(R) Dana Abdelhadi, Owner of Expose Communications, a boutique PR firm pose during the interview at her office in Dubai. ( Satish Kumar / The National )
(R) Dana Abdelhadi, Owner of Expose Communications, a boutique PR firm pose during the interview at her office in Dubai. ( Satish Kumar / The National )

Start-ups lament lack of consistency in UAE free zones



As Dana Abdelhadi prepared to launch her boutique public relations company in Dubai this spring, she decided to take the advice of a family friend, Issam Dahmash, and open in a free zone.

Economics

Free zones across the Emirates serve as economic engines that power growth. The National examines why businesses are flocking to free zones and what they need to know. Learn more

Mr Dahmash opened a furniture shop in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) free zone a few years ago and had only good things to say about the process.

Mr Dahmash, who is British, completed all of his start-up paperwork in-house at DIFC and maintains full control of his business.

The procedure was so fast and easy, he says, that he even created another company in a free zone in Ras Al Khaimah.

"It took me a couple of hours to set up," he says.

But Ms Abdelhadi's journey in starting up her venture, Expose Communications, in the nearby free zone of Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) has been a much bumpier ride.

First, her co-founder, Hind Dahmash - Mr Dahmash's daughter - started a sister office in London, taking just 20 minutes to register the business, and at a cost of £90 (Dh530).

In contrast, Ms Abdelhadi says she had to wait more than two months despite being told the process would take only about 10 days. It also cost Dh32,000 to obtain her business licence, she says.

"They told me I have to have an office to rent out before I got my licence, and so I was paying rent for two months before I could start working in it," adds Ms Abdelhadi, a Jordanian-born Canadian.

While Ms Abdelhadi is quick to note that she is quite content now that her business has been up and running for a couple of months, complaints such as hers are spurring some free zones, including JLT, to take action.

Some are making marketing claims that could capture the attention of people who are shopping around for a free zone where paperwork can be fast-tracked.

ZonesCorp, for instance, oversees five industrial cities in Abu Dhabi and promises business owners that they can "set up their operations in the shortest time possible", though it stops short of stating a specific period.

Other free zones among the 30 or so operating in the UAE are overhauling aspects of how they go about helping new companies to start up, such as eliminating unnecessary documentation.

The Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority last month revamped its website so that information about establishing or operating a business could be easily reached through a single portal instead of multiple sites.

It may have been a simple act of consolidation, but it is the kind of convenience that business owners such as Ms Abdelhadi are looking for. In fact, Dubai Outsource Zoneemphasises its "one-stop-shop of support services" for start-ups.

A similar one-stop centre has opened on the second floor of Almas Tower in Dubai. That is where aspiring business owners who are looking to move into one of the 61 buildings within the JLT free zone now congregate.

The space was designed after JLT executives mapped out the different floors and buildings that their clients would have to visit in order to get start-up assistance, as well as to figure out who, exactly, the clients spoke with and why.

During a recent visit to this new centre, some business people were tracking the progress of their employees' work-visa approvals on a computer monitor.

Most were patiently sitting with folders of paperwork, waiting for staff to help with questions about business licences, registering companies or securing office space. "We would like to see an environment where our customers have one touch point," says Malcolm Wall Morris, the chief executive of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, which oversees JLT.

"They could be a commodity trader [or] a retailer. That's their business," he adds.

"Their business isn't having to go through an administrative hurdle of setting up a business."

Ms Abdelhadi, who runs just one of the thousands of businesses in JLT, did not have the chance to test this new administrative centre when she opened her office earlier this year.

Yet Mr Morris responded to her complaint over the lengthy set-up time she encountered by saying: "We constantly strive to make the process logical and expedited. There is always going to be potential issues somewhere, but we continue to try for that service improvement."

James Bernard, the director for business development and client management at JLT, also notes that it takes businesses an average of two weeks to set up shop in the free zone.

"We're continuously working on our processes, and we serve to make it as quick as possible, but there are certain [administrative] things we have to do," he says.

Busy entrepreneurs who want to outsource parts of this start-up process now have that option, too. Consultancies in Dubai and the capital are more than ready to compare the pros and cons of different free zones, provide a full breakdown of licensing options, then shuttle around paperwork on behalf of aspiring business owners.

The help all comes at a price, of course.

"It truly does become a one-stop shop," says Prajit Arora, the managing director of Sentinel Business Centres, a consultancy that helps businesses to get started in Dubai.

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Australia men's Test cricket fixtures 2021/22

One-off Test v Afghanistan:
Nov 27-Dec 1: Blundstone Arena, Hobart

The Ashes v England:
Dec 8-12: 1st Test, Gabba, Brisbane
Dec 16-20: 2nd Test, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (day/night)
Dec 26-30: 3rd Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Jan 5-9, 2022: 4th Test, Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Jan 14-18: 5th Test, Optus Stadium, Perth

Who is Allegra Stratton?

 

  • Previously worked at The Guardian, BBC’s Newsnight programme and ITV News
  • Took up a public relations role for Chancellor Rishi Sunak in April 2020
  • In October 2020 she was hired to lead No 10’s planned daily televised press briefings
  • The idea was later scrapped and she was appointed spokeswoman for Cop26
  • Ms Stratton, 41, is married to James Forsyth, the political editor of The Spectator
  • She has strong connections to the Conservative establishment
  • Mr Sunak served as best man at her 2011 wedding to Mr Forsyth
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989

Director: Goran Hugo Olsson

Rating: 5/5

In numbers

Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m

Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’  in Dubai is worth... $600m

China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn

The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn

Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn 

TEAMS

US Team
Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger
Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler
Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed
Matt Kuchar, Kevin Chappell
Charley Hoffman*, Phil Mickelson*

International Team
Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day 
Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim
Jhonattan Vegas, Adam Hadwin
Emiliano Grillo*, Anirban Lahiri*

denotes captain's picks

 

 

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Company%20profile
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Scoreline

Liverpool 4

Oxlade-Chamberlain 9', Firmino 59', Mane 61', Salah 68'

Manchester City 3

Sane 40', Bernardo Silva 84', Gundogan 90' 1

KINGDOM%20OF%20THE%20PLANET%20OF%20THE%20APES
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters

The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.

 Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.

A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.

The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.

The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.

Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.

Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment

But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.

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Fixtures
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The Buckingham Murders

Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu

Director: Hansal Mehta

Rating: 4 / 5

CREW
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERajesh%20A%20Krishnan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETabu%2C%20Kareena%20Kapoor%20Khan%2C%20Kriti%20Sanon%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Jawan
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAtlee%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Shah%20Rukh%20Khan%2C%20Nayanthara%2C%20Vijay%20Sethupathi%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Draw for Europa League last-16

Istanbul Basaksehir v Copenhagen; Olympiakos Piraeus v Wolverhampton Wanderers

Rangers v Bayer Leverkusen; VfL Wolfsburg v Shakhtar Donetsk; Inter Milan v Getafe

Sevilla v AS Roma; Eintracht Frankfurt or Salzburg v Basel; LASK v Manchester United

Company%20Profile
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The Perfect Couple

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor

Creator: Jenna Lamia

Rating: 3/5

Without Remorse

Directed by: Stefano Sollima

Starring: Michael B Jordan

4/5

Company%20Profile
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Profile box

Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)

The%C2%A0specs%20
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RACECARD

6pm Emaar Dubai Sprint – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (Turf) 1,200m

6.35pm Graduate Stakes – Conditions (TB) $100,000 (Dirt) 1,600m

7.10pm Al Khail Trophy – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 2,810m

7.45pm UAE 1000 Guineas – Listed (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,600m

8.20pm Zabeel Turf – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 2,000m

8.55pm Downtown Dubai Cup – Rated Conditions (TB) $80,000 (D) 1,400m

9.30pm Zabeel Mile – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,600m

10.05pm Dubai Sprint – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,200m 

Afghanistan Premier League - at a glance

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Fixtures:

Tue, Oct 16, 8pm: Kandahar Knights v Kabul Zwanan; Wed, Oct 17, 4pm: Balkh Legends v Nangarhar Leopards; 8pm: Kandahar Knights v Paktia Panthers; Thu, Oct 18, 4pm: Balkh Legends v Kandahar Knights; 8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers; Fri, Oct 19, 8pm: First semi-final; Sat, Oct 20, 8pm: Second semi-final; Sun, Oct 21, 8pm: final

Table:

1. Balkh Legends 6 5 1 10

2. Paktia Panthers 6 4 2 8

3. Kabul Zwanan 6 3 3 6

4. Nagarhar Leopards 7 2 5 4

5. Kandahar Knights 5 1 4 2