Nobody in the world thought of doing this kind of show on this scale until last year. It was apparently a difficult show to do as it involves a concept so dynamic and far-reaching yet so misunderstood, overlooked and taken for granted depending on which part of the world a person is from.
But the world’s first trade show that focuses solely on Halal products and services, the Malaysian International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) is back for the second time this August. Last year’s MIHAS recorded the largest first show in Malaysia with 505 booths from 33 countries and 17,000 visitors from 18 countries.
The Halal Journal spoke to its gregarious 38 year-old chief executive officer, Shukri Abdullah, to find out if there was more than sweat, tears and hardwork involved in making a ‘Halal trade show’ a reality.
How did MIHAS come about?
Three years ago we did a book to promote the local Halal industry’s financial services sector. We wanted to do more and had the idea to do a trade show – a show that focuses only on Halal. There are all sorts of trade shows on Halal out there, Europe for example, has a show on kosher and Halal, Thailand on Halal and Haram, et cetera.
You have travelled to over 15 cities in 12 countries to promote this Halal trade show. What was it like?
It has been interesting. When we go to places like Dubai and the Netherlands, they have a different concept on Halal. For them Halal revolves around meat, mutton and poultry. For us it’s about more than that. It’s about safety in food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics too. For them it’s just meat. So they think it is a show on meat. In Dubai, everything to them is Halal. I realise in Malaysia we see Halal differently. It’s also about safety, quality and more.
What are the main challenges concerning this show?
Market understanding of Halal. People think if it’s Muslim it’s Halal. They don’t see beyond that. Next is support. We have only verbal support from corporate sponsors. I believe this show is important for Malaysia. If it wants to be a player this event can be the catalyst. Halal is not about da’wah and Islam. Halal is about trade. It’s about Islam in a proper perspective.
So is it worth doing a Halal trade show?
Oh yes, definitely. There are a lot of trade shows out there. F&B trade shows now have Halal sections in them. Halal is a concept by God. It can stand by itself. We wanted it to stand on its own. It almost didn’t work but Alhamdulillah, it worked. We had the biggest first show in Malaysia with 505 booths from 330 countries. I’m still not very happy about that yet, but it is something.
So participation is good but the support is not?
We have many challenges. We are going to a market where many of the Muslim Halal manufacturers do not have much funds. So we started with very low participating fees. Not only for Malaysians, but for the world traders. In order to do this, we need a lot of support from others for sponsorship, but unfortunately we are not getting this.
Are your participants mostly Muslims or non-Muslims?
When I travel abroad, people perceive MIHAS as an excellent event Malaysia is doing for the Muslim communities around the world. Our Prime Minister himself said he wanted to take the lead to energise trade among Muslims. We feel that MIHAS is the right platform to do this. We also have non-Muslim participants who are in the Halal business.
Is MIHAS about business or Islam?
It’s about business and business is Islam. You cannot separate these things. Rasullullah was a trader, a successful trader. Many of his companions were good traders including Ali, Uthman Affan and Abdulrahman Auf. This is part of Islam. We must trade and we must live within Islam to trade.
**This article was first published in The Halal Journal Jul/Aug 2005 edition.