Ihab Abou Letaif is a retail professional whose career has been shaped by practicality, discipline, and a deep understanding of how stores operate behind the scenes. His work focuses on the everyday mechanics of retail, especially in markets where conditions are unpredictable and margins are tight.
He began his career working closely with store operations, where he learned early that success in convenience retail depends on details. Product mix, inventory levels, and cash timing were not abstract ideas. They were daily decisions with real consequences.
Over time, Ihab developed a strong interest in how convenience store margins actually work. He paid close attention to waste, turnover, and shelf efficiency. These insights became especially valuable as he worked in high-inflation environments, including Venezuela, where retail businesses must adapt quickly to survive.
As his experience grew, Ihab expanded his focus to inventory management and cash flow in volatile markets. He became known for emphasizing simplicity, fast decision-making, and local market awareness. He also closely follows retail trends across Latin America, with a particular interest in the steady growth of convenience stores and the role of resilient supply chains.
Today, Ihab is respected for his thoughtful, low-key approach to retail economics. He shares practical knowledge without hype, focusing on what works rather than what sounds good. His perspective reflects years of experience navigating real-world constraints, offering a grounded view of retail that values discipline, adaptability, and long-term stability.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
My day starts early and quietly. I review sales data, inventory levels, and supplier updates before the day gets noisy. I look for small signals. A slow-moving item. A delivery delay. A margin shift. Productivity for me comes from focus. I block time to analyze numbers without interruption. Later in the day, I spend time thinking through operational decisions and documenting notes. Writing things down forces clarity.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I start with constraints. Inflation. Supply limits. Cash flow. If an idea cannot survive real conditions, it stays on paper. I test ideas in small ways. One store. One category. One supplier. If it works, I scale carefully. I prefer adjustments over big launches.
What’s one trend that excites you?
I am interested in how convenience stores are simplifying in Latin America. Fewer SKUs. More essentials. Shorter supply chains. It is not exciting in a flashy way, but it is sustainable. Simplicity helps stores survive volatility
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
Weekly review. I revisit inventory turnover, shrink, and cash position every week. No exceptions. It keeps small problems from becoming big ones.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Do not chase growth before understanding margins. Growth hides mistakes. Discipline exposes them early.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
I believe too much data can hurt decision-making. In unstable markets, waiting for perfect information is risky. Clear judgment with limited data often works better.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Walk the operation. Shelves tell stories that numbers cannot. Empty spots, dust, expired items. They all signal problems or opportunities.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I reduce inputs. Fewer meetings. Fewer dashboards. I focus on one operational issue and solve it fully before moving on.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
I learned to think in weeks, not quarters. In high-inflation environments like Venezuela, long planning cycles fail. Short cycles improve cash flow and reduce risk.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
Early on, I overstocked imported products, believing demand would catch up. Inflation and delays destroyed margins. I learned to prioritize turnover over variety and to source locally whenever possible.
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Create a micro-distribution network for neighborhood stores using shared delivery routes. It reduces costs and increases reliability without heavy infrastructure.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Simple spreadsheet software. I build my own inventory and cash flow trackers. Custom tools force me to understand the data instead of relying on automated summaries.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
I often revisit books on operational thinking rather than trends. For example, I regularly return to The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt because its focus on systems, constraints, and bottlenecks applies no matter the market cycle. Material like this stays relevant longer and helps guide practical decisions when conditions change.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
I enjoy documentaries about logistics and infrastructure. For example, series like Megastructures and Inside the Factory show how shipping ports, manufacturing plants, and distribution hubs coordinate thousands of moving parts each day, highlighting the invisible systems that keep daily life running.
Key learnings
- Inventory discipline and fast turnover protect margins more than pricing strategies.
- Simplicity and local sourcing improve resilience in volatile markets.
- Short planning cycles help businesses survive high-inflation environments.
- Operational visibility on the ground reveals insights that data alone cannot.