Join us for this episode with Tibebeselassie Awetahegn, Founder and CEO of Timex Trading PLC, a leading company in Ethiopia’s import of heavy earth-moving equipment, machinery assembly, and export trade. With years of leadership and business expertise, he has played a vital role in strengthening Ethiopia’s industrial and export sectors. In this episode, Tibebe shares his origin story, corporate career journey, and how he went on to establish Timex Trading. He also talks about the company’s machinery assembly plant, export and sorting operations, and his approach to leadership. The conversation covers his support system, the challenges he faced, and the resilience that helped him build his career and company. More from our partners: Dashen Bank Website: https://dashenbanksc.com Telegram: https://t.me/DashenBankEthiopia Noah Real Estate Website: https://noahrealestateplc.com/ BPO Partnership Form: https://forms.gle/PsAVBP1vXCvhKXFP6 thereliable.tech GIZ: https://www.giz.de/de/downloads/giz2023-en-private-sector-development-in-ethiopia.pdf To advertise on Meri: https://meri.et/advertise 00:00 - Introduction 02:48 - opening 04:08 - Business and background 24:04 - Starting an own business 32:45 - Teaching 36:05 - Delegating responsibilities 46:44 - Retiring early 54:38 - Game changer books 01:04:26 - TIMEX 01:12:15 - Training staff 01:16:22 - Hiring talents 01:24:14 - Import 01:28:14 - Education 01:34:22 - Emotional support system 01:43:15 - Work - life balance 02:17:23 - Run down questions 01:56:16 - Aspirations 01:58:37 - Wisdom Social Links https://t.me/MERI_PODCAST https://twitter.com/MERI_Podcast https://www.instagram.com/meripodcast/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzKNuQ80qNSpt2x-7dsazJg https://youtube.com/@Meriwoch?si=yIpJ3byprnVNwKi1 https://youtube.com/@mericlipset?si=wwa0KeQ_Nv2aPy9l https://www.tiktok.com/@meripodcast https://www.linkedin.com/company/meriethiopian/ Copyright Notice for Meri Podcast: All rights reserved. The content featured in this podcast is protected by copyright laws. Unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or modification of any portion of this podcast is strictly prohibited. For permission to use our content, please contact us at info@meri.et Thank you for respecting our copyright.