Listen Now

Guest Brahms Chouity Brahms Chouity is a Lebanese serial entrepreneur who has spent the last 2 decades building companies in fields ranging from gaming, to online publishing, hospitality investment to interior decoration, luxury lifestyle management and private shopping to motorsports. Brahms was born in Beirut in 1978, but spent most of his childhood between Saudi Arabia, Australia and Lebanon. After earning his degree in International Business and Hotel Management from the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne University in 2003, he went on to start his first company in 2005, Trait d’union, a hospitality investment consulting firm that quickly secured large projects all over the Gulf region. It was a one-stop-shop for investors looking to enter the hotel business, specializing in feasibility studies, concept consulting, space layout studies, architecture & interior design.  In 2006, he set up the Near East franchise of Quintessentially, the world’s leading exclusive lifestyle management company that caters to over 500,000 VIP’s worldwide. Brahms then went on to co-found the Saudi Sports Group (SSG) in 2007, the Boutique Investment Fund in Basel in 2010 and then moved to the tech world, founding at7addak.com in 2011 which became the ‘biggest user-generated gaming entertainment website in the Arab world‘ with over 3 million Arab users. In 2014, after also launching other tech platforms such as techtik.com and sor3a.com, he founded and co-developed the Arab world’s first bid-to-auction website, BidZeed to gamify the shopping experience which he then sold in 2016. With over 30 start-ups under his belt, Brahms went on to launch his personal food blog, (DaddyFoody)[https://instagram.com/daddyfoody) where he is now a brand ambassador for several international and local brands and is recognized as Lebanon’s leading food & lifestyle blogger. Brahms is a 2 times TEDx speaker and has achieved numerous accolades during his career, including Endeavor’s High Impact Entrepreneur (2012), Wamda’s Best Readers’ Choice Startup in 2012 and one of the Top 20 Lebanese Entrepreneurs by Executive Magazine (2013), and Best Comfort Food Blogger at the World Bloggers Award in 2019. Login • Instagram Brahms Chouity known by his Instagram handle @DaddyFoody is the winner of the Best Comfort Food Blogger at the World Bloggers Award for 2019. In this episode we discuss Brahm’s passion for conceptualising and identifying business opportunities with the goal to exit in a few years and how he managed to launch close to 30 startups in 2 decades. Whilst he was hard at work churning one business after the other and just before he turns 40, life throws Brahms a curveball that would change his perspective forever. Out of that experience, Daddy Foody was born. Tune in to listen to Brahms’ story and find out about his plans for the future!

Guest Tara Rogers-Ellis Tara is the co-founder and managing partner of Mojo, an independent and integrated communications consultancy headquartered in Dubai, serving clients across the Middle East, India, Africa, Turkey & Greece. She’s a marketing and communications veteran with a 25+ year track record in the Middle East, UK and South Africa, Tara held a number of leadership positions in her career before starting Mojo. These include: General Manager of the Middle East regional office of global PR network Weber Shandwick; Marketing & PR Manager for Dubai Duty Free; Head of Marketing for Bradshaw Taylor UK; and PR Director for MBC Group. Tara’s passion for nurturing, developing and supporting young talent throughout her career led to her being awarded the Middle East PR Association’s Visionary Leader Award in 2015. She has been part of judging committees for numerous communications and entrepreneurial awards and organizations in the Middle East, India and South Africa, and is a regular speaker at international marketing and entrepreneurship events. She is a Board Member of non-profit organization REACH, an initiative to mentor women professionals and develop female leadership in the Middle East. A certified Go-Giver coach, Tara works with senior executives in the Middle East and beyond. www.linkedin.com I’m joined by Tara Rogers-Ellis, who co-founded Mojo along with Louise Mezzina. Over the course of a decade, the duo have built Mojo into a successful PR and Communications agency, with top clients like Johnson & Johnson, the European Union, RAKBank, Montblanc and more. Tara grew up in South Africa during apartheid and an opportunity to move to the UAE meant that she could have a fresh start, it was at that point when she discovered her natural inclination towards PR and her love for building teams. During the episode, Tara shares useful tips for companies looking to fully leverage public relations, and what to avoid. I’d love to hear what you think—you can connect with me on Instagram and leave me a review in Apple Podcasts and IMDb.

Guest Mishaal Al Gergawi Mishaal Al Gergawi is the co-founder and CEO of Axis, enterprise platform for accurate instant information for countries, commodities, and industries. Mishaal began his career in investment banking at HSBC and Deutsche Bank. In 2008 Mishaal became well known for his regular columns in The National (the UAE’s leading newspaper) tackling economic and political issues in the UAE and the GCC. In 2012, he founded and managed the Delma Institute, a think tank and risk advisory firm. In 2018, Mishaal decided to move to NewYork and is currently working on building AXIS, a portal that provides enterprises with access to global information, data and analysis. twitter.com www.linkedin.com I’m excited to have Mishaal Al Gergawi on the show this week, one of the UAE’s top thinkers and intellectuals. Mishaal’s journey is quite fascinating as he started his career in finance yet quickly became renowned for his writing, a passion that fueled the launch of The Delma Institute, a think tank that he ran between 2012 and 2018. His work was centered around providing analysis and insights on West Asia and North Africa to governments and corporates. At that point, his curiosity to learn about the world peaked and he decided to undertake his first deep dive and learn about the world’s modern history, a gigantic task that took him 3 years to complete. He wrote a summary about his learnings on medium]. He is currently on his second deep dive and tackling both the world of sci-fi and crypto currencies. Mishaal wants to be an eternal student, the most well rounded person he can possibly be. His curiosity about the world and his wish to make an impact led him to launch AXIS, a startup with an audacious goal to build the world’s best graph for companies to understand the MACRO forces impacting their business and help them make informed decisions. I’d love to hear what you’re reading—you can tag me on Instagram and leave me a review in Apple Podcasts and IMDb. For sponsorship opportunities, collaborations or guest recommendations, you can email me for details. Links History of the Modern World (1453–2001) AXIS - Mishaal's startup

Guest Ali Matar Based in Dubai, LinkedIn MENA’s headquarters, Ali is responsible for managing LinkedIn’s business and boosting its brand and presence across all Middle East and North Africa countries. Ali has more than sixteen years of leadership experience. Since joining LinkedIn in October 2012 as the first employee of the company in the MENA region, he worked with his team to increase and diversify the members and corporate clients of LinkedIn. In 2015, Ali was recognized as one of the top 100 regional heads of multinational companies in the Middle East by Forbes. Prior to moving to LinkedIn, Ali held different senior regional roles in international software companies such as SAP and Oracle. A native Arabic speaker and a civil engineer by education, Ali is a certified supply chain consultant and holds the Global Executive MBA from INSEAD. He is passionate about lifelong learning and enjoys learning languages and exploring new cultures. www.linkedin.com I’m joined by Ali Matar, LinkedIn’s Head of EMEA Emerging Markets, Middle East & Africa. In our chat we discuss the disruption that COVID has had on the MENA region and how people are coping with the new work dynamics, job losses and the need to re-think their careers, particularly women.We build on Ali’s experience as the first employee tasked to build the LinkedIn presence in MENA and how a misconception he had ended up being one of his biggest career learning opportunity. A great discussion if you’re currently managing people and looking for some practical tips on building a thriving workplace. I’d love to hear what new skills and opportunities you are pursuing, you can tag me on Instagram or leave me a review in Apple Podcasts and IMDb. For sponsorship opportunities, you can email me for details.

Guest Khaled Kteily Khaled Kteily is the Founder of Legacy, a Harvard- and Y Combinator-incubated company providing from-home fertility services for men and changing the outdated view that fertility is a “women’s issue”. A former healthcare consultant at Oliver Wyman in Toronto, Khaled studied public policy at Harvard, where he received a full scholarship and graduated with distinction. Khaled was previously a Global Leadership Fellow at the World Economic Forum in Geneva, where he had his work on entrepreneurship published at Davos. Khaled is a member of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. He was recently selected by the World Government Summit as one of the top 100 Arab Youth Pioneers, is an Aspen Ideas Health Scholar, and currently serves on the boards of the Harvard Arab Alumni Association and the Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership. He is Palestinian, Lebanese, and Canadian. www.linkedin.com I’m joined by my friend Khaled Kteily, the Founder and CEO of Legacy, a US based startup that provides from-home fertility services for men with the aim to change the outdated view that fertility is a “women’s issue”. The UAE is part of Legacy’s first phase of international expansion and Khaled is hoping to kick off at the earliest given the region’s struggle with infertility in general. Khaled and I talk about the similarities in our journies–we both left home at 17, we both started business from scratch as first-time entrepreneurs at 29, we both won startup competitions & believe in creating momentum to make things happen. We also talk about his own identity and the start of his career at Oliver Wyman followed by the World Economic Forum. A quick disclaimer: I’m a super proud investor in Legacy and fully believe in their mission to become the Fatherhood company helping over 100M men on the journey of becoming a father. Links Legacy

Guest Dr. Nadine Hachach-Haram Founder & CEO, Proximie www.linkedin.com Nadine Hachach-Haram is Lebanese reconstructive plastic surgeon based in London and the founder of Proximie, an augmented reality platform allowing surgeons to remotely guide local clinicians through complex procedures in real-time. She joins me on the show this week to talk about growing up in post-war Beirut in the early 90s, her first exposure to the world of surgery to her mission with Proximie to provide top-class healthcare across the world. We also discuss the importance of multitasking and finding a balance as a surgeon, entrepreneur, wife and mother of 3!

Guest Sky Kurtz Sky Kurtz is the CEO of Pure Harvest and a former technology private equity investor turned serial entrepreneur who is passionate about building impactful companies that tackle big problems in the world. Prior to building technology companies, Sky invested in them as a Vice President with Francisco Partners, a $15B tech investment firm based in San Francisco, CA that is an affiliate of Sequoia Capital, a world-leading venture investment firm. He was also an investor with CCMP Capital, a $17B generalist investment firm based in New York, NY. He has served on the boards of five (5) technology companies of all scales (from $2MM to $500MM+ of sales) and considers himself a lifelong student of business. Sky has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. in Finance from the W.P. Carey School of Business where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was named the Turken Family Outstanding Graduating Senior (valedictory honor). www.linkedin.com In an increasingly digital world, you have to appreciate people who work with their hands—artists, tailors, buildings, designers, cooks. I’m joined on this episode by Sky Kurtz, co-founder & CEO of Pure Harvest, a new breed of tech startups that has raised $50 million to build high-tech greenhouses. We talk about how he got started with entrepreneurship after graduating from Stanford, moving to the UAE and eventually setting up Pure Harvest with a “demo” farm based on which he raised his first $5.8 million from 31 investors. I believe Sky is on a path to build a unicorn in the region (a business valued at over $1 billion). Listen in to hear why he believes education was his ticket to get somewhere in life and how he’s looking to send the elevator back down and give back.

Guest Jalil Allabadi Jalil Allabadi co-founded Altibbi in 2011 with a mission to provide accessible healthcare to everyone. Since then, Altibbi has grown to become the largest digital health provider in the Arab world with +2 million pages of content, 24/7 Telehealth service in 12 Arab countries and +500,000 daily users. Jalil is an Endeavor entrepreneur since 2014, member of the Entrepreneurs Organization, member of the Board of Trustees at Royal Health Awareness Society and most recently was one of 17 global leaders to receive the 2019 Schwab Award. www.linkedin.com Jalil Allabadi started working on Altibbi.com, a health-tech startup out of Jordan in 2011. It was the first attempt to digitize an Arabic-Arabic medical dictionary published by his father, a prominent Jordanian surgeon. What started off as 15,000 terms is now 100,000 medical terms across 2 million pages. In 2016 he saw an opportunity to change his business model and decided that the real opportunity is in telehealth - the ability for patients and doctors to connect online and on demand - a feature that has witnessed mega growth at the onset of COVID with 1 million online consultations performed in 6 months! Jalil shares his journey into entrepreneurship, his challenges with finding a suitable co-founder, fundraising and his vision for Altibbi.

Guest Dina El-Mofty Dina El-Mofty is a community builder, investor and thought leader who works to support entrepreneurs to grow and scale their businesses. Nominated as one of the world’s most influential young Arabs under 40 by Arabian Business, she is the founder of Injaz Egypt, an organization which has a strong educational focus on entrepreneurship and work readiness. Dina has received The Young Achiever of the year award for 2016 by Arabian Business. She is also the recipient of the Top 50 Award for top performing women in Egypt for 2016. She was one of 4 main judges on the popular CBC TV show ‘Hona Al Shabab’, the Egyptian version of Shark Tank. Dina holds a Graduate degree from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, and pursued her undergraduate studies at Georgetown she graduated from the American University in Cairo and holds professional degrees from Penn State, Insead and Harvard. She is a mom of 3 and lives with her family in Cairo Egypt. Dina El-Mofty is the founder of Injaz, a pioneering NGO in Egypt and on a mission to empower one million Egyptian youths by 2020 by teaching them entrepreneurship, financial and work readiness skills. Injaz’s work with schools and universities led Dina to launch “My Company” in 2011, an accelerator offering grants and mentorship to entrepreneurs at a time of crisis (during and post revolution). We talk about her journey of persistence building Injaz, the importance of patience in building relations and more importantly, having a strong mindset and faith to overcome tough times. If you’re looking for inspiration and to discover the rewards of following one’s purpose then this episode is for you.

Guest Binod Shankar Binod Shankar started his long career in an industrial bank in India where he did loan and project appraisals of Small and Medium Enterprises. He then spent six years executing audit, financial due diligence, financial feasibility and valuation assignments with KPMG, Arthur Andersen and Ernst & Young in Oman and Dubai. In 2003 Binod joined Nakheel, the high-profile property developer of the Palm Islands and many other iconic projects in Dubai, as Manager-Financial Analysis. He got a double promotion, rising rapidly to become the Finance Director of its largest project, helping along the way to raise the world’s largest Islamic Bond in 2006. His last corporate position was as Executive Director-Finance at Gulf Finance House in Bahrain, a leading regional fund house. In 2009, Binod quit a successful corporate career to co-found Genesis Institute, a financial training company. In 2017 he and his co-founders sold Genesis to Kaplan Inc, a US based global training & publishing company with annual revenue of USD 2 billion and 15,000 employees around the world. He is now a keen financial analyst and appears frequently on CNBC Arabia as an expert on financial markets where he covers mainly US and European markets with a focus on equities, a platform speaker, podcast host and has also written quite a few articles on finance and travel in The National and Gulf News. Binod is also an endurance athlete and is a long-distance runner, high altitude trekker, mountaineer and long distance/high altitude cyclist. He has summitted twelve mountains around the world including Jebel Toubkal , the highest mountain in North Africa (4,167m), Gokyo Ri in Nepal (5,400m), Mt Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe ( 5,642m), Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa (5,895m), Stok Kangri in India (6,153 m) and Mera Peak, the highest trekking peak in Nepal ( 6,476 m). Binod is an avid cyclist and he has cycled from Manali to Leh, a 550km ten-day adventure through remote regions and five high mountain passes ranging from Rohtang La (3,978m) to Khardung la (5,359m). He has also cycled from Pune to Goa, another 500 + km gig, over five days in 2014. The Real Finance Mentor Binod Shankar is many things–from a former entrepreneur & now a mentor to a podcaster & speaker to a cyclist & mountaineer, and a dear friend. He was also my CFA Level I coach. After leaving the corporate life, he went on to co-found the Genesis Training Institude in 2009 which eventually got acquired by Kaplan Inc. in 2017. Today he mentors young finance enthusiasts via his podcast, The Real Finance Mentor, and is a writer, speaker and regular guest on CNBC Arabia. Binod opens up about his journey from corporate life to entrepreneurship and some key life lessons along the way, his take on executive coaching and how fitness can help shape your mindset. If you’re someone on a path to self-discovery, this episode is for you.

Guest Abdulaziz Al Loughani Abdulaziz Al Loughani is co-founder & CEO of Floward, a full-fledged flowers and gifts ecommerce platform covering the GCC region. He is also the co-founder and Managing Partner of Faith Capital, a private venture capital practice that invests in the MENA region. Previously, Abdulaziz was the founding Executive Vice Chairman of the Kuwait National Fund for SMEs Development, a US$ 7 billion independent public institution responsible for developing the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Kuwait (2013-2017). He was a co-founder and CEO of Talabat.com until 2010, and has since then been investing in technology startups and has been involved in a number of local and regional entrepreneurial initiatives. Abdulaziz has served as an executive and member of board on a number of companies within the MENA region in the technology, banking, healthcare, manufacturing, consumer finance, food & beverage and the real estate sectors. Abdulaziz holds a Bachelor’s degree - with a double major in Information Systems and E-Commerce from the University of Toledo, and an MBA degree from London Business School. www.linkedin.com Abdulaziz Al Loughani co-founded and managed Talabat.com before it was acquired by Rocket Internet for $170m in 2015. He is currently the CEO of Floward, a flowers and gifts ecommerce platform and the co-founder and managing partner of Faith Capital, a Kuwait based private Venture Capital firm investing in MENA startups. Abdulaziz is a hardworking, brilliant and humble man whom I am proud to call a friend. He brings a lot of experience to the MENA startup scene and has even helped shape the Kuwaiti government’s strategy towards entrepreneurship and SMEs. In this conversation we discuss his views on the regional Venture Capital firms (VCs) and why he believes that little value is added beyond cash. We also discuss what founders need to build a company that lasts forever, opportunities for founders in MENA, exits, IPOs and more. This episode is a must listen entrepreneurs, angel investors and VCs.

Guest Sonia Weymuller Sonia is a Founding Partner of VentureSouq. Previously, she headed Advertising Sales for Turner Broadcasting’s portfolio of children’s platforms across MENA. Prior to Turner, Sonia worked with Viacom’s Emerging Markets’ Strategy Group and Microsoft’s Strategy and M&A team in London. She is a Charter Member & Board Director for TiE’s Dubai chapter, serves as the UAE Director for the Yale Alumni Schools Committee and is a Board Member and Mentor for e7 Daughters of the Emirates. Sonia holds a B.A. from Yale University, a MSc from the London School of Economics and is a Kauffman Fellow. twitter.com www.linkedin.com I’m joined on this episode by Sonia Weymuller, founding partner at VentureSouq, a Dubai-based investment platform. Sonia’s career started out in media & technology working with companies like Turner Broadcasting, Viacom and Microsoft before going on to found VentureSouq in 2015. Last year, she launched Conscious Collective, an impact-driven investment vehicle that is an extension of VentureSouq. Sonia is a Charter Member & Board Director for TiE’s Dubai Chapter, serves as the UAE Director for the Yale Alumni Schools Committee and is a Board Member and Mentor for e7 Daughters of the Emirates. Sonia is also a Kaufman Fellow. In this chat we discuss Sonia’s decision to switch to entrepreneurship and how she recovered from the curveballs in her life to find her inner Sisu, which is also what she named her rescued cat. Thanks to Primal Alignment for their support of this episode. If getting fit and staying fit has been a challenge for you especially recently, Coach Franky — a former Green Beret and former instructor of the British Commando’s training wing — is going to change your life. Register for the online program by visiting his website.

Guest Christopher Schroeder Christopher M. Schroeder is a leading American entrepreneur, advisor and tech investor. Currently, he has partnered with leading figures in Silicon Valley to invest in rising markets, with focus in South East Asia, The Middle East, Latin America and East Africa and co-founded Next Billion Ventures. He sits on the investment committees of Saudi Telecom Ventures and Wamda Capital and is a Network Parter for Village Global. Schroeder was the CEO of washingtonpost.newsweek interactive and co-founder of the Sequoia backed startup healthcentral.com, sold in 2012. He sits on numerous private company and non-profit boards. Schroeder has written and speaks extensively on global innovation for The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch among others and is seen regularly on CNN, CNBC and BBC. He is author of the recent best seller, and first book on startups in the Arab World, Startup Rising — The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East — with a forward by Marc Andreessen. Hs was named one of LinkedIn’s first 50 Influencers. twitter.com Login • Instagram www.linkedin.com Chris Schroeder is a global angel investor & advisor to tech startups with a keen interest in emerging markets. Chris is the co-founder of Next Billion Ventures, a venture capital fund focused on the next billion digital consumers across global emerging markets, he is a Network Partner for Village Global, an early venture capital fund backed by Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Diane Greene, Sara Blakely, Jeff Bezos, Reid Hoffman and many more exceptional entrepreneurs. He sits on the investment committees of Wamda Capital & Saudi Telecom Ventures and he is on the board of several private and NGO boards. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Chris started out in politics with the George W Bush (Senior) presidential campaign before becoming the CEO of the Washington Post/ Newsweek interactive. In 2005 he co-founded Health Central, a platform that helps people find and share real-life experiences related to their health needs. Health Central was backed by the likes of Sequoia, Polaris Ventures and the Carlyle Group to name a few and was acquired by Remedy Health in 2012. In 2013, Chris published the first book on the Middle East & North Africa’s entrepreneurship scene called: Startup Rising — The Entrepreneurial Revolution Remaking the Middle East — with a forward by renowned investor Marc Andreessen. I’ve known Chris for nearly a decade and am delighted he let me ask the questions this time as he is the one who is always curious and eager to be of service. We talked about Chris’s transition into entrepreneurship from politics and corporate life, his fascination with entrepreneurship in the Middle East and emerging markets, the sectors he’s currently considering for investment and we touch on our need to step up and take control of our lives and also our biases. For those interested in learning more about fundraising for startups and venture capital, check out these 2 books: Venture deals by Brad Feld and (Secrets of Sand Hill Road](Secrets of Sand Hill Road) by Scott Kupor. Thanks to Joi Gifts for their support on this episode. Joi Gifts is the largest gifting marketplace in the Middle East, operating in 7 countries and covering 22 major cities. Use the code loulou15 to get a 15% discount on everything. Enjoy!

Guest Samer Hamadeh Samer Hamadeh has made his name in the Dubai restaurant and nightlife scene and most recently featured in the Arabian Business DXB100 list of people helping shape the future of Dubai. Samer is a serial entrepreneur having founded his first business at age 24, a corporate events business. It’s been almost 2 decades since those days and Samer has evolved to pioneer some of Dubai’s legendary clubs such as Stereo Arcade and Republique as well as funky restaurants such as Akiba Dori. Just shy of age 40, Samer is on a quest to help build more amazing and quirky concepts as well as help entrepreneurs who are looking to venture into the food and beverage space. Samer S. Hamadeh (@iammrbrightside) • Instagram photos and videos My guest Samer Hamadeh is a serial entrepreneur in the entertainment and Food & Beverage space having built some great concepts such as Republique, Stereo Arcade, Akiba Dori and more. I met Samer way before his food and beverage days when he was at Impact BBDO, where 7 months in, he was already on his way out, founding his first business in the corporate events space. Samer is the kind of guy you want to hang out with and learn from as he openly shares his successes and failures. I catch up with Samer to talk entrepreneurship, fundraising, managing a board of directors, building brands that people love and more. Thanks to Justmop for their support of the show. Justmop is an app and website that helps you connect with well-trained, pre-screened service professionals for disinfection & cleaning services with bio-safe, hospital-grade disinfectants. Use the code loulou30 to get 30% off your disinfection or sanitization service. Offer valid until end of July 2020.

Guest Rayan Karaky Rayan Karaky is currently Leading the Partnerships, Product and platform teams at Google – MENA. In 2014 he was recruited to help Google better understand and navigate the media agency / partner world in MENA and revolutionize the Google-Agency working model, from relationships to commercial to joint business planning. Rayan started his career in 2001 in Media Planning and buying at Starcom MediaVest Group, the largest media agency in MENA, helping clients navigate traditional media that was dominant at the time. Rayan went on to become the Chief Digital Officer of MENA and Emerging Markets at Starcom MediaVest Group growing the digital talent from 3 to over 90 employees in six years in MENA alone, catapulting the digital division from a #6 ranking to #1 in the region. When he is not working in digital, Rayan is also an avid standup comedian performing in different locations across the MENA region. www.linkedin.com A recording from the first LIVE session with Rayan Karaky who currently leads Partnerships, Product and Platform teams at Google – MENA. We chat about Rayan’s standup comedy and how it helps leaders show vulnerability which makes them more approachable. We also discuss his intrapreneurial journey with Starcom (part of Publicis Group) and his push towards implementing the latest digital advertising tools in MENA followed by his move to Google and his role in helping partners achieve digital maturity in order to better leverage digital advertising. We then move to a post COVID world and we discuss some of the opportunities for the MENA region particularly with 200 million people who are still not connected to the internet. Thanks to Joi Gifts for their support on this episode. Joi Gifts is the largest gifting marketplace in the Middle East, operating in 7 countries and covering 22 major cities. Tune in to get your code for a 15% discount on all items. Enjoy!

Guest Philip Bahoshy Philip Bahoshy is the founder and CEO of MAGNiTT, is the largest investment data platform for the MENA startup ecosystem, be investors, entrepreneurs and corporates. Raised in the UK with Iraqi origins, Philip obtained an MBA from INSEAD in 2013 and a BSc in Economics from the London School of Economics. During his time in Dubai, Philip worked at Oliver Wyman in the Financial Services practice for three years, followed by nearly three years at Barclays Wealth working as Chief of Staff to the CEO advising on strategic initiatives. Philip has lived in the UAE for more than twelve years and is passionate about developing the MENA startup ecosystem. Philip Bahoshy (@pbahoshy) | Twitter Philip Bahoshy (@philip.bahoshy) • Instagram photos and videos My guest today founded a company that set out to be the Tinder for startups & investors–Magnitt–which he conceptualized in 2012. Philip Bahoshy is a Brit with Iraqi origins and after exploring a career in financial services, found himself wanting to get away from the corporate world and the Middle East. He went on to complete his MBA at INSEAD and as he learnt about the entrepreneurial world, realized a major gap in the startup space particularly in the Middle East. Recorded before the coronavirus restrictions came into effect, this episode has numerous insights from Philip and the data they are compiling at Magnitt alongwith his take on key players, opportunities & exits. Thanks to Joi Gifts for their support on this episode. Joi Gifts is the largest gifting marketplace in the Middle East, operating in 7 countries and covering 22 major cities. Tune in to get a sweet 15% off on all items on their site, and start gifting this Ramadan season with Joi!

Guest Nadim Samara Nadim’s career at Omnicom started at BBDO in 2001, before moving to OMD the following year. Rapidly moving up the ranks, he became its CEO for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), before being promoted to CEO of OMG MENA in June 2019. Throughout his tenure at OMD, across several offices in different countries, he actively participated in the evolution of the agency and industry, proactively addressing advertisers’ ever-changing needs. Nadim proved his talent for unlocking employees’ potential and driving growth for both the network and its clients. Under his leadership, OMD turned into a business performance company following the diversification of its service offering, which led to numerous industry awards and accolades. At OMG, he will focus on stimulating growth across the group, empowering its high-performing teams across the region. Nadim has been living in Dubai with his family since 2012 and, when he’s not at work, he enjoys spending quality time with them and satisfying his craving for outdoor pursuits. Login • Instagram www.linkedin.com My guest Nadim Samara is the CEO of Omnicom Media Group (OMG) MENA, the premier media and marketing services group. He is a media agency veteran having built a career at OMD since 2001 and built expertise in both MENA and US markets. I’ve known Nadim since childhood and I can say with absolute certainty that he is a genuine person that is big on life. In addition to his highly successful career in media, he is a shrewd businessman, a master conversationalist, a loving father of 3 beautiful kids, an adventurer and nature lover. Lest not forget his biggest passions in life, chocolate and building - oversized - cars that scale the Lebanese mountains or Dubai deserts! In this episode we discuss his focus on building a great company culture following the footsteps of his mentor Elie Khoury – now Chairman of Omnicom Media Group MENA – and why it is important for the health of the business. We will also talk about the importance of talent particularly in an industry that is under constant transformation and how OMG is diversifying their business to create more revenue streams for themselves and their clients. Lastly, we will talk about the person behind the business and what has ultimately prepared Nadim and primed him for success as well as his tips for staying the course. Overall, if you are in the advertising, media or an executive in a large business, you may find some great insights into leading, scaling and diversifying a US$500M+ business.

Guest Elie Habib Elie Habib is a seasoned entrepreneur - having co-founded several companies - including Anghami, the MENA region’s leading music streaming platform headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon. twitter.com Login • Instagram Welcome to the inaugural episode of Conversations with Loulou, a podcast that aims to be an extension of my learning journey & transformations over the past decade. I couldn’t think of a better guest to join me to kickstart the show than a serial entrepreneur who’s fifth venture Anghami—the region’s largest music streaming service—is valued at over USD$100 million. Elie suggests that running Anghami is not unlike cooking in a kitchen with a limited pantry and we talk about some of the major milestones in the company’s journey, what they got dead right when it came to understanding the region’s consumers and Elie’s personal goal of turning the music streaming business model on its head.