Dubai is somewhat of a haven for startups and budding entrepreneurs. The reason is a thriving global market that holds immense potential for anyone to make a mark for himself. You can launch many products and services in this city as it is the hub of activities in the Middle East. And if you can conquer this market then there is a huge opportunity for you to launch your product successfully in other parts of Middle East and Asia. if you are thinking to start your own company, you can generate a great name using an online name generator tool.

Startups are rife with risks since there are several factors associated with them. Businesses need to think about how they can make a product tick in a cutthroat marketplace. With uncertainty still pulsing amidst the pandemic, you may think that it is not the right time to devote your energy, time, and money to a new project. But you can use this time to devise a great strategy and launch a business once everything is back to normal but you must know the hacks before you think to setup your business in Dubai.

Even the best businesses were once only startups and have seen their fair share of challenges and tribulations. Startups in Dubai have made it big somehow! Some of the businesses are now spread far and wide not just in UAE but Asia and MENA region. 

The following top highlights 10 of the best startups of Dubai. These speak commendably about ground-breaking business ideas that were hitherto untapped, which is why they became a success story.  

1. Souq.com (Amazon.ae)

Founded by Ronaldo Mouchawar in 2005, Souq.com is an English-Arabic-language e-commerce platform owned by Amazon. Amazon acquired souq.com for 580 million dollars in 2017. In May of 2019, soaq.com officially turned into Amazon.ae and also soaq.com KSA became amazon.sa. The Egyptian site has continued the Souq.com brand. 

The success of souq.com is one of the biggest stories in the last two decades as a small company caught the eye of a global eCommerce giant. 580 million US dollars may not be a very high fever but the fact that Amazon was very keen to do the deal with Souq.com was in itself a big development. It paved the way for other companies for mergers and acquisitions and can be termed as a pioneer.

2. Careem 

Careem is another success story that has garnered user attention as it is now part of Uber. It is a vehicle-for-hire company which has ventured into areas like food delivery and payment options to name a few. The company is now worth over 2 billion dollars, as of 2018. 

It was founded by Mudassir Sheikha in 2012. The company now operates in 100 cities across 15 countries and is expanding daily in its stride. As it is part of Uber now, there are huge opportunities for it to become a local giant outshining all the local companies in Dubai and the Middle East.

3. YallaParking 

Life in a big city like Dubai is an endless circus. You must have heard about how difficult it is to secure a decent parking spot, especially in business districts and near shopping centers. YallaParking has offered great solutions to anyone looking for parking with affordability and convenience. It was founded by Craig MacDonald in 2016.

You can book a parking spot and park your car without any hassle and this feature alone has made this startup a favorite with the locals and tourists alike.

4.  The Luxury Closet

Founded in 2012 by Kunal Kapoor, the luxury closet brings all the high-end luxury brands, like Chanel, Van Cleef and Arpelsto, and Louis Vuitton, to your fingertips. This online boutique is the best place to buy or sell new and pre-loved luxury items like handbags, clothes, watches and jewelry, for both men and women. This is a classic example of the best funded startups in Dubai as it offers amazing facilities to find everything luxury for its customers in one place.

5. Beehive 

Founded by Craig Moore in 2017, Beehive connects businesses to lenders who are ready to lend against their online invoices. It is a huge B2B marketplace now and offers innovative technology that leads to affordable finance. It works through a sophisticated process where approved businesses are listed in the marketplace and investors offer the funding through the platform.

6. Renty 

Founded by Yevhen Parokhod in 2018, it is a car renting platform offering basic and luxury cars. The platform also offers chauffeur services to the rich and famous. Some of the luxury cars that are on offer include Bentley, Lamborghini, Porsche, and Rolls Royce. There are many reasons why Renty turned out to be a great new addition, especially because it offers support to anyone looking for a basic or luxury car.

7. AvidBeam Dubai

AvidBeam has been a partner with Intel and Microsoft and is a video Intelligence and analytics platform. It offers big video data to its customers and serves various Industries like Automotive smart cities and retail also one of the biggest and most promising big data startups in recent years and won the Grand prize at CES exhibition 2018 in Las Vegas. It recently secured 6.5 million dollars in total funding and is gearing to become one of the powerhouses of IT and big data companies in Dubai. 

8. Arabia StarzPlay 

Founded by Maaz Sheikh in 2015, it is also available just by the name of StarzPlay. Since its inception, it has been touted to be amongst the top middle east startups. It has secured up to 125 million dollars in total funding and is rightly called the Netflix of the Middle East. Also caters to media and digital entertainment segments and is gearing up to become the biggest player in the market. 

Known as a great success story as it was up against giants like Netflix and Amazon but has made a name for itself. 

9. SouqAlMaal 

Founded by Ambareen Musa in 2012, it got the award of amongst the best startups in Dubai by Forbes. It deals with financial companies and offers a comparison of websites for insurance and financial products. It is helpful for people who try to opt for the first deal they see on the Internet and sign the dotted line. Also offers car insurance, banking, and financial solutions.

10. Bekia

Founded by Alaa Kamal and Mohamed Zohdy in 2017, it is a Cairo-based waste management startup. It has gained quite a reputation for itself in Dubai as waste management is needed by not only the government but also by big companies. Its biggest advantage is that it lets users exchange waste materials such as plastic, paper, electronics, etc. with points. These points can be used to buy groceries, metro tickets, and mobile credits to name a few.

The concept lets people dispose-off waste material without polluting their surroundings or the environment. 

Over to you 

What is your take on the ten startups mentioned above? Or do you want to see some other company on the list? Please offer your feedback for this blog or ask a question by using the comments section below.