So, you’re thinking of being your own boss, starting your own business or have an idea you think will be successful. First, let us say, congratulations! You are about to embark on the equally fun and scary ride they call, Entrepreneurship.
The opportunities are endless in Dubai for entrepreneurs, but as the saying goes, “Nothing worth having comes easy.” The Gaggler spoke with four successful Dubai-based business owners, who shared invaluable advice on owning and setting up a business in Dubai.
Want to learn more? Sign up for That Dubai Girl’s Small Business & Entrepreneurs Networking Event
Jenna Jenkins
Luxe Incorporations
Jenna is a qualified and licensed company formation specialist in UAE and works actively with entrepreneurs and businesses looking to set up in the UAE.
If you could give yourself one piece of advice before you started your business in the UAE, what would it be?
If I could give myself any advice it would be to enjoy the ride. There is no doubt hiccups and learning curves will happen, but all in all, being able to work for yourself and manage your work is fun.
What made you decide to start your own business in Dubai?
I was planning to start my own business in December 2020. Unfortunately I lost my job due to Covid-19 and was thrown into the deep end. I specialise in working with women in business and expats. Luckily, I had already built a strong network and that is what really helped me kick things off.
Based on your industry, what is the most common oversight or mistake you see first-time entrepreneurs make?
The most common mistake is people think one size fits all. In company formation each business and client are unique and understanding their current and future requirements can have a huge impact on the type of structure they require.
What’s the one thing you can’t live without when it comes to business?
I can’t live without networking. This has helped me build my brand and also help other women in business.
Tarak Ghobar
Paylinks payment portal
Three-time tech entrepreneur with a fintech and e-commerce focus, Tarek managed Foodpanda growth across the Middle East (part of Talabat.com today), taking the platform from 100 to over 15,000 orders per day in less than 3 years.
If you could give yourself one piece of advice before you started your business in the UAE, what would it be?
Surround myself with the right mentors and support! Entrepreneurs are made with a “do it yourself” attitude, however they always underestimate the amount of free knowledge out there and rarely have a set of mentors they can call for different issues. It saves time, energy, and gives a secure feeling in the daily, and often difficult, decisions ahead.
What made you decide to start your own business in Dubai?
I’ve always been passionate about creating value and improving my own life through hacking at stuff, always thinking ‘this could be better’. I started my first business from the dorms of my university while still studying Engineering, and although I have two degrees in engineering, I became involved in startups and now am on my 4th startup already. Being based in Dubai was a catalyst since so much still needs to be done in the fintech world, and my passion for startups has not diminished although starting a company has a toll on your physical and mental wellbeing.
Based on your industry, what is the most common oversight or mistake you see first time entrepreneurs make?
Within the payments world, not understanding fully the responsibilities of accepting card payment from clients. Deciding to take online and card payment is not like taking in cash. There is so much more that is involved after the transaction is done that merchants needs to be aware of and implement the measures in place to protect themselves from fraud and client disputes.
What’s the one thing you can’t live without when it comes to business.
Sounds like a cliché, but funding! Most businesses fail because of lack of funding (or mismanagement of the existing funding). So, access to capital is critical, assuming the entrepreneur has an ‘investable’ opportunity. This is truer here than other places in the world, where the investments aren’t as structured even though they are in abundance.
Amanda Bailey
Business Operations Consultant
Amanda is the founder of AB Consultancy. Using her 10 years of corporate experience Amanda was able to successfully set up her Virtual Assistant Business; where she was featured in Forbes and Jamaican Prime time TV.
If you could give yourself one piece of advice before you started your business in the UAE, what would it be?
Double check licenses and legal documents thoroughly. Once you sign and submit these documents they are legal and binding.
Based on your industry, what is the most common oversight or mistake you see first time entrepreneurs make?
Having ‘Shiny Object’ syndrome! A lot of business owners want fancy websites and for their social media pages to look amazing. However, these things are not important if the business owner hasn’t done the correct work from the inside out.
More focus should be put into building out their backend operations and client experience process. In turn this will help them to not get stuck at the first hurdle. There’s no point attracting the right clients if they haven’t sorted out their client onboarding system or don’t have clear insight into how their business operates internally.
What’s the one thing you can’t live without when it comes to business?
Wifi! hahaha I need the ability to network, have meetings and build relationships virtually. I love meeting people in person, however last year definitely highlighted the importance and need of having a strong online presence!
Kairo Rahman
Founder and Head of Marketing at Konceptualise
Founder and Head of Marketing at Konceptualise, a creative marketing agency helping brands fine tune their social media strategy for better business.
If you could give yourself one piece of advice before you started your business in the UAE, what would it be?
Don’t wait until things make sense for you to start. No one is ever truly ready to start a business but taking things one step at a time, one-mile at a time and one day at a time, you can achieve things you never imagined but it only happens if you start now.
What made you decide to start your own business in Dubai?
I want to live a life where I can say I truly enjoyed my job and my life by being creative. The reason I chose Dubai is because the opportunity here to be creative is endless and this city is always innovating. I want to see all it has to offer with my own eyes.
Based on your industry, what is the most common oversight or mistake you see first time entrepreneurs make?
Over promising and under delivering, you don’t need to provide 10 different services, if you are great at one thing then you need to start with that and slowly introduce new services as your business grows. People love results and if you can provide that then you have built trust and they will stay with your business as you grow and offer more services.
What’s the one thing you can’t live without when it comes to business?
My laptop. I love my laptop and could spend hours on it working on strategies, design, videos or just entertainment.
Want to learn more?
Mark your calendars for Tuesday, June 8 at Media One Hotel for the first Small Business + Entrepreneurs Networking Event hosted by That Dubai Girl. The event starts at 6pm. This is an opportunity to connect with other local business owners whilst receiving helpful advice and guidance from industry experts on topics including:
- Business licensing
- Business bank accounts
- Payment portals
- Social media and so much more
Each presentation will include a short Q&A session with industry experts.
Program of Events:
Arrival from 6-6:30pm – Event check-in at Qwerty
6:30-8:30pm – Expert presentations with Q&A
8:30-10pm – Networking dinner in Qwerty
Ticket Prices:
Option 1 – Presentations only (AED 100)
Option 2 – Presentations and networking dinner (AED 175)
Payments will be taken in full upon arrival at the event. Safe networking will be supported by social distancing restrictions. Masks must be worn at all times during presentations.
To book your tickets, head to thatdubaigirl.com.
