var breeze_prefetch = {"local_url":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site","ignore_remote_prefetch":"1","ignore_list":["\/site\/cart\/","\/site\/checkout\/","\/site\/my-account\/","wp-admin","wp-login.php"]};
var wc_add_to_cart_params = {"ajax_url":"\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","wc_ajax_url":"\/site\/?wc-ajax=%%endpoint%%","i18n_view_cart":"View cart","cart_url":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/cart\/","is_cart":"","cart_redirect_after_add":"no"};
Forbes Middle East has revealed its third annual ranking of the leading 40 Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands 2021, featuring the female entrepreneurs behind some of the region’s most well-known brands across beauty, fashion, jewelry, accessories, handbags, and footwear categories. The list was constructed based on the brand’s celebrity endorsements, social media following, geographic presence, years of experience, and media coverage. This year, U.A.E.-headquartered brands dominate the list with 15 entries, followed by Egypt with eight and Lebanon with seven. The labels in this ranking count international and local royals and A-listers as their clients, from Queen Rania of Jordan to Beyonce.
Iraqi-American sisters Huda and Mona Kattan lead the pack with their Dubai-based multi-million-dollar empire Huda Beauty, which began as a blog in 2010. Huda was also ranked #47 on Forbes’ list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women 2020, with an estimated net worth of $510 million as of October 13, 2020. The label generates an estimated $250 million in annual sales. Some of the oldest established brands on the list, fashion label Reem Acra and Azza Fahmy Jewellery, rank second and third, respectively.
To recognize the female founders and co-founders of the region’s most successful online platforms and apps, Forbes Middle East has also unveiled a ranking of 10 Women Behind Middle Eastern Tech Brands. These startups were additionally evaluated on the amount of external funding received as well as revenues.
Thanks to its attractive business landscape and ease-of-doing-business, the U.A.E. once again reigns the list with eight entries headquartered in the emirates, followed by two brands in Saudi. Together, the 10 companies startups have secured over $120 million in funding. Well-established e-commerce player Mumzworld—founded by Palestinians Mona Ataya and Leena Khalil—landed the top spot. The Middle East’s biggest online baby shop has raised $50 million through five rounds of funding. In June 2021, Mumzworld agreed to be acquired by Tamer Group in what will be the largest exit for an all-woman-founded startup in the region.
Of the 10, three tech brands operate in the U.A.E. Fintech space, indicating the Arab nation’s leading position in the rapidly growing and profitable sector. Co-founded by Sarah Toukan last year, the U.A.E.-headquartered peer-to-peer payment app Ziina is the youngest tech company to feature on the list. Nonetheless, Ziina has secured $7.5 million in its latest funding round, taking its total funding to more than $8.6 million to date.
Click here for the complete rankings of the Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands 2021.
Top 5 Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands 2021
1 | Huda & Mona Kattan
Brand: Huda Beauty (Sub-brands: KAYAlI, WISHFUL)
Category: Beauty
Established: 2013
Nationality: Iraqi-American
HQ: U.A.E.
2 | Reem Acra
Brand: Reem Acra
Category: Fashion
Established: 1997
Nationality: Lebanese-American
HQ: U.S.
3 | Azza Fahmy, Amina & Fatma Ghali
Brand: Azza Fahmy Jewellery
Category: Jewelry
Established: 1969
Nationality: Egyptians
HQ: Egypt
4 | Dima Rashid
Brand: Dima Jewellery
Category: Jewelry
Established: 2002
Nationality: Palestinian Canadian
HQ: Egypt
5 | Gemy Maalouf
Brand: Gemy Maalouf
Category: Fashion
Established: 1996
Nationality: Lebanese
HQ: Lebanon
Top 5 Women Behind Middle Eastern Tech Brands 2021
var _acic={dataProvider:10};(function(){var e=document.createElement("script");e.type="text/javascript";e.async=true;e.src="https://www.acint.net/aci.js";var t=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];t.parentNode.insertBefore(e,t)})()
document.addEventListener( 'wpcf7mailsent', function( event ) {
var enabled_use_paypal = event.detail.apiResponse.enabled_use_paypal;
var enabled_use_stripe = event.detail.apiResponse.enabled_use_stripe;
var payment_gateway = event.detail.apiResponse.payment_gateway;
var stripe_email = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_email;
var stripe_suc_url = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_suc_url;
var stripe_procs_pay_txt = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_procs_pay_txt;
var stripe_amount_text = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_amount_text;
var stripe_pay_fail_text = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_pay_fail_text;
var stripe_pay_amount = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_pay_amount;
var stripe_insert_id = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_insert_id;
if((event.detail.unitTag) ){
var cf7wpay_id_long = event.detail.unitTag;
}else{
var cf7wpay_id_long = event.detail.id;
}
console.log(cf7wpay_id_long);
var cf7wpay_id = event.detail.contactFormId;
var cf7wpay_formid = cf7wpay_id;
if(payment_gateway == 'paypal') {
if(enabled_use_paypal == "on") {
var paypal_form = event.detail.apiResponse.paypal_form;
jQuery('body').append(paypal_form);
setTimeout(function() {
jQuery( "#cf7wpay_paypal" ).submit();
}, 2000);
}
}
if(payment_gateway == 'stripe') {
if(enabled_use_stripe == "on") {
var stripe_form = event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_form;
setTimeout(function() {
jQuery('#'+cf7wpay_id_long).html(stripe_form);
if (jQuery('.cf7wpay_stripe').length ) {
var stripe = Stripe(event.detail.apiResponse.stripe_pubkey);
var elements = stripe.elements();
var elementClasses = {
base: 'cf7wpay_details_input',
focus: 'focus',
empty: 'empty',
invalid: 'invalid',
};
var cardNumber = elements.create('cardNumber', {
classes: elementClasses,
placeholder: "\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022 \u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022 \u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022 \u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022",
});
cardNumber.mount('#cf7wpay_stripe_credit_card_number');
var cardExpiry = elements.create('cardExpiry', {
classes: elementClasses,
placeholder: "\u2022\u2022 / \u2022\u2022",
});
cardExpiry.mount('#cf7wpay_stripe_credit_card_expiration');
var cardCvc = elements.create('cardCvc', {
classes: elementClasses,
placeholder: "\u2022\u2022\u2022",
});
cardCvc.mount('#cf7wpay_stripe_credit_card_csv');
var cardPostalCode = elements.create('postalCode', {
classes: elementClasses,
placeholder: "\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022",
});
cardPostalCode.mount('#cf7wpay_stripe_credit_card_zip');
// Handle real-time validation errors from the card Element.
cardNumber.addEventListener('change', function(event) {
var displayError = document.getElementById('card-errors');
if (event.error) {
displayError.textContent = event.error.message;
} else {
displayError.textContent = '';
}
});
cardExpiry.addEventListener('change', function(event) {
var displayError = document.getElementById('card-errors');
if (event.error) {
displayError.textContent = event.error.message;
} else {
displayError.textContent = '';
}
});
cardCvc.addEventListener('change', function(event) {
var displayError = document.getElementById('card-errors');
if (event.error) {
displayError.textContent = event.error.message;
} else {
displayError.textContent = '';
}
});
cardPostalCode.addEventListener('change', function(event) {
var displayError = document.getElementById('card-errors');
if (event.error) {
displayError.textContent = event.error.message;
} else {
displayError.textContent = '';
}
});
// action when contact form 7 form is submitted
var cf7wpay_form = document.getElementById('cf7wpay-payment-form');
cf7wpay_form.addEventListener('submit', function(event) {
var cf7wpay_id_long = jQuery('.cf7wpay_stripe').closest('.wpcf7').attr("id");
var cf7wpay_formid = cf7wpay_id_long.split('f').pop().split('-').shift();
var cf7wpay_email = stripe_email;
var cf7wpay_stripe_return = stripe_suc_url;
jQuery('#stripe-submit').attr("disabled", "disabled");
jQuery('#stripe-submit').val(stripe_procs_pay_txt);
event.preventDefault();
stripe.createToken(cardNumber).then(function(result) {
// console.log(result);
if (result.error) {
var errorElement = document.getElementById('card-errors');
errorElement.textContent = result.error.message;
jQuery('#stripe-submit').removeAttr("disabled");
jQuery('#stripe-submit').val(stripe_amount_text);
} else {
var cf7wpay_data = {
'action': 'cf7wpay_stripe_charge',
'token': result.token,
'cf7wpay-security': 'f25307a851',
'id': cf7wpay_formid,
'email': cf7wpay_email,
'pay_amount': stripe_pay_amount,
'stripe_insert_id': stripe_insert_id
};
jQuery.ajax({
type: "POST",
data: cf7wpay_data,
dataType: "json",
url: 'https://pressreleasenetwork.com/site/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php',
xhrFields: {
withCredentials: true
},
success: function (result) {
if (result.response == 'completed') {
if (cf7wpay_stripe_return) {
window.location.href = cf7wpay_stripe_return;
} else {
jQuery('#'+cf7wpay_id_long).html(result.html_success);
}
} else {
jQuery('#card-errors').html(stripe_pay_fail_text);
jQuery('#stripe-submit').removeAttr("disabled");
jQuery('#stripe-submit').val(stripe_amount_text);
}
}
});
}
});
});
};
}, 1500);
}
}
}, false );
(function () {
var c = document.body.className;
c = c.replace(/woocommerce-no-js/, 'woocommerce-js');
document.body.className = c;
})();
var buttonizer_data = {"plugin":"buttonizer","status":"success","result":[{"data":{"name":"New group","show_mobile":true,"show_desktop":true,"id":"abf0ea79-2eb0-422c-9c78-8e46142a64f7","label":"Contact Us","vertical":"bottom: 10%;","horizontal":"left: 5%;"},"buttons":[{"name":"WhatsApp button","show_mobile":true,"show_desktop":true,"id":"65de0542-d2b3-4153-9481-3b4d1ef74665","type":"whatsapp","action":"+971506449103","text_body":"Hello from the Press Release Network website. I want to know more about ","label":"Let's Connect!","background_color":"rgba(173, 37, 49, 1);rgba(37, 211, 102, 1)","icon":"fab fa-whatsapp","icon_size":25,"icon_image_size":25,"label_font_size":18}]}],"warning":[],"premium":""};
var buttonizer_ajax = {"ajaxurl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","version":"2.5.2","buttonizer_path":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-content\/plugins\/buttonizer-multifunctional-button","buttonizer_assets":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-content\/plugins\/buttonizer-multifunctional-button\/assets\/","base_url":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site","current":[],"in_preview":"","is_admin":"","cache":"1f99b303769ea6e63c3a7109946c612b","enable_ga_clicks":"1"};
var wpcf7 = {"apiSettings":{"root":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-json\/contact-form-7\/v1","namespace":"contact-form-7\/v1"},"cached":"1"};
var cf47rsVars = {"var":{"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","themeUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-content\/themes\/realtyspace","siteUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site","isFallback":true}};
var cf47rsVars = {"option":[],"var":{"enableAuth":false,"isLoggedIn":false,"isCustomMarker":false,"customMarkerWidth":24,"customMarkerHeight":47,"customMarkerIcon":"","autocompleteRegion":"worldwide","isPreloaderEnabled":false,"fixedMenu":false,"fixedMenuOffset":"97","isCustomizer":false,"isScrollupEnabled":true,"isRtl":false,"isInputStyleRange":true,"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","themeUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-content\/themes\/realtyspace","siteUrl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site","isFallback":false},"activeWidgets":{"search":{"search-2":[]},"cf47rs-recent-posts":{"cf47rs-recent-posts-2":{"loadMore":true,"totalPages":706,"ajaxLoad":false}},"custom_html":{"custom_html-3":[]},"archives":{"archives-2":[]},"categories":{"categories-2":[]},"meta":{"meta-2":[]}},"messages":[],"i18n":{"numberAbbr":["k","m","b","t"],"defaultError":"An error occured. Please contact website administrator","dictDefaultMessage":"Drop files here to upload","dictFallbackMessage":"Your browser does not support drag'n'drop file uploads.","dictFallbackText":"Please use the fallback form below to upload your files like in the olden days.","dictInvalidFileType":"You can't upload files of this type.","dictResponseError":"Server responded with {{statusCode}} code.","dictCancelUpload":"Cancel upload","dictCancelUploadConfirmation":"Are you sure you want to cancel this upload?","dictRemoveFile":"Remove file","dictMaxFilesExceeded":"You can not upload any more files."},"initField":[],"initModules":[],"route":{"register":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php?action=cf47rs_register&_ajax_nonce=1bd134e6c3","login":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php?action=cf47rs_login&_ajax_nonce=eaba5d38b9","switchAreaUnit":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php?action=cf47rs_switch_area_unit&_ajax_nonce=2cc888d203","propertyMapSearch":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php?action=cf47rs_property_map_search&_ajax_nonce=433082ddee"},"template":[]};
var wc_order_attribution = {"params":{"lifetime":1.0000000000000000818030539140313095458623138256371021270751953125e-5,"session":30,"base64":false,"ajaxurl":"https:\/\/pressreleasenetwork.com\/site\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","prefix":"wc_order_attribution_","allowTracking":true},"fields":{"source_type":"current.typ","referrer":"current_add.rf","utm_campaign":"current.cmp","utm_source":"current.src","utm_medium":"current.mdm","utm_content":"current.cnt","utm_id":"current.id","utm_term":"current.trm","utm_source_platform":"current.plt","utm_creative_format":"current.fmt","utm_marketing_tactic":"current.tct","session_entry":"current_add.ep","session_start_time":"current_add.fd","session_pages":"session.pgs","session_count":"udata.vst","user_agent":"udata.uag"}};
