Success doesn't come to you? You go to it. – Story Of Ali Sharaf from Texas

What’s the shortcut to success? 

Here is the answer -  Know exactly what you want in life, put your entire mind in to it, and strive hard to achieve it. Passion and hard work always bring a lot of reasons to smile! 

A fine example for this is the story of Ali Sharaf, a veteran business man from Texas, who migrated to US all the way from Damascus in Syria, looking for the booming opportunities in business.  Some of you might not have heard of Ali Sharaf, or might have ignored him saying he is just one among those thousands of Syrians who migrate in search of a living.  But story of Ali Sharaf is different by all respects. 

Ali Sharaf was born in 1957 in Syria to a farmer father and a homemaker mother. After graduating from the famous Damascus University in Syria with a Civil Engineering degree Ali Sharaf wanted to establish himself in the field of engineering and construction and hence started his own company. He worked successfully for about 6 years, before moving to US by 1986. All set to chase his luck, he bought the first Convenience Store that year. 

Convenience Stores as you all know are small and medium sized stores conveniently located and arranged with items like sweets, ice creams, soft drinks, news papers, magazines, processed foods and groceries, which you use in your day-to-day life. Such stores help a lot of people who are busy with day-to-day chores and don’t have time to go for a detailed shopping that often takes a lot of time. Ali Sharaf had big plans in his mind and knew about the growing demand for Convenience Stores. With all his hard work and determination he expanded his business in 10 years by owning 11 successfully running Convenience Stores. 

If you look around you can see that most of the Convenience Stores can be seen inside gas stations.  Travelers who stop near gas stations would often look for washrooms facilities and convenience for buying and having food and drinks. They can get food, drinks, reading material, maps and a lot more close to the gas station itself, without going to a nearby supermarket.  The close proximity of gas stations might have fueled his business ideas, making him expand his business by investing in fuel distribution. 

In 1997, Ali Sharaf bought H&H Oil Co., Inc., a premier Exxon Fuel Distributorship which had annual sales of about twenty million gallons. At the same time he continued to build and acquire Convenience Stores for another nine years. “In 2006, he changed the name of the company to Victron Energy, Inc., and started a new headquarters in Waxahachie, Texas. Since then Victron Energy, Inc. has expanded to distribute fuel for not only ExxonMobil, but also Shell, Chevron, Texaco, Conoco, Valero and other, unbranded fuels. Victron Energy, Inc. now boasts close to three hundred million gallons in annual sales and is still growing with new construction and acquisition of properties.” While people attribute his success to luck, Ali Sharaf’s story, like many other Syrian immigrants, is more one of hard work, determination and sacrifices.

Ali Sharaf strengthened his business by associating his company with 13 different  and leading food franchises in US like Sonic, Krystal, Denny’s, KFC,Church’s and Subway, . By 2006, Victron had its own brand called Texas Best Smokehouse, giving away some really scrumptious delicacies for the foodies in US. Texas Best Smokehouse thus turned out to become another feather in Ali Sharaf’s cap. 

Texas Best Smokehouse, with all those unique facilities and lip smacking delectable delicacies including barbecue, jerky, smoked meats, and cheeses, as well as its own private brand of candies, jams, nuts, wine and energy drinks, became a roaring success very soon.

With all his expertise in construction business, he started branching out his businesses into other developments. “He soon developed a 40-acre shopping plaza around I-45 in Seagoville, and a 60-acre plaza in Red Oak, Texas. He also developed a seven acre shopping center, with a Sonic restaurant in Royce City, and another similar project in Carthage, Texas. He has also finished a high-end,310-unit apartment complex near I-35 and Ovilla Road in Red Oak. The same store is repeated in so many towns in Texas, including but not limited to Tyler, Longview, Kilgore, Venus, Burleson, Carthage, Italy, Balch Springs and many more. Ali’s accomplishments continue to contribute to the overall economy of the region; bringing more and more opportunities to the people he serves.”

Ali Sharaf is always passionate about construction and building. He enjoys the happiest moments when “a raw piece of land is turned into a successful project, which can bring economic growth to North Texas, creating additional jobs and enhancing the tax base of the local communities.” “Ali believes in small town American values like hard work, integrity and honesty because these same values were instilled in him as a young man”

With all these successes Ali Sharaf is always proud of the positive impact he has had on the lives of the people of North Texas. In every location that he goes, Ali Sharaf is always determined to give back his share of service to the community there, with the creation of successful jobs and opportunities. Victron has so far created over 7,000 jobs directly or indirectly in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. With his successful life & business journey, Ali Sharaf always tries to inspire individuals around the world, making them understand the importance of handwork, dedication, and risk involved in the pursuit of one’s dream.