International business award to IUE graduate siblings

29 SEPTEMBER 2020

Entrepreneurs from Izmir University of Economics, who adopt the understanding of quality and personalized service in the e-commerce sector and support domestic brands, bring the world's most prestigious international business awards to Izmir. The siblings, Esra and Melis Sarıhan, both graduates of Izmir University of Economics (IUE), were crowned with awards they received consecutively for the success of their e-commerce initiative named baskasindarama.com. Sarıhan siblings qualified to receive the USA based "Stevie International Business Awards" bronze award in the category of company of the year in small retail company, an award they also received last year.

Stevie International Business Awards, which have been awarded to international companies and organizations since 2002 for their performance and contribution to social life; found its owners in different fields such as marketing, human resources, customer service, public relations. Sarıhan siblings, among more than 10 thousand participants from more than 70 countries, received award for their e-commerce initiative named baskasindarama.com, where they feature national and international brands, especially branded local women farmers, as well as their own designs. Esra Sarıhan, graduate of IUE Department of Industrial Engineering, and Melis Sarıhan, graduate of IUE Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, said that they serve with the understanding of "private shopping with quality service" instead of "cheap online shopping" on the e-commerce site they established in 2016.

REFLECTIONS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION

Stating that they offer a wide variety of products from electronics to mother/baby products, from kitchen gadgets to home decoration and accessories, Esra Sarıhan said, “We thought about what we can do with the idea of quality and private shopping online. As a result of this thought, as two female engineers, we decided to develop the baskasindarama.com e-commerce site. Nowadays, online shopping has become very common, but we aimed it to be personalized. We include women manufacturers who produce quality products as well as international brands on our site. There are also products of brands from London, Germany and many parts of the world. In addition, by including our local women farmers in our market category, we both support agriculture and pave the way for the branding of our women farmers. In addition to online sales, we send products to concept stores in Turkey and abroad. We are proud to reflect our university's entrepreneurship education to our business life. This year the award ceremony was planned to be held in Paris but will take place online due to the pandemic.”

CONTRIBUTION TO IZMIR ECONOMY IS OUR MAIN GOAL

Graduate of IUE Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Melis Sarıhan said, “We are very happy to be able to be under the same roof with the big companies and brands worldwide and in our country with the award we received twice in a row. While achieving our goals, such awards increase our motivation and provide great profit to our brand. As we expand our business, our primary goal is to contribute to the economy of the country, the economy of Izmir where our center is located, and our brands within our organization.”