The growth of Al Rashed Building Materials parent company – Rashed Al Rashed & Sons Group of companies – is synonymous with the progress and development not only of the Eastern Province of the kingdom but of the entire country into a modern developed society.

Spearheading the group’s growth into the future are the five sons of the late Sheikh Rashed Al Rashed, the trading and industrial visionary who in 1950 founded the Rashed Al Rashed & Sons Group of companies. Abdul Aziz is the chairman and the other four brothers – Saleh, Abdulmohsen, Abdulmonem and Abdulrahman – are executive directors on the board.
Now 57 years on, the sons are looking to take the multi-faceted group further in the region, with future expansion plans targeting the entire Middle East.
“We have already made a start in Qatar and the UAE and also have interests in Egypt,” says Sheikh Abdulmohsen Al Rashed – the third son of the late Sheikh Rashed. “We have made investments in cement factories as well as in Al Yamamah Steel in Yanbu. We believe in this region and I can see that the cash that came back to the region after 9/11 is being kept in this region.”
The Rashed Al Rashed group is active in the trading, industrial, services, construction, contracting and development and consumer sectors. Each sector is made up of numerous companies and affiliations that touch on almost every possible trading and industrial sector.
The group owns factories which produce steel products, filters, insulations, polystyrene, wood products and membranes while its investments include companies such as the Sheraton in Dammam, Al Khaleej Computers and Electronics systems, Harco Chemical Industries and the major precast manufacturer Al Rashid-Abetong, which has undertaken some of the kingdom’s major projects.
“Our management philosophy is based on the premise that in order to keep the business growing we have separated family from business issues,” says Al Rashed. “We have established a specialist management structure to run each division, employing business professionals to manage and supervise.”
Al Rashed has played a key role in the company’s growth over the past 27 years, since he joined the group having attained a degree in business administration at Washington State University in 1980.
“Initially, I was involved in real estate but then took over the transportation division of the company which at the time had a small fleet of around 40 trucks. Today our fleet has grown to over 600,” he says.
Following a tenure as the head of the group’s transportation requirements, Al Rashed took over what was the company’s original core business – trading in building materials. Over time, he and his brothers established the management structure of the group, which has helped create one of the largest and most successful conglomerates in the region.
According to Al Rashed, one of the group’s most active areas currently is real estate. “This sector is very active and we have a strong development programme aimed at our becoming one of the leading real estate companies providing a service to the community,” says Al Rashed, who points out that there is a shortage in housing in the kingdom. “This is a good opportunity for us to participate in providing homes and develop new cities. A lot of Saudis need professional builders and this is a major contribution to the community.”
The group is still very much a family business but is evolving into an investment company with interests in many public companies and institutions
The board members oversee committees and sub-committees made up of professionals and Al Rashed emphasises the independence of every unit, which operates with minimal interference from higher management. This management structure applies to all its 18 business units, which are 100-per-cent owned by the family. “Each unit is totally independent standing on its own merit. However, our key strength comes from the five brothers being together and moving in one direction. Unity has always been there. We all worked with our father and also plan to ensure long term succession.”
Currently, the company’s real estate interests revolve around the ownership, development and subdivision of land. The second stage will involve joint-venture programmes to build houses and the group is establishing entities to follow through on these objectives as well as acquiring controlling shares in related companies.
Al Rashed believes that the current boom in the region will continue. “This boom is three times bigger than that of the eighties and with the expansion of the market and population, I expect to see higher standards of professionalism in building as companies take over the traditional house building role.”
Al Rashed says that the group’s business philosophy was clearly established by his late father who died in 1995. “We believe that we are here to work not just to make money,” he says. “My father was a real leader who influenced not just his children but also a lot of people around him with his honesty and vision.”
In fact, it was the late Rashed Al Rashed’s vision that led to the building of the Rashed Mall in the Eastern Province.
“While on a visit to the US, my father was impressed by the fact that a shopping arcade in Bellvue was covered to protect against the rain. He took this concept and developed it into the Rashed Mall which was covered to protect against the heat,” he explains.
Al Rashed sees new developments such as the King Abdullah Economic City as a positive for the kingdom and a vote of confidence in the future. “Dubai has been a good laboratory. Dubai has made us think and now we may be moving away from the old style of planning and development of cities. We have needed to revise our own plans in the light of our environment,” he says. “Saudi Arabia will continue to be the most important part of our investment strategy but in view of the fast face of development, the government needs to catch up with the private sector and introduce flexibility and new systems.”
Al Rashed believes that the three most important characteristics for success are dedication, commitment and honesty.
While the success of the Rashed Al Rashed & Sons Group came from the vision and leadership of the late Sheikh Rashed Al Rashed, its future lies in the hands of his sons who are the guardians of his legacy.
More than 6,000 employees make up the group and its subsidiaries and Al Rashed places the same trust in them that his father did.
“My father believed in people, had faith in people and trusted them. My brothers and I will continue his legacy,” Al Rashed concludes.