Meet the expats - Claude Daniel Requena : the French Businessman with a Lot to Offer

French businessman Claude arrived here in Mauritius with his partner, who is from Madagascar, almost a year ago and in that time, has begun to pave an interesting path all of his own, living in Bambous and professionally running various businesses.

We found him to be a very warm, amicable and well-spoken man with a wealth of knowledge and experience that he was more than happy to share. Here’s what happened when we met for this interview at Cascavelle a couple of weeks ago…

Claude, where are you from, what brought you to Mauritius and how long have you been here?
I am from France and my partner is from Madagascar. We have been in Mauritius since last July, so almost one year. I met my partner through a group on Facebook. In the beginning (of our relationship), I went to Madagascar to meet her and for around two years, I would make the trip to Madagascar two or three times per year.

Then last year, we decided to get a house and live together in Mauritius. She has two daughters in Madagascar and hopefully, they’ll be coming over to live with us at the end of the year. Plus, we’re not so far from Madagascar here and that’s mainly why we chose Mauritius.

What was your experience of travelling to Madagascar for the first time?
It was completely new to me. I knew Reunion Island quite well as my father lived there, but I didn’t know much about Madagascar. I read some books and a few articles to learn more. It was a great experience!

The capital, Antananarivo, isn’t so beautiful – there’s a lot of pollution and it’s not a very secure city. But when you leave the capital, it’s a real adventure.

You say that you and your partner decided to move to Mauritius, what were some of the reasons you chose this island?
Well, she already knew about Mauritius, as she had been here three or four times before, and she said that it’s not too far to go and visit the kids. Plus, there are so many nice beaches and nice places to visit here. These all contributed to it.

What were your family and friends’ reactions when you told them you were going to move?
In fact, the most important reaction was from my mother! She said, “What are you going to do there? It’s so far!” She would not be able to visit me very often. But at that time, she didn’t know about WhatsApp. Now she does and we call each other maybe three times per week and it’s okay.

What were you doing in France before you moved over here?
The same business I’m doing now. I have a Master’s qualification in beauty products. The headquarters of my company is in Hong Kong and I’m distributing and working between brands and importers.

Importers ask me to find a new skin care brand for example, and my job is to find the right brand for their business. My work is mainly done through the Internet.

How is it running your online business here? How does it differ to running it in France?
The time difference! At the moment, there are two hours’ time difference with France. As I’m mainly working with Asia, I have to work very early in the morning with the Chinese and I’m working very late in the evening with the Americans.

My suppliers are mainly in China. I also have another activity where I develop brands for people or for companies. For example, if someone wants to launch their own nail polish brand and don’t know how to go about it, they work with me.

I have the suppliers and I have all the solutions for them. So, I offer turnkey products for them managing everything.

I work in the early hours of the morning with China and other countries in Asia, and then at night, it’s more on the American side. In the middle of the day, I am free, but that time is now spent working on mine and my partner’s new business.

Where do your clients for this aspect of your business activity come from?
I have clients from all over, such as the Middle East and Dubai. I have clients in France and Spain and Morocco, as well as South America and South Africa. For distribution, we will be opening in India in the next couple of months.

It seems that you have several projects going on – how do you manage your time and spend time resting and with your partner?
Well, I work in the early hours of the morning with China and other countries in Asia, and then at night, it’s more on the American side. In the middle of the day, I am free, but that time is now spent working on mine and my partner’s new business.

You also have a food delivery business - how did that come about?
The idea is to have a business for my partner as well. She really loves cooking and what we’ve experienced here is when we want to go out for lunch, it’s quite difficult to find salads. Some friends of ours expressed the same concern to us.

We were fed up of ‘mine frite’ and other fried foods. We would like to have something light and it’s quite difficult to find that. The idea was to launch something different based on world recipes, to bring something new to the market, to work mainly with companies and to deliver food to workplaces. We don’t see any of these types of food available for delivery, such as salads and fresh foods.

It’s a very new project actually; it’s called Mondo Gusto, we started last week and we already have orders everyday! Not so many at present, as it’s only the beginning but people have started spreading the word, which has been helpful for us. The businesses and people that I’ve met have been very open to the idea.

Very often, while entering a shop, you are very rarely greeted with a ‘hello’, ‘how are you?’ or a ‘welcome’. You will see that the salespersons are mostly busy doing their own thing or looking at their phones, and I think it’s mainly an issue of training.

What would you say sets your business, Mondo Gusto, apart?
The fact of having a variety and choice from around the world, plus the idea of delivering food to the office is quite different. There aren’t many services quite like this here. We’re also able to deliver every day until 9pm to residential addresses.

The World Cup is starting soon and we want to launch some special offers around that. During the matches, people usually want to sit and enjoy the match and not having to worry about cooking and so on.

Plus, it’s healthy food and not junk food. Moreover each month, we will be having a ‘salad of the month’ and ‘main of the month’ as well.

How does the structure of the business work? Who makes the food?
Currently, as this is a test period, the food is prepared at our kitchen at home. Luckily we have a large kitchen, so it’s okay to do that. My partner is cooking and I am delivering. If all goes well, we’re planning on having a local space for food preparation and whatever else is required. Right now, my partner does all the cooking and I do the delivery.

Why did you choose to start a food delivery business as opposed to opening a restaurant?
It’s mainly due to the start-up costs. This way, there  are fewer restrictions and as the Americans say, it’s all about location. There are so many restaurants and food places opening up that all of the malls are full and there are no new spaces available.

Even the new food court in Cascavelle, which is opening in December, is already full. Plus, I haven’t seen many companies in Mauritius doing it like we do. There are many takeaways and restaurants, but just doing delivery isn’t that common.

Coming from Europe, we’re used to a certain speed with things being done. There is an adaptation we have to do, as things here, especially with paperwork, do not happen as quick as they happen in Europe.

What has been your experience with customer service here?
Well, for example, since January, I’ve hired around five gardeners. They come, they spend one day, and then the next day, they leave never to be seen again. It’s impossible to reach them by phone.

They just take the money for one day and they go away. On other occasions, they’ll come back and work, then they find some excuse to leave, and they never come back.

In addition, their method of working can be exasperating; for instance, if there is an open door or window, they don’t think about this and you end up with grass and debris in the house. I’m not saying everyone is like this, of course.  

How do you think customer service can be improved in Mauritius?
Very often, while entering a shop, you are very rarely greeted with a ‘hello’, ‘how are you?’ or a ‘welcome’. You will see that the salespersons are mostly busy doing their own thing or looking at their phones, and I think it’s mainly an issue of training.

If business owners don’t address these problems, then the staff will continue to behave in the same way. 

Speaking of that, are there any challenges that you’ve faced with adapting to life here?
Mainly with time. Coming from Europe, we’re used to a certain speed with things being done. There is an adaptation we have to do, as things here, especially with paperwork, do not happen as quick as they happen in Europe.

On a more positive note, what are some of your favourite things to do in Mauritius?
Most Sundays we like to enjoy the beaches and we also like exploring and discovering the little villages around Mauritius. We also like to visit the national parks and things like this.

I really appreciate the East coast of the island, as its more wild than the rest of the island. We really like Belle Mare and the area around there. We also like Point d’Esny beach – the lagoon is quite different there, as the water is somewhat deep and it’s better for swimming.

Can you tell us what a typical day for you entails here in Mauritius?
I wake up at 5am and the first thing I do is to take my coffee! I then start to look at emails on my laptop. I look at the different projects that are running; requesting pictures of various areas of productions. That takes me up until 9am.

Then we look at what needs to be done for food deliveries for that day and check to see if we need any more ingredients. Deliveries usually commence at 11am until around 1:30pm. We take a little rest at the beginning of the afternoon.

We go back to preparing food for the rest of the afternoon and deliver from around 7pm till 9pm. After that, we have a quick dinner and I go back to my computer and deal with my business in the USA. There’s a 12-hour time difference there. I’m normally working till about 10:30pm

Finally, what would you like the future to hold for you here in Mauritius?
I’d like to see the business take off, to have its own offices as well as having other people working on it. I would like to focus my time on my own business. It’s quite difficult focusing on all the different things at the same time, like I’m doing at the moment.

I’m also looking at different payment methods available. I want to eventually not have to handle cash. I’m looking at different options such as the Facebook Boutique, which will give the customer the option of paying directly using Facebook.