The Success Story of Prophet Muhammad's Business, Building Reputation Through Honesty and Collaboration

Far before his time of prophethood, Prophet Muhammad SAW had already carved out a reputation as an accomplished businessman who upheld the highest integrity. Raised under the care of Abu Thalib, Prophet Muhammad began his trading career on a small scale in the markets of Mecca until he was eventually entrusted with managing the capital of wealthy widows and orphans through a profit-sharing system. It was this honesty that earned him the title Al-Amin, which later brought him together with Khadijah, a respected female entrepreneur in Mecca. As recounted by Afzalurrahrnan in the book Prophet Muhammad as a Merchant, Prophet Muhammad initially grew up under the tutelage of Abu Thalib and had to learn the intricacies of trading business from his uncle. When he reached adulthood and realised that his uncle was not affluent and had a large family to support, Prophet Muhammad began trading on his own in the city of Mecca. It appears that this profession as a trader began earlier than commonly known with Khadijah’s capital. Prophet Muhammad conducted business on a small and personal level in Mecca. He bought goods from one market and sold them to others. This is affirmed by subsequent events that show he had entered into business collaborations with a small number of people before associating with Khadijah. Prophet Muhammad was one of the members of the large Quraysh tribe family, and thus he was expected to pursue a livelihood as the other members of the Quraysh tribe did. Although he did not have money to start his own business, he received capital from wealthy widows and orphaned children who were unable to manage their funds themselves, and they welcomed someone honest to run a business with their money based on cooperation. In this way, broad opportunities opened up for Prophet Muhammad to enter the business world by managing other people’s capital, either through wages or based on agreed profit-sharing as partners.