Work: Hard work is the trademark of Lewiston entrepreneurs

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Abdirahman Saeed (left) and Abdinur Mohamed recently cleaned a customer’s car at their Black Diamond Detailing business at 409 Sabattus St. in Lewiston. Andrei Kane/Sun Journal

Lewiston — They don’t drive flashy cars or wear flashy designer clothes. In fact, there’s someone driving an old-model Ford in his Focus, and their “designer” clothing consists of a matching gray hooded sweatshirt emblazoned with the company’s logo, Black Diamond Detailing. I’m here.

A year ago, Abdinur Mohamed and Abdirahman Saeed were sitting in a small office in Auburn discussing business ideas. They said they spent an hour discussing starting a daycare and a juice company. Suddenly, with only a click, Mohammed snapped his fingers.

“I thought my car was dirty,” he said. So they started buying everything and investing their money. By the end of January, a decision was made. “We were going to take the first step,” said Mohammed.

Teamwork is the informal mantra of two young African-American entrepreneurs who have made it their business to tackle the dirt and grime that accumulates on nearly every car in Maine.

How dirty are the cars they clean?

“It’s not as crazy as you think,” Said said. “If you go inside your car and pick up trash here and there, you’ll be amazed at how much cleaner it looks than before.”

Admittedly, some of the cars featured on their social media websites look pretty rough at first.

The pair started out as a mobile detailing business, going from home to home, on the street, in the company, just about anywhere. Customers love the convenience of his mobile concept. In May 2022, they entered the LA Metro Chamber of Commerce’s “Top Gun” contest, further boosting their notoriety.

In October, they announced a brief pause to prepare for their next step by taking the plunge and leasing a brick-and-mortar site at 409 Sabbatas Street. Last week they announced the addition of a valet service to facilitate transportation. of the vehicle.

Abdirahman Saeed (left) and Abdinur Mohamed recently stood in front of Black Diamond Detailing’s business at 409 Sabattus St. in Lewiston. Andrei Kane/Sun Journal

For the two of them, who were ignorant of the details, it was a hands-on training.

“We just watched a lot of videos and learned from the mistakes we made,” Said explained. “We try new chemicals, we try tools, and see what works and what doesn’t. Just do it!”

Adapt to what they have and upgrade to some specialized equipment to do a better job. They bought an extractor to help remove dirt, a steamer to help with all the nooks and crannies of people’s cars, and a boar bristle brush to help clean surfaces such as dashboards.

They also expanded their team by adding marketers to handle their website and social media. Abdurahman Saeed calls him a great addition to the team. They added a few others to help with their 7 days a week operation.

“I’ve learned that in business you don’t have to be minutiae, but you can’t do any business alone,” Said said. “You need a great team behind you. You need to be able to exchange ideas because, after all, no one can come out on top alone.”

Said, 22, was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, raised in Lewiston, graduated from Lewiston High School, and spent two years at Central Maine Community College, sparking excitement for the team. Twenty-three-year-old Mohammed is pensive among the team. Born and raised in Lewiston, he attended Roxbury Community College in Boston, where he took a two-year business administration course.

Mohamed said a year later the business had changed his personality. He said he is more patient than he used to be and sees life in a different and more positive way. I’m drawing a detail of – it didn’t look good – cleaned it up (and) it just looks good!

Back overseas, his father ran a small butcher shop in Lewiston. He returned to Lewiston last week and stopped by to see the new store. “He said, ‘I know you’ve learned a lot from me because when you were little, you listened to me when I said something.'” He was proud. was ”

Business is obviously going well.

“This is a great community that I cannot lie to,” said Abdirahman. “From launch to now, they have been very supportive. We have not had any negative feedback from anyone. Yes, and that’s really great.”

Mohamed and Saeed work together, perhaps blindly, quickly and thoroughly. Their minds are always thinking: Is there a possibility of entering the used car business?

“Yes, it is possible,” said Mohammed. “I also thought we could do this in every other state, and we want to do the same in the near future as we bring franchises to every other state. is one of our goals!”

Black Diamond Detailing hours of operation are 10 AM to 7 PM Monday through Friday and 10 AM to 5 PM Saturday and Sunday.