Meet Al-karim Moloo

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Al-karim Moloo. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Al-Karim below.

Al-Karim, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I draw my resilience from my parents. They made the ultimate sacrifice by leaving East Africa and moving to Canada, driven by a goal: to create a brighter future and greater opportunities for themselves and future generations. They gave up the comforts and familiarity of their homeland to start fresh, facing countless challenges along the way. Their unwavering strength and ability to overcome these obstacles have been a constant source of inspiration for me.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I’m a professional accountant and serial entrepreneur with a passion for both numbers and business development. In addition to being a partner at a professional accounting firm, I’m also a sommelier and the owner of a liquor agency that imports wines and spirits from around the world. I have a distribution team based in Europe and consult with brands looking to expand into the North American market.

My journey into accounting and entrepreneurship started early. Growing up working in my family business, I developed a strong interest in business operations and problem-solving. That led me to pursue a career that would allow me to help businesses grow and thrive. Today, I focus on providing accounting, tax, and advisory services to private companies.

In our firm, we serve a wide range of clients, from businesses that need annual financial statements to those seeking complex tax planning. My specialty lies in advisory services, where I work closely with management teams and business owners to analyze their operations and navigate key issues such as succession planning, business transitions, and strategic direction.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Looking back, the three qualities that have been most impactful in my journey are resilience, adaptability, and communication.

Resilience:

My ability to keep going in the face of adversity has been essential. Whether it was navigating challenges in my personal life or career, resilience allowed me to bounce back, stay focused on my goals, and keep learning from each experience.

Adaptability:

The ability to adjust to new situations and learn quickly has been invaluable. Whether dealing with new environments or unexpected obstacles, being adaptable helped me remain open to new opportunities and find solutions where others might have seen setbacks.

Communication:

Effective communication has been a key skill in both my personal and professional life. Being able to clearly express my thoughts, collaborate with others, and listen actively has helped me build strong relationships and succeed in teamwork-driven environments.

For those who are early in their journey, here’s my advice on how to develop and improve on these qualities:

Resilience:

Resilience is built through facing challenges and learning from each experience. Embrace any setbacks you have, learn from them and grow from them. It’s important to look at these hurdles as learning and growth opportunities. You will likely face them throughout your career and it’s important to learn from them so when you face the same challenges, you are better prepared.

Adaptability:

In your career or in life you will face many changes, you have to be open to learning and being adaptable means you will have to be open to learning and adjusting. Try and step out of your comfort zone, learn new skills, listen to different perspectives and learn from others as this will help you grow.

Communication:

Build strong communication skills, through practice and self-awareness. Asking a lot of questions, seeking to understand before being understood is something I have learned, and this has helped me in my career. Early in my career I took a public speaking course, this has helped me tremendously. The more you interact with others and reflect on how you communicate, the better you’ll become at adapting your approach to different audiences and situations.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most impactful thing my parents did for me was that they led by example, demonstrating the importance of hard work, resilience, and perseverance. They encouraged me to pursue my passions and supported me through every challenge I faced, reminding me that no goal is too big if you’re willing to put in the effort.

Their decision to leave everything behind and start a new life in Canada showed me the power of stepping outside of your comfort zone to create new opportunities. This sacrifice instilled in me a deep sense of gratitude, determination, and a drive to make the most of the opportunities they worked so hard to provide.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.collectiogroup.com
• Instagram: collectio_imports

Image Credits

Alvina Phan