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We spoke to Maimunah Maqbool who everyone knows as Mona about the upcoming launch of her authentic Indian curry base on Thursday 16th of June between 1-4 pm at The Swans Events (previously Mahal Restaurant) in Manchester situated at 117 Bury New Road, M45 6AA. She is openly inviting individuals from the catering business to join her at this event where they will celebrate the launch with a presentation followed by a tasting session. You can scan the QR Code to RSVP.
The idea came about when her daughter moved out after marriage and her son’s moved out to study at university.
The problem she faced as a mother was the worry that they did not know how to cook, therefore Mona came up with a solution and this is how Monas Curry Base came to light.
The aim was to make a curry base that enables anyone, whether they are a student or chef to be able to make a healthy, authentic, home-cooked delicious curry within 30 minutes.
The curry base Mona provided to her children, allowed them to make many different curries & fusion dishes which made life a lot easier for them whilst still enjoying a home-cooked meal.
What was the defining moment that made you decide to become an entrepreneur?
In 1997, I started a restaurant business and always have had a massive interest in Indian cuisine. With the restaurant being successful, I then invested in properties which then lead me onto growing a property portfolio.
My husband and I used to run Markets for most days of the week with hardly any days off, after the markets we used to go work in the restaurant until late and then up again in the early hours for markets, we did this for a few years until the restaurant kicked off.
The deciding factor was when we had kids, we decided we wanted to provide a better life for them.
What does a typical day look like as the founder of Monas Curry Base?
I manage a portfolio of properties, so I split my day between managing the properties and growing Monas Curry.
As both are family businesses the whole family gets involved, so pre-covid we were working with the manufacturer to ensure we perfected the base.
Covid caused a delay in the launch, but a positive is we have been able to ramp up interest and now we are nearly at the stage of getting listed by a distributor.
What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far, and how did you overcome it?
One of the biggest challenges I faced was to continue striving to work hard and commit the time to work as well as bringing up my children.
I overcame it with discipline and hard work, I know what I wanted, I always envisioned myself as an entrepreneur and I knew I had to try my hardest to succeed, regardless of all the hurdles which arise.
What are you most proud of from what you have achieved so far?
Being able to be a positive role model for my children and other family members makes me feel proud.
What piece of advice would you like to share with other female entrepreneurs?
Take control, do not let others dictate what you want to achieve in life. Work hard and stay consistent.
What drives you?
My family is my main inspiration along with my ambition to always achieve more. My husband Shehbaz Hussain has always supported me in every field. I don’t think I am where I want to be yet and still have more to achieve.
Who is your greatest inspiration?
My mother and dad are my greatest inspiration, she became a widow at the age of 24 with 4 daughters, the eldest was six and the youngest was one. We lost our dad in a car accident so with the little money she had left from his life policy she came to England where all her side of the family was. She worked in Oldham in the Park Cakes factory and bought a house, she then sold the house and bought a shop in Ashton under Lyne and ran a grocery store. She made sure that all of her 4 daughters would continue with their education. From there, she bought another property and was on the property ladder! My mum remarried my stepdad, (although I don’t like to use the word step) he was a loving dad to us. He was a Businessman and a financial adviser who took me to most of his business meetings where I gained my confidence. My mother now has dementia and lives with me I am her main carer, she is 80 years old and I would sacrifice anything and everything to look after her she comes first. I do get help from my sisters too in looking after her when I am busy. I think I got my business acumen from her.
What do you want to achieve next?
I want Monas Curry to change the market, most of the time if you have a curry from a non-Indian trained chef, you know they don’t taste the best. For example, hospital curries don’t taste like home-cooked curry, do they?
I want to change this, I want everybody to have access to an authentic tasting curry no matter where you are, this could be in a hospital, in school, or on a plane.
There is nothing like Monas Curry on the market, it saves the user money at the same time enabling them to have a great-tasting curry!
You can learn more about the launch this Thursday and find some yummy recipes are Monascurry.com
