Hamza Aboulfeth: “I’m not an eccentric”
From internet web hosting, creating his own company at age 17, opening his own restaurants, beating cancer and publishing his book, Moroccan serial entrepreneur, Hamza Aboulfeth (34) claims he is “not an eccentric” after taking his next leap in opening up a luxurious Ranch in the Moroccan countryside.
The Backstory
As the founder of the company Genious Communications, Hamza stressed that he does not consider himself a genius, “oh no, the people who are a part of my team are the geniuses, I’m just the guy behind the scenes.”
His idea for the name came from the Disney movie ‘Aladdin’. “I loved the genie, and genie in English is Genius, however, the name was taken so I added an ‘o’ after the ‘u’.”
Years later, the entrepreneur came across the English word ‘ingenious’ which is spelt with an ‘o’, “so it worked out after all” he stated.
Fluent in Arabic, French and English, Hamza wrote in his autobiographical book ‘From Startupper to Cancer Fighter”, that he was “Allergic to traditional education”. However, he stated that “I try to believe that school is important, I want my kids to believe that, but for yourself.”
The need to “give marks on different subjects is not really how it should be done” stated Hamza about the modern educational school system, “you don’t need to follow the traditional steps.”
Though Hamza went to school and university, he left his first internship after three days to create his company ‘Genious’ at age 17. Realistically, it’s “hard work and really wanting something, no matter what it is that will make success easier”, Hamza advised.
Success
Reflecting on his accomplished and outlandish life, Hamza stated “I’m not an eccentric” though he loves to take chances. “It’s the fact that we don’t know what will happen is what makes us want to explore and try, it is like a gamble, Luck is involved.”
When asked about the success of his life and his projects, the entrepreneur questioned “What is success? How does each one of us define success? Is it a figure or a state of mind? maybe we need to define what success actually means.”
No matter how one might define Success, Hamzas Ranch, on top of the long list of other projects has been prosperous, with an overflow of bookings and visitors and plans to expand.
The Next Door
“Every door we open reveals a new possibility” (From Startupper to Cancer Fighter), Though, Hamza revealed that he doesn’t want to open any more doors after a “very challenging and time-consuming 3 years.”
“Some doors might open themselves, but at this point, I just want to enjoy and maintain what I have done so far,” he stated. However, Hamza added that he did want to start a documentary project, however “that’s nothing, a very small side project, like fries to a burger.”
The Idea
The Ranch was originally planned to be Hamza’s own “personal farm” after he bought the land, however, development plans were interrupted when Hamza and his team couldn’t find any water.
Morocco has struggled with an ongoing 5-year drought that has plagued the nation, meaning it is difficult for local farmers to keep their crops Alive. Due to this, “things didn’t work out the way I expected,” said Hamza.
READ: Morocco drought devastates farmers’ livelihoods
Brought to a halt, instead of planting a farm of olive trees and calling it a day, Hamza imagined something bigger that would take more time. “I always have been and still am impulsive, I’m not sure how it would have ended up if I had done things differently, when I have something in my mind, I just do it,” stated Hamza.
With the help of solar panels and water pumps, plans developed along the way to create ‘The Ranch’ that can be seen today; however, it was still just intended for Hamza and his family.
He realised there was a market for a public vocational farm after sharing his journey on social media, “people were encouraging me to open it to the public, and the rest is history.”
Hamza stated his belief that “everything happens for a reason,” If Hamza had found water initially, he would have never created the Ranch. “Sometimes something bad can be good for you, it can have a positive outcome and it shapes your route of life,” he added.
In the beginning, Hamza would visit his farm up to “three times a day” to help with developments, however, now he visits once or twice a week to see the progress being made, as he described; “water doesn’t boil while you watch it, you have to plant the seed and let it grow.”
Out of all of his projects, Hamza considers his greatest achievement to be that he “can be free” to do whatever he wants. “It is priceless for me,” said the restaurant owner.
He stated that loves that he can choose what he does with his time, “either I come to The Ranch, go to the restaurant or go to the office, I’m always working but I can still be in the Bahamas and answer my phone.”
Feeling immensely proud of the result of his latest project, Hamza said “I really want to show people that you can do it, you just need money, lots of time, and the will.”
The Ranch
While most of the Moroccan countryside is covered in dry Barron land, The Ranch, which spreads across 10 hectares is full of greenery, blossoming flowers and acquainted with running water fountains.
What started as a personal project, in the space of two years, Hamza has created a beautiful modern farm called ‘The Ranch’ where guests can visit or stay in the hotel and use the facilities.
Equipped with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, an outdoor Moroccan cuisine restaurant that can seat 240, a rooftop fine dining restaurant with more international cuisine that can seat 50, a beautiful panoramic view of the Atlas Mountains and an abundance of animals, Hamza described The Ranch as “a place where people can relax and enjoy themselves.”
Day passes into the farm are 50 dirhams (£10.51) for adults and, 25 dirhams (£5.26) for children, the entrepreneur stated that his main target market for the farm is families and couples. “There is so much to do, playgrounds for the kids, breakfast or lunch, horse-riding, visiting the animals” Hamza added.
As a true lover of animals, Hamza has a passion for collecting different animals and acquired over 100 breeds for his farm so far, so many that he spends around “$4000 on animal food per month.”
The list of wildlife includes goats, cows, pigs, horses, birds, sheep, ducks, chickens, geese and many more. The Ranch also has many rare breeds of animals including the black chicken which is one of the rarest chicken breeds globally.
When guests want to book an overnight stay, they can choose from the nine spacious and modern rooms in the main building which is open-planned, which overlooks the living area and indoor swimming pool.
Plans to develop The Ranch are still in action, the sky is the limit for Hamza, stating that “as long as you don’t have four walls, you have infinity.” The founder of Genious Communications plans to expand on the land to build more bungalow units using eco-friendly materials.
Hamza hopes to host more large events at The Ranch, couples have come for honeymoons and anniversaries, however, with both kitchens and multiple wait staff it is the perfect setting to cater for a wedding. “It’s in the works, now we just need a husband and a wife that want to get married here.”
