home delivery services. So, I thought of finding a sustainable solution to this problem.
To get the required skills and trainings, I attended two entrepreneurship courses organised by the Economic Development Greater Saint John (now known as ENVISION Saint John) and we launched 3 months before the pandemic lockdown. To curb the spread of the virus, everyone resorted to home delivery as an essential service.
Door2Door Pickup Couriers helped in free delivery services of groceries to international students and newcomers mostly affected by the pandemic lockdown. It was indeed an opportunity to serve our community.
How did you react when you found out you were a Desjardins GoodSpark Grant recipient?
When I got the email, I was speechless. At first, I was awed by the news when I read it in a mail. I was initially dumbfounded and cannot really explain how I felt. As it dawned on me, I realised the value of being selected among 150 small businesses in Canada as a huge honour. It reflects our vision and mission as a social enterprise to boost the wellbeing of people and the community. We see it as a great privilege and honour to be a recipient of this prestigious grant for this year. We are indeed very grateful to Desjardins Group for the recognition and grant award. We promise to make the best use of it to positively impact our community.
What is the source of your vision in starting Door2Door Pickup Couriers?
The Almighty God is my number one source of vision in everything I do. The vision to start the company came through prayers after I resign from my paid job. At first, I looked very stupid for an MBA holder to leave a Fortune 500 company and start delivering food, but I am grateful to God I obeyed His voice and took that leap of faith. Today, the many recognitions, awards and accolades are a testimony to the fact that the vision truly speaks.
Would you like to mention any person who has supported you on this entrepreneurship journey?
To mention only one person is difficult and impossible. Many people have supported and still supporting at various capacities. Firstly, my dear wife has being very supportive since I shared the vision with her. Another person who has encouraged me is Dr. Rob Moir. I was introduced to him about 3 months after arriving New Brunswick in 2018, then spoke to him about my doctoral research interests. He is a big supporter of social economics and community development. Our Canadian parents – Carolyn & Duke Murray have been so loving, and they keep praying for us.
A special thanks to all those who have worked with Door2Door as employees and independent contractors, especially Taranjit Singh, Jemika Davidson and Jason Cosman.
Many other people who have supported the vision are ENVISION Saint John, Paula & Ehab Radwan, Jennifer Waldschutz, Heather Acker of Connexion Works, Olaitan Onyebuoha of BBPN, Christine Eruokwu of KAIMA Designs, Li Song of PRUDE, Mohamed Bagha of The Newcomers Center, The YMCA and a host of other Saint John community. I always remember the UBUNTU ideology – I am what I am because of who we all are.
Did the immigrant community play a role in starting your business as a social enterprise? And how did the idea of going electric came about?
I believe I was inspired to start Door2Door as a social enterprise by the immigrant community in New Brunswick. As I found myself in this group and truly identify with this section of the population, I am privileged to have first-hand knowledge of the pain points and know the struggles new immigrants face when settling down in a new community (especially international students and newcomer families). This, I find as the number one inspiration, because it triggered me to think about identifying our common problems, researching to provide solutions, and thereby helping our community grow together.
The idea to go green was inspired by my academic supervisor and mentor – Dr. Rob Moir – who is the current Director of Urban & Community Studies Institute at the University of New Brunswick. He was the first Canadian to believe in my academic and entrepreneurial abilities by accepting to supervise my research thesis which is focused on the impact of immigrant entrepreneurship on the economic development and population growth of Atlantic cities. As a Ph.D. student, Door2Door Pickup Couriers is my academic project as it gives me the empirical knowledge and experiences of an immigrant entrepreneur, and the findings are used in my research work. As we started Door2Door operations just before the pandemic lockdown, Dr. Rob Moir encouraged me to start thinking about ways to use clean energy in the delivery operations and acting in an environmentally sustainable way. I am sure he might not remember that discussion, but I took note of his thoughts and that gave birth to the launch of the zero-emission delivery project in October 2021, using electric vehicles to reduce the carbon footprint and greenhouse gases.
Any last thoughts to encourage other entrepreneurs out there?
The first thing I would say is have a clear vision of what you want to do. Never make money your number one priority of being an entrepreneur. Your focus should be on solving a problem for the people. The impact you make will last far longer than the money you make. Next is to keep learning and surround yourself with mentors and good people. Lastly, seek for God’s blessings and the good interest of the community.
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