BABAK SHAHBAZ
- MEET THE FOUNDER OF
FUEL SUPPLY
Babak Shahbaz is a self-employed professional who has been in the shipping industry for many years. The training is called freight forwarder, and the whole adventure started in Fredericia, where Babak Shahbaz grew up. Originally from Tehran, he moved to Denmark in 1988. Fredericia was to become the city where all his childhood and youth would be lived. In fact, Babak lived there until he and his family moved to Dubai. But, as I said, his career started with his training as a freight forwarder. His first job was in Kolding, where Babak Shahbaz worked for a company that picked up containers in Europe. The containers were then delivered to large companies in Denmark - mainly in Jutland and Funen. His time as a freight forwarder helped secure the extensive knowledge that Babak now has of the entire shipping industry. It served as a very solid foundation for the rest of the career path ahead of the businessman.
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After some time as a freight forwarder, Babak felt that the challenges needed to be greater and that he wanted to expand his knowledge. He also began to take an increasing interest in bunker operations - which has stuck with him ever since. He built up a good understanding of how cargo in the maritime environment was connected and what it took to be successful in bunker supply. He used all of this when he took the independent route in 2011. It was to be the start of a long and successful career in bunker traiting - and one that is still going strong.
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Read more here:
- Babak Shahbaz featured in Toronto Life
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ABOUT BABAK SHAHBAZ
Career
Babak Shahbaz is now a partner in Fuel Supply, which he manages with his brother. At Fuel Supply, the customer is at the centre of everything. Babak Shahbaz describes that in the bunker traiting business there can be a tendency to shirk responsibility. However, at Fuel Supply, once an order is placed with a customer, all risk is taken and if complications or problems arise along the way, they are resolved. For this very reason, the company has a very loyal customer base who are satisfied with the high level of customer service. Babak also describes this as one of the reasons for the company's success.
Family life
Babak Shahbaz currently lives in Canada with his wife and three children. As a family, they have lived in several places around the world, but it has always been a mutual decision where to live. Babak Shahbaz and his family spent five years in Dubai, among other places, where they made it to the "Biggest" programme. The decision to go to Canada - Toronto, to be precise - was based both on the fact that it made good sense for the company, but also because Canada has many of the same values as Denmark. This was particularly appealing to Tine, Babak's wife. As a family, they are - and always have been - very active and often do things together.
WHO IS FUEL SUPPLY?
Fuel Supply is a company that takes care of everything in bunker operations. It is run by Babak Shahbaz and his brother. First of all, it is perhaps worth asking what bunker operations actually are.
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When you work in bunker operations, you work with cargo and shipping in a maritime context. In Fuel Supply, you work primarily with securing fuel for various rescuers - of very different sizes. Rescuers all over the world can be a company like Maersk or a small cutter in Greece. Fuel Supply offers services to both types of rescuers. These companies need credit to pay for their fuel. What Fuel Supply does is that they get quotes from suppliers and then they sell on to the rescuers. When they get the order, they also take all the risk. As Babak Shahbaz describes, that makes buying through them attractive.