Mongolian Economy 
“Mongolian Economy” spoke with Halil Erin, Franchise director of English Home, a famous Turkish brand when he visited Mongolia.
-First of all, please tell us about the English Home brand, its history, and brand concept.
– English Home joined Aydın Holding with 3 stores in 2009 and became a leader in the home textile retail sector in a short period of time.
As for the story of the Aydin Holding, it was formed in 1958 in Istanbul and employs about 40,000 people today. The group’s first main brand Dömeks began its operations in 1976 in Istanbul. The corporate foundation of Dömeks was further strengthened by the establishment of Aydın Örme, which became one of the leading textile companies in Turkey during 1991, undertaking a leading role in lace, curtain, and underwear production.
English Home offers 277 stores and online shopping options for easy access to its guests in Turkey and also 111 stores abroad in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, Iraq, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Libya, Kosovo, Georgia, Cyprus, Uzbekistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Venezuela, Ghana and soon Russia, Oman, Morocco, Macedonia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Kazakhstan, and Serbia.
English Home carries elegant seasonal trends of different eras to your homes, going beyond the classic English style. English Home aims to create perfect homes with little touches by carrying elegant trends to your home with different collections every season. From bedroom to bathroom, from the living room to the kitchen or to your baby’s room, you can find all the home textile and decoration products with which you can decorate the home of your dreams. English Home designs every piece in its collections in order to create a peaceful environment and elegance atmosphere in your homes, where you spend most of your time. English Home’s design team follows the latest trends to bring you vividness and dynamism in every season with the best quality and affordable products.
– Please tell us how and when started your cooperation with the Mongolian market and its customers.
– As for Mongolia, Nomin Holding LLC contacted us I thought two years ago, and we started a negotiation with them. We haven’t known anything about Nomin company and there was a back and forth introduction process between the two companies After that, both companies signed a massive franchise agreement and we opened our first store last year in July 2021. After that, we opened the second corner in State Department Store and we are expanding that area to 300 square meters.
We are so happy with the first store and their sales are very good. When we recognized the sales turnover, we were shocked and still the sales are very good in Mongolia and we are very excited. So we’re happy to work with Nomin. They are a very professional team and I think we will continue to cooperate with them for many years.
– I think, of course, English Home has made market research on Mongolia. What was your first impression of Mongolia`s economy and market?
– Certainly, we did research to see if there were any competitive brands in the market. But there were no competitors in the market and from our experience, we know that in all markets there’s potential. In Mongolia, the living costs are not too much which means products are not expensive except for the logistics costs and problems.
So we believed in the Nomin and because they are working with many brands and they’re successful we understood that they know the market very well.
– You said sales are very good at your first store in Nomin. What do you think, what has influenced to attract Mongolian customers? What is your take on Mongolian customers?
– We try to keep the price policy at the minimum level, which means we are not selling expensive products. So, we know the income level and purchasing power of the people. Our company has never tried different price policies in different markets. We put a fixed price on the product and continue to sell at the price.
We haven`t received any negative feedback yet and demands are increasing for our products. We have many products in many categories not only in home textile, but we also have accessories, decoratives, cosmetics, and so on. I think Mongolian customers are happy with our products.
– As Franchise director of the English Home, please tell our readers about current trends and changes after the global pandemic in the international franchising environment.
– With the pandemic, many people in the world have started to work from home, and I think the time to work from home will increase gradually. The fact that people spend more time in their homes has led to the need to transform the home into a more pleasant atmosphere. The new trend of home office working order and not only compulsory needs but also the need for beautification have emerged.
– What do you think about the business environment of Mongolia? What were the challenges you have encountered so far in Mongolia in terms of doing business?
– Mongolia’s greatest need is to develop logistics routes and shorten the processes as much as possible. Leading companies in this regard can develop a logistics network or the state can take action on this issue. Companies like Nomin should be supported by the state and many large professional companies should be allowed to grow. These companies will develop trade, and trade will enrich society and grow the economy. We see that there is potential in the country and we think that there are opportunities for growth.
