How do you help build a brand as successful as Gourmet without really knowing much about food?

On this episode of Making It, Patrick talks shop with Dalia Sultan, Chief Innovation Officer at Gourmet Egypt, and the force behind the "Handcrafted by Gourmet” label.

A banker by trade, Dalia was thrust into the business of food by chance. She starts off by talking about her early days at Gourmet, moving from marketing to product to ushering the company’s leap into manufacturing, alongside her brother Amgad.

She speaks about where she gets inspiration for recipes, how ideas reach the shelf, what it takes to control quality, the struggle that comes with training a team that many in the industry want to poach, and how she sees robots in a not-so-distant kitchen.

Dalia also opens up about the challenges of working with her partner for several years, how they overcame the hard stuff, and what the next steps are for both the company and her family.

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How do you help build a brand as successful as Gourmet without really knowing much about food?
On this episode of Making It, Patrick talks shop with Dalia Sultan, Chief Innovation Officer at Gourmet Egypt, and the force behind the "Handcrafted by Gourmet&rdquo; label.
A banker by trade, Dalia was thrust into the business of food by chance. She starts off by talking about her early days at Gourmet, moving from marketing to product to ushering the company&rsquo;s leap into manufacturing, alongside her brother Amgad.
She speaks about where she gets inspiration for recipes, how ideas reach the shelf, what it takes to control quality, the struggle that comes with training a team that many in the industry want to poach, and how she sees robots in a not-so-distant kitchen.
Dalia also opens up about the challenges of working with her partner for several years, how they overcame the hard stuff, and what the next steps are for both the company and her family.
Sign up to our <a href="https://enterpriseam.com/egypt/makingit/">newsletter</a> to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

Six days a week, we help top executives make sense of the Arab world’s companies and economies — and every Thursday, our editor-in-chief, Patrick, talks shop with the people who run them. 

Making It is an hour where the founders, CEOs, investors, and policymakers making the biggest decisions in our region show their work and talk about what’s next. 

From EnterpriseAM, the Arab world’s business daily.

Six days a week, we help top executives make sense of the Arab world&rsquo;s companies and economies &mdash; and every Thursday, our editor-in-chief, Patrick, talks shop with the people who run them.&nbsp;
Making It is an hour where the founders, CEOs, investors, and policymakers making the biggest decisions in our region show their work and talk about what&rsquo;s next.&nbsp;
From EnterpriseAM, the Arab world&rsquo;s business daily.

A show where we talk shop with the people who run the biggest companies in the Arab world.

Making It

How do you help build a brand as successful as Gourmet without really knowing much about food? 

Gourmet’s Dalia Sultan built a one-of-a-kind kitchen, how does it work?

Banque du Caire is going public in a landmark IPO. 

On this episode of Making It, Hussein Abaza, the CEO of Banque du Caire, joins Patrick to take us through the strategy behind the sale.

Hussein is a legend in the banking community; he’s the former CEO of CIB and has long been a spokesperson for Egypt among international investors.

In the first half of the episode, Hussein tells us about how BdC moved away from the typical state-owned lender model to an institution that he believes now operates as a private bank. We then get into the IPO itself: why now, how it’s structured, his pitch to international investors, how BdC makes money, and the indispensable value of its nationwide network of 200+ branches.

Abaza also makes the case for treating NBFIs as partners, not competitors. And finally, he offers sound insight into what the next generation of bankers should prioritize.

Sign up to our newsletter to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

Banque du Caire is going public in a landmark IPO.&nbsp;
On this episode of Making It, Hussein Abaza, the CEO of Banque du Caire, joins Patrick to take us through the strategy behind the sale.
Hussein is a legend in the banking community; he&rsquo;s the former CEO of CIB and has long been a spokesperson for Egypt among international investors.
In the first half of the episode, Hussein tells us about how BdC moved away from the typical state-owned lender model to an institution that he believes now operates as a private bank. We then get into the IPO itself: why now, how it&rsquo;s structured, his pitch to international investors, how BdC makes money, and the indispensable value of its nationwide network of 200+ branches.
Abaza also makes the case for treating NBFIs as partners, not competitors. And finally, he offers sound insight into what the next generation of bankers should prioritize.
Sign up to our <a href="https://enterpriseam.com/egypt/makingit/">newsletter</a> to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

After almost two decades of talk of going public, last week Banque du Caire announced its intention to float a 30% stake on the EGX.

The road to an IPO with BdC’s Hussein Abaza

Will AI eventually replace lawyers?

On this episode of Making It — the third installment in our AI series — Lamyaa Gadelhak joins Patrick to refute that claim. It will transform the industry, she explains, but it will not replace it.

Lamyaa is Partner at Baker McKenzie and Chair of its Global Project Finance Group, based in Cairo.

As one of the country’s best known corporate lawyers, Lamyaa speaks to Patrick about how she’s been using AI, personally and professionally. They discuss attorney-client privilege, the subtleties and cultural norms an AI agent cannot comprehend, and the keys to being a good lawyer in an age where data is the most valuable commodity.

“As long as people are interacting, there is always the need, perhaps, for someone to advocate for you.”

Lamyaa then weighs in on how future lawyers should navigate the field today, a field where accumulated human skills will trump one’s knowledge of the law by a wide margin. At least that’s Lamyaa’s bet.

Toward the end of the conversation, her and Patrick delve into AI regulation, government policy and data sovereignty.

Sign up to our newsletter to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

Will AI eventually replace lawyers?
On this episode of Making It &mdash; the third installment in our AI series &mdash; Lamyaa Gadelhak joins Patrick to refute that claim. It will transform the industry, she explains, but it will not replace it.
Lamyaa is Partner at Baker McKenzie and Chair of its Global Project Finance Group, based in Cairo.
As one of the country&rsquo;s best known corporate lawyers, Lamyaa speaks to Patrick about how she&rsquo;s been using AI, personally and professionally. They discuss attorney-client privilege, the subtleties and cultural norms an AI agent cannot comprehend, and the keys to being a good lawyer in an age where data is the most valuable commodity.
&ldquo;As long as people are interacting, there is always the need, perhaps, for someone to advocate for you.&rdquo;
Lamyaa then weighs in on how future lawyers should navigate the field today, a field where accumulated human skills will trump one&rsquo;s knowledge of the law by a wide margin. At least that&rsquo;s Lamyaa&rsquo;s bet.
Toward the end of the conversation, her and Patrick delve into AI regulation, government policy and data sovereignty.
Sign up to our <a href="https://enterpriseam.com/egypt/makingit/">newsletter</a> to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

A different kind of stamina: AI and law with Lamyaa Gadelhak 

MNT-Halan’s IPO has been the talk of the market for a few weeks.

So on this episode of Making It, Mounir Nakhla, the founder and CEO of MNT-Halan, joins Patrick to talk about why his company is going public, and why now is the right time. 

Mounir built MNT-Halan in about 17 years, and soon 20% of the Egypt side of the business will be up for grabs. In the first part of the episode, Mounir takes us through what motivated the decision. He makes the case for returning FDIs, that the so-called Egypt discount is over, and he tells Patrick what it would take for this IPO to “pop.”

In the back half, we glimpse the day-to-day operations of MNT-Halan and how they journeyed to the top over the past decade. According to Mounir, distribution and retention are key. You need the right tech and the right team, sure, but the route to growth is simple: make yourself available to the customer.

And of course, we ask him about AI and whether or not we might be in the early stages of a credit bubble.

Sign up to our newsletter to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

MNT-Halan&rsquo;s IPO has been the talk of the market for a few weeks.
So on this episode of Making It, Mounir Nakhla, the founder and CEO of MNT-Halan, joins Patrick to talk about why his company is going public, and why now is the right time.&nbsp;
Mounir built MNT-Halan in about 17 years, and soon 20% of the Egypt side of the business will be up for grabs. In the first part of the episode, Mounir takes us through what motivated the decision. He makes the case for returning FDIs, that the so-called Egypt discount is over, and he tells Patrick what it would take for this IPO to &ldquo;pop.&rdquo;
In the back half, we glimpse the day-to-day operations of MNT-Halan and how they journeyed to the top over the past decade. According to Mounir, distribution and retention are key. You need the right tech and the right team, sure, but the route to growth is simple: make yourself available to the customer.
And of course, we ask him about AI and whether or not we might be in the early stages of a credit bubble.
Sign up to our <a href="https://enterpriseam.com/egypt/makingit/">newsletter</a> to get Making It in your inbox every Thursday.

MNT-Halan’s IPO has been the talk of the market for a few weeks.   So on this episode of Making It, Mounir Nakhla, the founder and CEO of MNT-Halan, joins Patrick to talk about why his company is going public, and why now is the right time.  

Gourmet’s Dalia Sultan built a one-of-a-kind kitchen, how does it work?

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