Korda’s Hamidi leaves after 16 years to set up own business

Ali Hamidi, a major European carp influencer and mainstay at Korda for 16 years, has announced his decision to leave the UK-based company and set up his own business.

Revealing his decision to leave the carp brand, where he is currently the Head of Media and Marketing, Hamidi paid tribute to founder Danny Fairbrass and its ever-growing team and consultants across Europe. He said on an Instagram post: “We have achieved so many wonderful things together and that’s truly down to Danny himself. Korda is an extremely rare business where the owner is not obsessive about profit, growth or building the company to sell it.

“No one wants to run a failing company, but with Danny it is a passion for helping anglers catch more fish, giving information to help others enjoy their hobby and ultimately leaving a legacy.

“My decision to take on a new challenge was a soul-searching one and a quandary that provoked many sleepless nights. Maybe if COVID hadn’t struck I wouldn’t have had the mental freedom to even consider it, such was my relentless speed on the treadmill of work for Korda.

“However, back in January I received a proposal from a consortium of private investors to start and build my own angling brand. I have had approaches in the past, but something felt different about this. And no matter how hard I tried to shake this offer out of my head, the thought of regretting not doing it down the line when I am maybe too old to have the energy needed to commit to such a huge challenge was the over-riding feeling.

“I am extremely ambitious and the enormous challenge of starting my own company from ground zero at the grand old age of 41 was just too much to resist.”

Hamidi did not reveal any details of his new business venture.