This highly acclaimed business franchise was initiated in 1919 in Iraq and has since then expanded its operation circles to spread throughout the Middle East and beyond. To lead this prestigious group, there is a visionary entrepreneur by the name of Tony Jashanmal, whose journey from a young student to becoming one of the most thriving entrepreneurs in the UAE is just so inspiring.

The story of the Jashanmal Group begins with Mr. Rao Sahib Jashanmal, Tony’s grandfather, who ventured from India into the newly formed country of Iraq in 1919. An initial visit to Iraq, which was undertaken to investigate the availability of various opportunities, quickly became a lucrative business venture in Basra. It is befitting that Basra, being the chief port of Iraq, hosted a general store that soon grew into a departmental store, catering to the new requirements felt in the rapidly growing region. Success in Iraq encouraged Rao Sahib to open other branches in Kuwait and Bahrain during the 1930s, riding on the back of the emerging oil industry. The strategic expansion to Dubai in 1956 and Abu Dhabi in 1963 set a milestone for the Jashanmal Group in the Arabian Gulf. It has been an expansion to grow not only geographically but also to adapt to the changing market dynamics and consumer needs of these rapidly developing regions.

Born in Kuwait in 1947, Tony Jashanmal pursued his education from India through Switzerland to Hamburg University, from which he graduated with a Master’s Degree in Economics. His varied academic backgrounds provided him with a unique perspective on global business practice, which he brought into the Jashanmal Group when he joined it in 1971. Tony’s tutelage has been instrumental in guiding the company through many challenges and opportunities. During his leadership, the Jashanmal Group diversified its portfolio to include print media, men’s accessories, tobacco, and fashion. That he made the rebuilding of the Kuwait operations a priority immediately after the Gulf War and drove the company’s expansion into India shows his strategic vision and perseverance.

The Jashanmal Group has also ventured into the media industry by distributing magazines and books across the region. Tony is involved in many more things than the family business alone; he served in a number of influential positions, which include Chairman of the New Indian School in Kuwait and President of Hunting and Equestrian Golf Club. His membership to a number of associations like the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Gulf Chapter, underlines his commitment to the cause of economic cooperation between India and GCC states. Further, this commitment to the expansion of press freedom throughout the world is underlined by his work as past President of Distripress.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an unparalleled challenge to businesses across the globe, and this group was no exception. Besides, it accelerated e-commerce and omni-channel retailing. Because strategic priorities by Tony on digital transformation would mean the company could be ready to move fast in adapting to new consumer behaviors and market conditions. And when the World Expo 2020 comes up in Dubai, the Jashanmal Group will be very well positioned to avail itself of those opportunities. Tony’s blend of optimism and caution shows in his realization that one has to keep his foresight alive to negotiate economic uncertainties with flexibility.

 Tony Jashanmal loves football, golf, and cricket. In fact, these sports are an integral part of his life as they give him his much-needed balance and relaxation. His involvement in sport underlines that keeping fit and taking time to relax from the pressures of a busy business life is important. In the course of its development, the Jashanmal Group relies more on adaptability and innovation on Tony’s part. His advice to starting entrepreneurs in the UAE is to take care of progress and improvement, not of pure financial gain. The dynamic atmosphere of the UAE opens up many possibilities for an individual who thinks ahead in business and feels obliged to change the world for the better.

In conclusion, the hundred-year-long heritage of the Jashanmal Group represents Tony Jashanmal’s leadership as part of the proof that deeply rooted commitment to innovation, flexibility, and strategic growth may bring a family business to outstanding success.

She carved her path in the traditionally male-dominated world of finance in the Middle East by building one of the region’s most successful investment firms, Global Investment House. Her story, from being an ambitious mathematician to the chief of a powerhouse in the finance sector, is about both expertise and barriers. Its listing in the London Stock Exchange in 2008 made Global Investment House the first Kuwaiti company to be so listed, marking a seminal shift in the regional investment landscape and opening up new horizons across the Middle East and beyond.

Born and raised in Kuwait, Maha Al Ghunaim graduated with a mathematics degree from San Francisco State University in 1982. Early in her career, she worked for leading institutions that included the Kuwait Investment Authority and the Kuwait Investment Company. This sharp insight into finance and investment soon made her cofound Global Investment House in 1998 with the aim of trying to fill the gaps in the region’s capital markets. Al Ghunaim and her team realized that there were no integrated financial solutions, which include asset management, brokerage, and investment banking across the GCC and the general Middle East. GIH thus grew rapidly, providing several innovative products such as bonds, index funds, and private equity but also contributed to promoting research and development in the region’s financial markets.

Global Investment House emerged as one of the most respected names in the industry. The firm has emerged as one of the most respected names in the industry within just a decade of its inception, with assets under management over $7 billion by 2006 and expanded into markets including India, China, and Turkey, thus solidifying its presence beyond the GCC. Under the stewardship of Maha Al Ghunaim, GIH became the first Kuwaiti company to list on the London Stock Exchange in 2008, a milestone that cemented one of the clearest expressions of the growing global ambitions of the firm. At its height, GIH had offices in Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, among other nations, and managed billions in assets across everything from real estate to financial services. From $50 million, the market capitalization jumped to $5 billion by 2008.

Despite early success, GIH went through some serious problems during the 2008 global financial crisis. Just like many others at that time, it became over-leveraged. Its financial health was thus deteriorating rapidly while the crisis unfolded. GIH chalked up heavy losses, nearing 75% of its capital. In 2011, its shares were suspended from trading on the Kuwaiti stock exchange. To that financial storm, the reaction was candid and resilient from Maha Al Ghunaim. She restructured GIH, making sure that the company was frank and transparent with the clients, the shareholders, and the regulators alike. Under her guidance, GIH came out leaner and more risk-averse, focused on sustainable earnings rather than fast growth.

Maha Al Ghunaim was regarded as one of the most powerful businesswomen in the Arab world. In 2010, she featured 94th in Forbes’ Power Women list, proof of her huge influence on both the financial world and how gender roles evolved in business. She had also been involved in initiatives such as the Kuwaiti chapter of Young Arab Leaders, an organization aiming to instill entrepreneurship and leadership qualities among young Arabs. When Global Investment House finally closed its doors in 2017, Maha Al Ghunaim’s influence on the financial domain remained an inspiration for a whole new generation of leaders and entrepreneurs.

Conclusion:

Under the leadership of Maha Al Ghunaim, Global Investment House opened new investment horizons and created a new financial frontier for the Middle East, giving women in the financial world a whole new meaning. That this company, under such leadership, could successfully negotiate the test of the boom-and-bust cycle showed true resilience. It is her vision for the region’s potential that continues to be part of her legacy. Nowadays, her story is still an inspiration for novice entrepreneurs and business leaders worldwide.

Sunny Varkey’s journey-from a small-town upbringing in Kerala, India, to becoming one of the most influential education entrepreneurs on the face of the earth-is simply remarkable. Founder and Executive Chairman of GEMS Education-the largest private K-12 school operator in the world-such is the influence of Varkey on education that it cuts across both continents and generations. His visionary leadership, coupled with a strong commitment to philanthropy, has rebirthed educational access to millions of students across the globe, proving that education indeed serves as a potent use of change.

Sunny Varkey was born in 1957 in Ranni, Kerala, India, to K.S. Varkey and Mariamma, both educators. The family moved to Dubai in 1959, which laid the bedrock for what would later become Varkey’s global education empire. His parents taught English to local Arabs, including some members of the royal family, and Varkey instinctively realized the value of education from a tender age. In fact, this early exposure to the education sector proved very important in his later years. Varkey spent his formative years at a Catholic boarding school in Kerala before returning to Dubai in 1970 to complete his schooling. His experience of selling fruits as a young boy to make supplementary money instilled in him the values of hard work and persistence that would be central to his success later in life.

In 1980, when the Dubai authorities insisted that Our Own English High School, his parents’ school, needed to relocate to a new facility, Sunny Varkey took over its management. Under his guidance, the school expanded from a mere 400 students into a sprawling global behemoth. Varkey expanded the reach of the school through opening new campuses and offering different curricula, such as Indian, British, and U.S. education systems. This was a strategic move in order to meet the increasingly growing needs of the expatriate population in Dubai that sought quality education for their children.

In the year 2000, Varkey founded Global Education Management Systems, renamed GEMS Education, and laid the bedrock to expand into a global enterprise. Today, GEMS has grown into the largest private K-12 school operator in the world, with around 80 schools spread across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia. It is recognized for its paramount aim: the delivery of quality, accessible education through a range of curricula that caters to different cultural and educational needs.

The success of Sunny Varkey within the education sector was always underpinned by a higher purpose-to ensure that communities around the world in underprivileged conditions gain access to education. In 2010, he founded the Varkey Foundation-the philanthropic arm of GEMS Education-with the dream of impacting 100 underprivileged children for every child enrolled at GEMS schools. This foundation undertakes programs like teacher training across the world to bridge the gap in the educational sphere in deprived countries, advocacy campaigns, building classrooms, among others.

In 2015, Varkey hit headlines when he joined The Giving Pledge-a commitment by the world’s wealthiest individuals to give away the majority of their wealth during their lifetimes to charitable causes. He is the first education entrepreneur to join this prestigious group, and pledged to focus his philanthropic efforts on improving global education. His foundation also established the Global Teacher Prize, a $1 million annual award given to an exceptional teacher who has made significant contributions to the profession.

Varkey has received numerous acknowledgments of his work in improving standards of education internationally. In 2012, he was awarded the title of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador-a position he still holds to date and continues to support quality education internationally. His initiatives with UNESCO have included undertaking various programs regarding educational needs, particularly among disadvantaged sectors of people in the Third World. Through the Global Education and Skills Forum, an annual event launched in 2013 in partnership with UNESCO, Varkey has provided a platform for education leaders, policymakers, and influencers to discuss and promote innovative solutions to the global education crisis.

Sunny Varkey’s contributions toward global education far outweigh what his business achievements show. An education entrepreneur, philanthropist, and changer, he has changed the lives of millions. By opening doors to more educational opportunities, continuing teacher support, and being able to use his wealth in a manner benefiting society as a whole, Varkey has set quite an example for successful business leadership using resources to effect change that is lasting and positive. His legacy will live on, inspiring future generations both of entrepreneurs and educators.