By Andy Thibault
Editor, APS Publications

    As a young boy, Nehal Baaquie’s Bangladesh was part of Pakistan. His father, Mohd Baaquie, was a bomber pilot for the British in World War II.  The elder Baaquie went on to become chairman of an electronics conglomerate, but first he would be a signatory to the treaty declaring Bangladesh’s independence in 1970.

     “I saw at a young age,” Nehal Baaquie said, “how much my father’s friends and peers respected him, not just for his experience and contributions to his country, but for his integrity. He's retired in Bangladesh now and I still seek his advice today.”

     Nehal became attracted to the business world. He is fluent not only in Bengali and English, but also Punjabi and Urdu. He also has a basic understanding of Arabic.

     Now, as president of a company that claims $100 million in sales annually, Nehal facilitates global business partnerships. He paved the way for McDonald’s to enter Bangladesh. He even sold sand to the Kingdom of Oman. Clients of his company, N.F.B. Associates Inc., have also included Tyco and Sylvania.

     “Although I have some major clients,” Nehal said, “most of my customers are mid-level companies who do not have the time or financial resources to develop international markets. They may also not recognize that it takes patience to develop these markets. Our strength is that we have already done all of the ground work overseas.”

     Nehal came to the United States to pursue his education in 1970 and was graduated from Notre Dame University and Albany Business College, where he met his future bride, Jean. Upon graduation, he joined General Mills. He was a perennial sales leader there and was the company’s Man of the Year For Sales in 1979.

His company buys goods in the U.S. – for cash – and then with a competitive markup he exports them overseas. Products in his line have included chocolates to South America, Kodak film to Indonesia, pharmaceuticals and syringes to South Africa, Tyson chicken to Singapore, Hershey candy bars to India and analgesics to Uzbekistan.

Oh, and about that sand to Oman, Nehal said the answer is simple:  “They wanted to build new soccer fields so we provided the proper sand surface, plus the Bermuda grass with which to cover it.”