8 teams of young entrepreneurs fulfilled their journeys with the 3-month pre-incubation, the second phase of doroob program. Get to know more about their ideas:
Mulberry Tree, led by Diana Gerges
Mulberry Tree (MT) is an entity that seeks to create an access point for persons with disabilities in the art and culture scene in Egypt, in an inclusive environment that discovers and promotes their talents. Diana created Muberry Tree as a safe environment and place for expression, contributing to raising public awareness of their artistic issues, by providing more opportunities for them in acting and drama education, creating drama and theater casting opportunities, and participating in arts inclusion awareness campaigns and events.
Geneya, led by Mahmoud Abdelsalam
Geneya is a networking platform that empowers artisans to build sustainable businesses wherever they are In Egypt. Geneya provides a simplified path for artisans to access legal and accounting support and showcase their products online in 10 languages, while also offering guidelines for creating marketable products and a platform to collaborate with designers and entrepreneurs worldwide. Artisans from any location and educational background in Egypt can publish products and collaborate through Geneya’s website and app, empowering them to build a sustainable future. Furthermore, Geneya will offer an annual public statistics report to address the lack of public data about Egypt’s handicraft sector, guiding future businesses in this field.
Re-Fur, led by Maykel Safwat
Re-Fur. is a platform that rents furniture, and refurbishes used furniture. Maykel saw an opportunity, after conducting research he discovered that most youth don’t have the ability to buy new furniture items due to high prices. Also, they rent houses for a short period of time and when they move elsewhere the furniture is thrown away. Additionally, on the higher level (Commercial Sector) all companies are moving toward having a new headquarter at the New Capital, and all their old furniture is being replaced with new pieces. Meanwhile, the old pieces are being burnt or not used. Maykel saw this as an opportunity to create a platform that refurbishes and rents second-hand furniture for startups and youth that can’t afford the high prices of new furniture.
WAJDI, led by Zeinab Wagdy
WAJDI offers affordable footwear that speaks to your personality and presents wearable art. Wajdi is a footwear project that tackles 3 primary challenges in the footwear industry which are, quality, design, and finishing along with affordability. We design and manufacture footwear products locally in Egypt, visioned to compete not only locally but also internationally.
Visenleer, led by Moemen Sobh
Visenleer is the first regenerative initiative that transforms ocean waste into sustainable textiles with zero chemicals involved, creating new fashion and textile industries in the MENA region. Visenleer is a multi-disciplinary project that works on 3 pillars (Education, services, and products). Visenleer reuses the waste using a 100% organic method to create a sustainable textile material that doesn’t harm the environment and can give more back, pushing towards positive effects. It contributes to better soil, cleaner water, and air to improve biodiversity. Our material is nine times more robust than standard leather and textiles, and our project results in zero CO2 emissions. We are creating a new revenue stream for the fishing community that allows the local fishermen to get 30% more for each fish they sell.
REALM, led by Sherif Nehad
REALM is an online platform that offers both products and services, with a focus on upcycling and repurposing to appeal to environmentally conscious customers interested in sustainable practices. The platform showcases unique furniture pieces, available for purchase through an auction system that creates exclusivity and motivates customers to bid higher. Through their upcycling practices, REALM not only provides value to customers but also contributes to global sustainability by reducing waste and promoting eco-consciousness. The startup aims to create eco-chic, high-design furniture pieces that transform ordinary living spaces into extraordinary ones, while also reducing the need for foreign designs and imports.
El Quseir Handmade crafts, led by Aya Saied
Establishing a handicraft workshop in the city of El-Quseir inspired by the historical culture and heritage of the city and made by the hands of the city’s women. This idea is considered new in El Quseir, as there is no workshop for handicrafts inside the city despite the existence of a solid cultural identity. The tourism movement is also flourishing in the city, especially the tourist tours that are present in the city daily.
Plastale, led by Abdallah Abdelrahman
Plastale uses agriculture crop residue waste as date palm fibers and recycled plastic to produce sheets that have a high performance/price ratio, low Carbon dioxide emissions per unit mass, and are made from locally and socially sourced materials. They aim to create a collaborative environment where designers and corporations innovate using agricultural and plastic waste. Their mission is to help them turn those ideas into reality through their sheets and putting the circular economy into action. The applications they are working on right now are countertops, wall cladding tiles, kitchen boards, table tops, and lifestyle/decoration products. Another aspect of their vision is to create regenerative local communities by building decentralized small mini-factories that use their technology and help those communities, along with their impact partners, to make the most of their plastic and agricultural waste resources. As a start, to provide furniture in unprivileged schools and affordable rooftops for better shelters that are made from the hands of those communities’ youth.
In November 2023, a pitch event marked the end of the 3-month pre-incubation, where the 8 teams presented their progress with their ideas for the chance to be selected for the final stage of the program, the 6-month incubation.
Based on the scoring conducted by a jury of business and creative industry experts, Teams Re-fur, WAJDI, and El Quseir Handmade crafts were those who made it to this phase. Each team now accesses tailored business and technical training, dedicated mentoring, and a monthly support package valued at 600 EUR per team member to build the minimum viable product (MVP).
