ASPIRE - An Entrepreneur and Lifestyle Magazine - May 2021 by ASPIRE Business and Lifestyle Magazine

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M AY — 2021 ISSUE 8 aspiredubai.ae — AED 30.00

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Living the Electric Dream

NITIN KALWANI

THE BUSINESSMAN WHOSE EVERY GAMBLE HIT GOLD

Adam Ridgway is altering the mobility landscape

The Next Stop in Decentral Land

AFTER BITCOINS, ARE NON-FUNGIBLE TOKENS THE NEXT BIG CRAZE?

THE MICHEEL-ANGELO OF THE CULIN ARY WORLD MEET CHEF UWE MICHEEL BETTER KNOWN AS ‘FATHER OF CHEFS’

Parenting is a pleasurable experience, but it becomes especially challenging if you as a parent are faced with issues in your own life, such as work & financial issues, separation or divorce, family tension, health issues and societal pressures. These personal issues you face rubs off on your kids and affects their upbringing. Raising a child is no mean task and you would have faced issues with your child like ● Temper Tantrums ● Fears and Nightmares ● Stubornness ● Shyness ● Aggression ● Concentration in Academics ● Eating disorders / Fussiness ● Nail Biting / Bed Wetting ● Socially unacceptable behaviours ● Bullying / Being bullied

brings to you

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THE MICHEEL-ANGELO OF THE CULINARY WORLD

Chef Uwe Micheel, better known as the ‘Father of Chefs’ is a culinary connoisseur who has been tirelessly mentoring chefs and making a difference to put UAE on the world culinary map

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INSIDE

Bulletin Bytes

Interesting news from around the world

The Holy Grail

Can there be any similarity between Business and Ramadan? We did find a correlation between the two

The Next Stop in Decentral Land After Bitcoins, are Non-Fungible Tokens the next big craze? Read to pick your side of the debate

Living the Electric Dream

We speak to Adam Ridgway, the man who has made innovation a way of life and his idea of altering the mobility landscape

Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast

Presenting effective and widely used tools to manage cross-culture in an organization

Make That PR Call

When business needs an uplift, PR can give you the edge you need. Our expert tells you what it is and how it can help

The Brand Stand

The Shape of the Future

Take a closer look at the world of branding and how it can make a difference to your brand

3D Printing is revolutionizing the tech space in more ways than you can imagine

Event Horizon

An event line up of the best of the best

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The Great Gambler Nitin Kalwani is a businessman whose story is the stuff of a fictional book. Read to know how his gambles paid off each time

Angels Among Us

Fatima Punzalos Ramos is an angel to many as she devotes her energies towards helping others through her own storms

PUBLISHER

Sumeet Gupta EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Shagufta Patel PRODUCTION

The Purple Stroke EDITORIAL TEAM

Ayaat Attar, Misbaah Mansuri, Qirat Attar, Rachit Gupta, Bindu Gopal Rao JUNIOR EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Sreeram Viswanath, Clarilda Sharon, Vaidehi Jha DIRECTOR (MARKETING & SALES)

The Purple Stroke M: +971 508 498820, +971 502 707790 CONSULTING EDITOR

Sangeetha Shinde Tee HONORARY EDITOR

Rizwan Zulfiqar Bhutta

Dubai Hooks the Hulk

« OUR CONTRIBUTORS »

We chronicle bodybuilder, powerlifter and social media star Larry Wheels journey to making Dubai his home

The Fast Track

Humans Of Planet Earth

Want to lose weight? Intermittent fasting is a great way to get to your health goals

A Wordy Pursuit

Explore the many reasons why you should keep reading and turning the pages of a book

The Immortal Merc We delve into the evolution of Mercedes-Benz and its legacy as the oldest luxury car brand in the world

United by the oneness of our living journey, we invite you to see the similarities rather than our differences

Adil Hosgor

Transformation Program Expert

Dt. Geetika Uppal Gold-medalist in Nutritional Science

Anishkaa Gehani PR Consultant

The Must-Go Cuppa Joe Discover a unique coffee experience with cars, barbers and board games in tow

1601, Corporate Business Hub, Burj Gate, Dubai, United Arab Emirates W: thepurplestroke.com Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the persmission of The Purple Stroke FZE LLC. All the information carried herein is checked and verified to the best of our knowledge and abilities. In matters of views expressed and opinions held, it is solely that of the authors and contributors themselves. The editorial or publisher or ASPIRE cannot be held responsible for unintended errors and oversights if any.

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Editor's note #ThinkHealth #ThinkNormal A AGUF T SH

TEL ‫٭‬ nanny, is our CSR S-hero this month who embodies love to her very core. Adam Ridgeway with his innovative electric vehicles and Nitin Kalwani with his hugely profitable multiple businesses have revolutionized their industry with their never-say-die attitude. And though disruption creates havoc initially, it most times makes way for a new wave of progress eventually. NFT and 3D technology are good examples of the same; read about it in the trending and tech stories, respectively. Pro-talk brings to you the importance of PR and Branding and teaches you effective ways of managing cross-cultural disparities in an organization. After all, the right tactic and tolerance prevails turmoil! Dubai is a great example of both, and no wonder then Larry wheels (Celeb-talk) has chosen to make this country his home. We also dive into the legacy of the immortal mean machine,

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Mercedes, on how it has not only survived but also emerged as a luxury brand over the years. Books (Hobby) are a treasure trove of knowledge and a worthy companion to turn to when gloom knocks, and so is a cup of coffee especially sipped in a different setting. We explore three such cafés. And while Ramadan is upon us, we draw a correlation between its tenets and the essentials of business. We are also speaking of intermittent fasting as a healthy choice. Faith, after all, is the foundation we put hope on. Last but not the least, as Humans of Planet Earth united by the oneness of our living journey, we invite you to see the similarities rather than our differences. Especially now is the time when we must put our energies in cohesion to come out of this looming calamity that still threatens the world. #ThinkHealth #ThinkNormal to life in all its grandness! ✪

G U F TA

he current crisis enveloping India shows no signs of abating. As news of kith and kin succumbing to this invisible monster trickles in, the world extends its support in all solidarity. With Dubai lighting up Burj Khalifa and Abu Dhabi illuminating Adnoc headquarters with the tri-color Indian flag and billboards displaying a simple but powerful message: ‘Stay Strong India’, it is a time when we who have so far survived this catastrophe must do our bit individually. We at ASPIRE urge each one of you to hold thoughts of being safe, protected, and of supreme well-being. We are absolutely certain that with #ThinkHealth and #ThinkNormal we can collectively shift the energy from that of disruption and despair to that of hope and sanguinity. The situation has awakened us to greater depths of compassion and love for the people in our lives and an appreciation of living more simply and gratefully. Much like Chef Uwe Micheel gracing the cover this edition, who with his simple yet compassionate ways, has earned himself the title of ‘Father of Chefs’ and has relentlessly worked to put UAE on the world culinary map. Fatima Punsalan Ramos, a

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China invests $3billion in a supercomputing Centre; seeks to become a space superpower

In the upcoming decade, China envisions massive constellations of commercial satellites that can provide services extending from high-speed internet for aircrafts to tracking coal shipments. According to state media on Tuesday, the southern spaceport of Wenchang in China will build a $3 billion supercomputing Centre by year-end to examine the data obtained from space. With a planned and structured investment of 20 billion yuan ($3.1 billion), the supercomputing Centre of China will provide huge data services for industries

including the aerospace and marine sectors starting in 2022, state-backed Hainan Daily said. China at present has four launch sites - three inland and one in Wenchang. But to comply with the requirements for satellite launches, China will have to build substantially larger rockets that can carry more satellites or build more launch sites or both. The government of China aims to build the country’s fifth rocket launch site as they support Hainan in its international cooperation on launching commercial satellites and payloads along with its Research and 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

Bulletin Development in commercial spaceflight. Not many countries have the potential to launch their payloads into space since space technology embodies the pinnacle of technological achievement, but a handful of countries have established their ability to conduct activities in space known as the ‘spacefaring nations’, and China features among this elite group.

A long march to the cosmos By mastering independent innovation in the space industry, China envisages becoming the world-leading space power by 2045. The nation has invested highly in Research and Development to achieve this goal, at the core of which lies the Long March series of rockets. This series is designed and developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). The China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, a subsidiary of CASC, has produced nearly all the variants of the Long March series. China’s largest rocket, the Long March-5 can transport 60 satellites at a time. The Long March series have completed 307 successful launches and has carried out almost all the Chinese space launches giving the series a success rate of 95 percent. China treads a clear path to space domination, having launched 39 missions in 2020, one of which is an unmanned probe to Mars. It is expected to launch more than 1,000 lowEarth orbit satellites in coming years with 40 launches in 2021, according to a space industry expert reported by state-run Global Times. It is anticipated that the rapid increase of technological advancement and innovation will lead to the progressive socio-economic growth of the nation.

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Ocean Rewilding: England’s biggest seagrass restoration undertaking The United Kingdom launched its largest seagrass restoration project early this April 2021, which aims to plant eight hectares of biodiversity-rich seagrass beds off the south coast: four in Plymouth Sound and four in the Solent Special Marine Conservation Area. Ships loaded with sandbags containing seagrass seeds departed from the south coast, beginning in mid-April 2021. The gardeners from the Ocean Conservation Trust (OCT) will be leaving the bags with seeds on the seabed. After some time, the seeds from within will break through the canvas and recolonize the ocean floor. According to experts, this would be a miracle of the underwater world, considering that seagrass isolates carbon 35 times faster than a rainforest. It also provides a haven for various marine creatures on Earth enigmatic seahorses are among those found sheltering in the swinging leaves. In recent times the UK’s seagrass beds have disappeared at a staggering rate. According to some estimates, the country has lost more than

90 percent of them in the last century. Therefore, this project estimates that it could provide habitat for 160,000 fish, including seahorses and 200 million invertebrates. It is also expected to provide a habitat for many of the species we eat, such as cod, plaice, and haddock.

A community endeavor The project has been powered by local volunteers, who helped bag the seeds at the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth. Mark Parry, the development officer for the Ocean Conservation Trust, says, “It’s amazing to see the support from local communities supporting habitats for our coastal animal communities, a very proud moment.” The Plymouth City Council said the seagrass restoration project would support its ambition to create a national marine park. This project seeks to change the course of the endangered ecosystems caused due to pollution, dredging, and bottom trawling, which makes it a conservation initiative and a step towards sustainable development.

A ‘100-day plan’ to bring the creative industry to the fore in Dubai

Marri, Hala Badri, Hisham Al Qasim. “Decades ago, Dubai invested in establishing sophisticated, creative complexes in numerous sectors that attracted several companies and innovators from around the world; the Emirate’s creative industries possess substantial and promising capabilities to play an inevitable role in serving the sustainable development goals,” said Badri, the director-general of Dubai Culture, while inaugurating the Al Quoz Accelerators workshop.

Establishing the economics of art

The Emirate seeks to become the world capital of the inventive economy by 2025, based on the directives of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai. A 100-day plan has been set up to determine the priorities of individuals with creative industry ambitions, with significant progress in developing the Al Quoz Creative Zone, the first phase in Dubai’s ambition to become the capital of the global creative economy. The initial Al Quoz Accelerators workshop, launched by Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), set additional timelines and drew an ensuing roadmap for the upcoming five years. Discussions on establishing Al Quoz Creative Membership and nominating creative people to obtain long-term cultural visas

were also held as part of the workshop. The workshop followed the appointment of Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture, to lead the committee to develop Al Quoz Creative Zone. The committee also consists of high-ranking Dubai Government officials such as Mattar Al Tayer, vice president, as well as members Dawood Al Hajri, Sami Al Qamzi, Hilal Al

$ Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture

This initiative launched by HH Sheikh Mohammed aims to achieve a rise in the number of jobs in the creative industry within five years, mainly from 70,000 to 150,000. The number of firms is set to rise from 8,000 to 15,000 over the upcoming five years. Dubai conjointly aims to increase the contribution of the creative economy to the nation’s GDP from 2.6 percent to 5 percent and launch advanced creative zones in content, design, and arts. The 100-day plan aims to accomplish the objectives by reviewing the list of projects, budgets, policies, and processes along with developing the internal environment and creating a harmonious institutional culture among the Authority’s staff, in addition to launching a series of creative initiatives and setting well-recognized standards for measuring employee performance and project capability. This initiative further falls under the Dubai Creative Economy Strategy, which also includes creating the legislative and investment environment necessary for the planned growth and aims to increase the Emirate’s “attractiveness to innovators, investors, and entrepreneurs.” ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

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THE NEXT STOP IN DECENTRAL LAND Are NFTs the next big thing? AYAAT ATTAR helps settle the debate, so you know which side to pick!

n times of economic despair, a foreign currency is bound to hold its value better. Several countries over the years have resorted to official currency substitution as a policy to deal with a catastrophic case of inflation. However, what would the world economy look like if these alternate currencies were not merely brought in as messiahs to save a sinking market but were here to stay? Intangible but fungible, the most popular cryptocurrency ‘Bitcoin’, was invented in 2009, but it was only in 2017 that the price of one Bitcoin surpassed the value of an ounce of gold for the first time, legitimizing that it had blown up! Several millionaires today not just trade in the same but have empires erected from scratch after well-rounded and astute investment in the technology. While shifting to virtual currency is a definitive step in breaking free from a centralized banking system, experts argue that it may not be enough to sustain the aspirations of the generation. Just like the traditional dollar, a crypto coin like Bitcoin or Ethereum can be traded for another, but when two powerful parties come face to face with a singular desire to hold the undivided ownership of a unique asset, the scape of trade changes forever. And NFTs provide a platform for just that!

DEMYSTIFYING THE TERMINOLOGY

The value of a non-objective asset varies with the deemed importance it holds for an individual need. A fairly expensive but the only left air travel ticket might seem worthy of its price if the reasons for the journey are crucial to the traveller. Conversely enough, when a century-old baseball card that is unique unto itself can sell for as much as $1.8 million, it surpasses mere fandom and is looked at as a

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legitimate revenue-generating asset, making it a Non-Fungible Token (NFT). An NFT is a digital representation of a unique asset, like a collectible, virtual land, digital file, among others, stored on the Ethereum Blockchain that cannot be swapped or traded for another NFT of the same type. Once the new data is verified on the blockchain, which is a list of records linked to one another, it is unmodifiable and distributed across a vast network of computers across the world, making it improbable for destruction. It is supported firmly by the three pillars of Blockchain - Decentralization, Transparency, and Immutability. While the first pillar liberates the NFT of a supervising authority like the government, the second pillar refers to the way transactions are recorded on a ledger, updating itself in real-time available for everyone to see and is

An NFT is a digital representation of a unique asset, like a collectible, virtual land, digital file, among others, stored on the Ethereum Blockchain that cannot be swapped or traded for another NFT of the same type saved on a network of computers around the world. The property of immutability is achieved through cryptography and blockchain hashing making it impossible for the data to be changed or altered, thus preserving the piece’s unique status. A very good question here would be Why this crippling need for a unique asset?

PLAYING THE NFT GAME

Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa or Beethoven’s Fur Elise can be thought of as NFTs as they are one of their kind, but their ownership is debatable. While today, the Mona Lisa is owned by the State of France, Fur Elise is free to be used across the world as it is a piece of music older

than 70 years since its creation. But since the proprietorship of a non-replicable NFT resides with an individual, they are the sole beneficiaries of every subsequent transaction that their NFT completes, in the form of future cash flow, which is the interest or royalties earned by the original owner of the NFT. For example, SuperRare, which is an Authentic Digital Art Marketplace, allows creators of NFT artworks to receive 3% royalty every time their artworks are sold subsequently on the secondary market. While Crypto coins stand as the digital replacement of currency, NFTs are the digital equivalent of tangible collectibles. In the game of ‘Fortnight’, people can buy skins that change the way their players look and then further sell their customized characters. The technology under consideration revolutionizes the world of gaming completely, making it more tangible and rewarding, allowing players to generate income from time spent in the game. The intrigued are in luck, for it is now possible for them to create an NFT on safe platforms and expand their journey into alternate currency. A prerequisite to creating an NFT on an open-source platform is to connect your Metamask Wallet (software wallet) and charging it with Ether, a cryptocurrency that you can buy using your debit or credit card, or directly deposit it using one of the big exchanges like Coinbase or Bitpanda. Navigating to a site like Rarible.com, the first community-owned NFT market place and uploading your tokenized digital file would be the next step. Now, what’s important to note is that it is not the artwork that gets a place on the blockchain but a unique sequence of 1s and 0s that hold the address of that NFT. The interplanetary file system, which is a protocol and a peer-to-peer network, stores and shares the data in a distributed file system. After filling all in the details including instant share price and description, the item can be created and uploaded. Every time after the first sell that your artwork is resold to a new buyer, you get a certain percentage of royalty that you decide yourself. A ‘gas fee’, which ranges from low to high based on the processing time of your transaction is deducted from your wallet for every blockchain transaction. You are now all set to start minting tokens by clicking on the ‘start button. Once that process is done, you can open your profile to see that your digital file is listed under the ‘on sale’ option. The NBA Top Shot, a blockchain-based platform, allows fans to buy, sell, and trade numbered versions of specific, officially licensed 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

Trending video highlights. Once purchased, they go into the buyer’s encrypted, secure highlight wallet to be “showcased” or re-sold on the NBA Top Shot Marketplace. Several other NFTs have also taken the world by storm, but Mike Winkelmann’s digital art, ‘Everyday: The first 5000 days’, definitely takes the cake.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BEEPLE’S ARTWORK

Popularly known as Beeple, his artwork is a collage of digital pieces of art that he crafted every day for thirteen years, of which most exude a strong socio-political message. Sold at a record-smashing $69 million at Christie’s, the sale positions him “among the top three most valuable living artists,” according to the auction house. Apart from the fact that Beeple has developed a fan base as large as 2.5 million followers across social channels, a key contributing factor to the massive sale is the sudden blow-up of NFTs in the past month, which is being seen by many as the way digital art will be acquired and traded going forward. “I do view this as the next chapter of art history. Now there is a way to collect digital art,” said Winkelmann. The man with a greater vision, Vignesh Sundaresan, a Y-Combinator alumnus who co-founded BitAcces, is also the buyer of the revolutionary piece. “I’m honored to be a part of the story of an NFT, which is a significant piece of art history,” says Sundaresan. He goes by the name of ‘Metakovan’ and has been exploring the crypto space since 2013. He speaks with great affirmation that while investing in an NFT looks like a huge risk today, it is a technology that is here to stay and will only go up! Pulitzer prize awardee and a celebrated art critic at the Washington Post, Sebastian Smee,

I’m honored to be a part of the story of an NFT, which is a significant piece of art history VIGNESH SUNDARESAN Y-Combinator alumnus who co-founded BitAcces

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I do view this as the next chapter of art history. Now there is a way to collect digital art MIKE WINKELMANN Creator of First 5000 Days

The First 5000 Days was sold for $69.3 million at Christie’s in 2021, the highest price paid for an NFT and the third-most expensive work by a living artist

however, shares a slight disagreement in his latest review of the artwork. “The success of the auction can be saluted as a triumph of marketing and manipulation, but it has absolutely nothing to do with artistic value. In fact, from an art point of view, the eye-popping sale is interesting mainly as an illustration of irony,” he comments. With the top dogs in the intellectual world divided on their stance for NFTs, it will be exciting to witness whose word wins.

WEIGHING THE CONS

While we have discussed the pros of NFTs, it is important to weigh their cons. All activities carried out on the blockchain are highly wasteful of electrical energy, still primarily produced by fossil fuels, which is a leading cause of climate change. Every time someone buys, sells, or creates an NFT in a process known as ‘minting’, a chain of actions is set off for its verification, leading to the establishment of the ‘proof of work’. It is a concept that is essential for any digital work to qualify for an NFT. The process is extremely computation-intensive and sets the most vicious greenhouse gasses into the environment. A single transaction on the Ethereum Blockchain uses an average of 48KWh of power, which is more power than what an average US household uses in a whole day! It is estimated that the median NFT artist uses 3 MWh of energy per year, releasing roughly 2 tons of CO2, which is equivalent to four transatlantic flights or about a third of the power consumed by an American household over an entire year. An NFT artist or collector can check the environmental cost of a piece using the website ‘cryptoart.wtf ’. Efforts are being made to reduce the harmful effects of NFT mining, but no certified solution has been found yet. Apart from the threat it poses to the ecosystem, it is also true that the NFT trend is a relatively new concept that needs further evolution, which is no secret. Chances of losing huge amounts of money in a hasty NFT investment, whose value declines sharply, happen to be immensely high. But in all proven senses, 2021 seems like the perfect year to definitely broaden your horizons and keep a close tab on its developments, if not dive deep into turning into an NFT connoisseur yourself. After the Bitcoin boom, no matter how shaky at the moment, NFT can be seriously considered as the next move in the arena of shifting to a decentralized economy. ✪

The success of the auction can be saluted as a triumph of marketing and manipulation, but it has absolutely nothing to do with artistic value

SEBASTIAN SMEE Pulitzer prize awardee and a celebrated art critic at the Washington Post

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THE SHAPE OF THE FUTURE It is poised to revolutionise the planet in myriad ways. Qiraat Attar takes a quick look at the reality behind the magic of 3D printing

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ears ago, a show was aired on TV that had a precocious kid who went on far-flung adventures with his magic pencil. This pencil was the stuff of fantasies, for he only had to draw an object on paper with this pencil, and it would appear to life before his eyes. In a heart-stopping episode, he narrowly escaped the jaws of death by drawing a car that whisked him away to safety. A technology akin to this mythical thingamajig has revolutionized manufacturing, unassumingly named 3D printing, bringing to form a three-dimensional structure to an intangible imagination. Science fiction has been a ceaseless playground for those who dare to dream. Several intuitive authors wrote of a progressive future with jaw-dropping technology, which propelled sharp engineering minds to bring these stories to life. Whether it is the clamshell walkie-talkie from ‘Star Trek’ that inspired Motorola’s flip phone or the Hoverboard as seen in ‘Back to the Future’, this is a saga that repeats itself. Murray Leinster was the first to describe a procedure uncannily similar to the 3D printing technique in his 1945 short story Things Pass By. He describes an “efficient and flexible constructor” into which he feeds “magnetronic plastics” - “It conjures drawings in the air following drawings it scans with photo-cells. The object emerges from the end, hardening as it comes out.” Given that the first 3D printer would not make an appearance until 1971, the unnerving accuracy of his imagination is more like a soothsayer’s prophecy.

from a multitude of industries - from critical manufacturing, emancipating healthcare to indulgent hobbies. By 2010, it was clear that metal would not be the dominant material for additive manufacturing, and as the materials diversified, so did the purpose of printing. Much like the moniker ‘additive manufacturing’, the technique has strengthened layer by layer, its relentless improvement allowing for diverse utilization. It first proved its mettle in the aviation industry, manifesting as a solution to the increasing demand for fuel efficient jet engines. The timing could not be more advantageous. Where older technology could not craft new, complex shapes of lighter engines needed to increase fuel efficiency, AM could. There is a plethora of industrial applications to 3D printing. Aerospace was an early adopter of 3D printing for engines, aircraft

! A 3D-printed injector head for Ariane 6 launcher Image: EOS

BRING THE IMAGE TO LIFE

A novice might visualize objects popping out of a regular printer, and you couldn’t fault them for it. The ascent of technology is bewildering, but you can begin to understand 3D printing by building on your familiarity with 2D printing. In fact, imagining a regular printer is the best way to go about it, for 3D printing does not meander far from the trail. The digital file of your design is uploaded in the form of 3D computer graphics, CAD files or a variation of them. 3D printing ink, called filaments, is more accurately characterized as materials such as thermoplastics, glass, metal or even wood. While 3D printing, the machine needs several print cycles, or layers, to produce a physical object. This aspect affords it the name ‘additive manufacturing’ (or AM).

A TRICK FOR EVERY TROUBLE

3D printing has proved itself to be a game changer, and as it stands, sees a lot of use

interiors and the like, with industries such as defence and automotive following in close succession. Defence applications include complex parts and surveillance drones, aiding armies in protecting their nation’s interests. Furthermore, electronic 3D printing has piqued the interest of defence agencies, which makes it possible to print miniature circuit boards and antennae with a precise blueprint, equipped in guided missiles. For manufacturers, this means being able to accelerate the product development process and saving valuable time

! Harris Corp. and Nano Dimension successfully partnered to produce a 3D-printed RF circuit Image: Harris Corp.

! ZMorph VX 3d-printers

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Tech love

In 2019, the global additive manufacturing market grew to over $10.4 billion, crossing the pivotal double-digit billion threshold for the first time in its nearly 40-year history. The orthopaedics 3D printing market was valued at $691 million in 2018 and is predicted by SmarTech Analysis to grow into a $3.7 billion market by 2027. Revenues for 3D-printed dentistry will grow to $3.7 billion by 2021, and the technology will become the leading production method for dental restorations and devices worldwide by 2027. Source: SmarTech Analysis

The number of manufacturers using 3D printing for full-scale production has doubled between 2018 and 2019: 21 per cent and 40 per cent respectively. 79 per cent of surveyed companies expect their use of 3D printing for production parts or goods to at least double in the next 3 to 5 years. 99 per cent of manufacturing executives believe an open ecosystem is important to advance 3D printing at scale.

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The most commonly used material for 3D printing continues to be plastics, at 82 per cent. Companies using 3D printing are also working with carbon fibre (24 per cent) and composites (20 per cent). Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the power users of online 3D printing services, representing more than 75 per cent of the global customer base. 37 per cent of 3D printing service providers reported producing between 1,001 and 10,000 parts annually. This was followed by a quarter who reported producing between 10,001 and 50,000. The number of surveyed organisations with AM systems in-house more than quadrupled in the past 3 years, leaping from 9 per cent in 2016 to 40 per cent in 2019. The USA, UK, Germany, France and China are the top 5 countries with the highest 3D printing adoption and investment rates. The US has the largest installed base of 3D printers of 422,000 units in the world.

by eliminating the need to outsource high-value projects to third parties.

CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK

3D printing fixes some of the follies of archetypal manufacturing. At the barebones, foundational differences separate 3D printing from conventional manufacturing. Traditional manufacturing is characterized by longer production runs, apt for anticipated product design, with minimal experimentation and heavy output volume. It is not designed for surprise changes or experiments. Conversely, 3D printing gives the producer a tremendous advantage for small, one off production runs and at the same time the ease of manufacturing complex pieces too. For instance, imagine a meticulously crafted part with moderate variations by size and design, and unequal volume of each unique piece. In traditional manufacturing this kind of atypical customization would take weeks, but 3D printing allows a small adjustment to the input design to churn out the faintly varying pieces. It also allows taking more risks, grants room for artful customization, reduces lead time and time to market, and cuts down waste. Experiments on the factory floor can often cost time, material and manpower, but 3D printing presents itself as a viable amalgamation of critical steps. Even if a design fails, the amount of investment in its development is lesser than traditional manufacturing, so it is little grief to the manufacturer. On the flipside, a successful experiment can enhance efficiency of a machine and add years to its longevity. This flexibility is what makes the technique so sought after, and advances in this

own 3D printer to create a toy or a part, which makes perfect sense since not all of us own such printers. The journey we are on endeavours to make 3D printers as easily accessible in establishments and offices as 2D printers currently are.

! World’s first 3D printed residential home built in Yaroslavl, Russia

THE IMPRINT OF LIFE?

field something that industry experts are closely looking at.

USHERING IN A NEW DAWN

$ Made-for-building Business cards Image: Harris Corp.

A student can learn the cross-section of a heart courtesy a lifelike dummy, instead of being ill-prepared for the moment when they encounter a real, beating one

Initially, 3D printer models and materials were expensive, running into hundreds of thousands of dollars for a single hulking machine. As high initial costs dwindled, the gatekeeping for merely scientific and industrial use shattered. Today, a decent entry level printer is priced around 1000 dollars, a far cry from the monumental cost of the old days. And despite these being pegged for personal use, it is established that limitations in printing capabilities begin to diminish the higher you climb, both in price and complexity. Additionally, professional 3D printers too have become affordable enough to have carved a path into classrooms and libraries, supporting the education system in channeling limitless possibilities for students. They have revolutionized STEM education and increased reach by offering the ability for low-cost rapid prototyping and fabricating low-cost high-quality scientific equipment from open hardware designs. A student can study the replica of a fossil or a bone, instead of the fear of damaging the real thing, which would pose a barrier in learning. Or a student can learn the cross-section of a heart courtesy a lifelike dummy, instead of being ill-prepared for the moment when they encounter a real, beating one. There are now companies that offer cloud-based additive manufacturing services where consumers can build parts and objects remotely without the expense of purchasing a 3D printer. This means you don’t need your

3D printing has spawned a host of adjoining techniques, each more astonishing than the one before. Consider bioprinting, where biomaterials such as cells and growth factors are combined to create tissue-like structures imitating their natural counterparts. Or compatible prosthetics designed for a patient that can be manufactured repeatedly for multiple growth spurts akin to a real limb. Chronic conditions such as epilepsy can be managed with immensely porous pills that dissolve and are digested quickly, manufactured by Binder Setting, another 3D printing offering. There have been successful cases of a patient receiving a titanium pelvis implant, another getting a new titanium lower jaw. A motorcyclist patient whose face had been seriously injured in a road accident had it rebuilt with 3D printed parts. The revolution in construction beckons our attention. 3D printing in construction provides several advantages like allowing more complexity and accuracy, faster construction, lower labor costs, greater functional integration, and less waste. 3D printing reached a notable landmark when the first fully completed residential building was constructed in Yaroslavl, Russia in 2017. 600 elements of the walls were printed in a shop and assembled on site, followed by completion of the roof structure and interior decoration.

FIL-(AMENT) OF THE FUTURE

The future of 3D printing is full of possibilities. The medical marvels mean that more people with accidents or birth defects can lead dignified, fulfilling lives, while the technological innovation heralds an upheaval of the manufacturing process similar to that seen with the introduction of the assembly line. Hopes are pinned on 3D printing to provide a cost-effective solution to the housing crisis, sheltering homeless millions around the world. Any technology can go either divine or demonic, but prudence and empathy of intention can ensure that 3D printing is used as a tool for sustainability and is crowned a success for the benefit of the human race. In a way, we are all that adventurous kid now, bringing our fantasy to life with a scribbled sketch on a piece of paper, and a little bit of magic. ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

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HIGHLIG

GHLIGHT

GH T S ‫٭‬

Photo: Arabian Travel Market

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Explore stunning tourism destinations from around the world along with a diverse range of accommodation options, spectacular tourism attractions, innovative travel technology, key airline routes, and a lot more. All of this at Dubai World Trade Centre from the 16th to the 19th May 2021. Arabian Travel Market (ATM) is inviting travel professionals, government officials, and international media to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinion and trends. This exhibition is the first major live event in 18 months for the travel and tourism industry, and if you’re an inbound and outbound tourism professional or a travel enthusiast, this event is a must go. ‘A New Dawn for Travel and Tourism’ is the theme this year, and ATM will also be holding a virtual event with webinars and video meetings a week later from 24th to 26th May, making the 28th edition a hybrid event. To secure the health and safety of everyone attending the event, ATM will be following the rules laid out by the authorities, which means restrictions on the numbers in attendance. Therefore, to secure your place at the show – register online at www.wtm.com/atm/engb.html at the earliest.

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A New Dawn for Travel and Tourism at the Arabian Travel Market

Events

Middle East Design and Hospitality Week Hospitality is simply an opportunity to show love, care, and warmth to your guests, and if you’re looking for a change around your walls, the Middle East Design & Hospitality Week is your one-time stop destination. The INDEX, The Hotel Show, Workspace & Leisure Show join forces to create the pioneering platform for the lifestyle, hospitality, and hospitality interior industries. The event also provides the attendees with the opportunity to meet C-level stakeholders, architects, interior designers, general managers, furniture and product designers, making it the ultimate desti-

nation to learn, network, and source premium-quality products from across the world. Mark your diaries for a side-splitting session of Design and Hospitality in the GCC at

Dubai World Trade Centre, with this extravaganza launching on 31st May and continuing until 2nd June, 2021. Register online at www. designhospitalityweek.com

Photo: Middle East Design and Hospitality Week

Indian Expats in Dubai Organizes its First Shopping Mela

Photo: File Photo

Are you a shopaholic? Then this is your day to shop till you drop at a shopping extravaganza organized by The Indian Expats in Dubai (IED). Founded by Anul Mundra, IED is a registered entity with over 30,000 members that deals with promotions, advertising, and event management for its members. Expect to find home-grown and established businesses showcasing products in the categories of fashion, beauty, home-décor, food, jewelry, footwear, and accessories. With Bollywood celebrities invited as guests of honors, organized hourly giveaways, and lucky draws, expect it to be a day full of fun and surprises. Hosted at the Grand Excelsior Hotel, Bur Dubai on 8th May 2021, from 11:00 am till 11:00 pm, IED’s first mega event comes with a lot of promise. Mark the date and join in for some exclusive shopping treats. ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

COVER STORY

tory s r e v o c

The Micheelangelo of the Culinary World

Food is an art, and some are flawlessly fluid with it. Chef Uwe Micheel is a culinary connoisseur whose experience of nearly five decades shines through every dish he creates. Better known as the ‘Father of Chefs’ he has been tirelessly stirring the stockpot to make a splash on the culinary canvas in the UAE Interview by Shagufta Patel Written by Bindu Gopal Rao

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COVER STORY

his Instagram bio reads, “Assistant Vice President Worldchefs 2016, President Emirates Culinary Guild, Culinary Director Radisson Blu Dubai Deira Creek, International Judge level A.” But Chef Uwe Micheel is so much more than these words; his enigma hard to capture in a sentence. The love, respect, and the influence he commands and yields in the hospitality industry around the world are evidence of the person he truly is. We met the culinary legend and leader to get an insight into his fascinating journey as a Chef nonpareil.

Farm-boy Fantasies

the InterContinental Hotels Group in Berlin, then quickly moved to Hyde Park in London, working at Michelin Star Restaurant Le Souffle as Chef de Partie Saucier, commonly known as station chef. What came next was a three-year stint in Bahrain and then a relocation to Korea to open the Grand InterContinental Seoul. He later joined as the Executive Sous Chef at the Yokohama Grand InterContinental when it was inaugurated.

Born in Celle, a city in North Germany, Chef Uwe grew up on a farm in the village of Bargfeld with only 150 inhabitants, and a large family with five siblings. “I learned to work hard from when I was very young, and at that time, No sweeter ‘desert’ than Dubai while I never enjoyed it, it has helped me greatly in my career as there are no holidays in the field of hospitality.” His Chef Uwe moved to Dubai in January 1993, where he formative years spent on the animal farm lay the foundation is currently Director of Kitchens at Radisson Blu Hotel Dubai Deira Creek, having enjoyed a loyal partnership for his career. At that time, there were no gadgets, “not even with the InterContinental Group all along. “One of the a telephone,” as he puts it, and a young Uwe itched to live reasons I was brought here was to open a Japanese and a his life differently, with dreams of traveling the world. French fine dining restaurant, as I had enough experience His interest in the culinary arts revealed itself early on. in both the cuisines.” “Rather than ride a tractor, I liked watching my grandQuizzing him on what has kept him in Dubai for almost mother work in the kitchen. I wasn’t too fond of the smell of thirty years now, he says, “When I was moving countries the oil from the vehicle but loved the aroma of cooking oil and the smells in the kitchen. So, I decided to be a Chef.” He and places initially, it was because I thought I knew everything about that place and had to move on. Of course, is the first in his family to be a Chef and credits his mother’s cooking genes for his inclinations. For someone who has visited over 60 He also holds several Guinness World countries as part of his job, life seems like a polaroid snapshot of his boyhood dreams. Records under his belt - Largest cake in He set off with a three-year apprenticeship the world, World’s biggest pasta bowl, as a restaurant chef in Celler Hof near World’s biggest biryani bowl, World’s Hanover, where he juggled five days of the week at the restaurant, followed by one day highest number of rice dumplings, World’s at school. He then worked for a year at the most different desserts on display, World’s hotel Schwarzer Bock, followed by serving in the army for two years. In 1981 he joined biggest cup of ‘Karak Chai’… to name a few

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! At SIAL in Abu Dhabi $ Inaugration of Salon Culinare at Sharjah

that is not true, and I learned it over the years. But when I came to Dubai, everything was moving very fast, and only Shanghai came close to this pace. When you are on a path of building something and you see it growing, it gives you so much energy. When I came to Dubai, things were very different on the culinary front. Earlier, we travelled to Singapore and Hong Kong to learn about restaurant design and menus. Today I see people come to Dubai to take notes on the same. There is no cuisine that isn’t available in Dubai; it has everything.” His stint with the Radisson Blu has been nothing but commendable. He kept the culinary team of his branch after the hotel rebranded from Intercontinental to Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek. Alongside, he has been actively involved in renovating and re-launching ‘Shabestan’, its Iranian gastronomic offering. Along with being the first and oldest five-star hotel in Dubai, the Radisson Blu Hotel Dubai Deira Creek also boasts of being among the first hotels which achieved the HACCP certification under his guidance.

More than just a Chef As someone who is largely credited with putting the UAE on the culinary map of the world, Chef Uwe lavishly praises his team. “I was fortunate that I had good people around me who allowed me to do what I wanted to do. The culinary world is all about sharing and what we can learn from others. We brought many food concepts to Dubai that were doing well in other countries. In our industry, it is most important to understand what the guest wants.” He firmly believes that businesses thrive not only by understanding the customer’s desires but also of the team. “Hire the right people, build the team and motivate

that team is the three-fold path to success in any business. For me, it is very important that there is a personal touch in a restaurant or any business for that matter.” Commenting on the shifted perception of ‘cheffing’ as a profession, he concurs that there has been a significant shift in people’s outlook. “Ingredients and equipments have changed, and guests have new demands now, and we need to work around this, which comes only with acquiring the right knowledge and technical skills.” And while pay scales in the industry continue to stagnate, he points the reason to the restaurant business operating on thin margins. “The cost of managing a restaurant is quite high, and it is only when they run to full capacity, it works as a profitable business. Currently, a cap on occupancy at 50 percent hits the business hard.” Naturally then, his advice to people who want to enter the food business comes from decades of experience - “Be ready, make sure you do enough research and have the correct knowledge. The location of the restaurant is important, as is the city of choice. Also, no restaurant makes money from day one, so you need to have buffer cash to pay your suppliers.” With changing times, he says that his style of managing a kitchen has changed too. “I look at the team as a family, and instead of saying there is a problem, I say it’s a challenge and the solution will come from someone in the team.” Magnanimously called the ‘Father of Chefs’, he admits he is proud of the title as it speaks of recognition and respect of the team around him. “For many of our young chefs who stay away from their families, we become their family. And for any problems that my boys have, they come and talk to me as they trust me, and this is an important part of our work life.” Mentoring chefs across his fraternity has 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

COVER STORY

Hire the right people, build the team and motivate that team is the three-fold path to success in any business. For me, it is very important that there is a personal touch in a restaurant or any business for that matter led to lasting friendships across the world, and he credits his success to having an understanding partner at home. “My wife Annette has been very supportive all throughout,” he says, acknowledging the patience and backing she has shown with all his plans.

Accolades along the way In his sparkling career, Chef Uwe has won several awards, notably leading the UAE Team in IKA Culinary Olympics 2020 in Erfurt, Germany, as Team Manager, with 27 Chefs from all over UAE. The team won 21 Gold Medals, 16 Silver, and 8 Bronze medals. In April 2019, he was awarded ‘Lifetime Achievement in Leaders in Hospitality Awards, 2019, by Hotel & Catering News Middle East and was awarded ‘Inspiring Chef Leader of the Year’ Middle East Chef Excellence Awards the same year. “Awards mean a lot as I see it as a way of recognizing that what I have done is correct. Every award is an acknowledgment of my efforts.” However, winning ‘Best chef ’ in hotel operations under a corporate brand in Paris in 2002, when he was just an anonymous boy in Dubai and was pitted against many eminent names, remains his fondest commemoration. He also holds several Guinness World Records under his belt - Largest cake in the world, World’s biggest pasta bowl, World’s biggest biryani bowl, World’s highest number of rice dumplings, World’s most different desserts on display, World’s biggest cup of ‘Karak Chai’… to name a few. Chef Uwe was also instrumental in starting The Emirates Culinary Guild (ECG), an association of professional chefs of the UAE dedicated solely to advancing culinary art in the UAE and enhancing the culinary prestige of the UAE internationally. Chartered and endorsed by Worldchefs in 1994, the guild with a strong membership base of over 2000 chefs has an international culinary focus and multi-national support for staging various competitions, seminars, and events. It also aims to encourage nationals to consider a career within the hospitality industry. Of his many glorious achievements, the most important milestones of his life, he admits, was when his sons were born. Both his boys are currently in Germany, one a successful Chartered Accountant and the other gaining foot in Food and Beverage in a hotel. A family man, he insists that it is essential that the young generation respect their family and where they come from.

Donning multiple hats As President of the Emirates Culinary Guild, he oversees numerous culinary competitions too. “I see competitions as a way of learning rather than to win a gold medal. It is

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important that the person who has competed has enjoyed, learned something new, and made new friends. The awards will come eventually.” It would only be right to say that mentoring is in his blood, and that is what motivated him to envision and support the UAE’s first-ever culinary scholarship program - the annual ‘One Million Dirham Continuing Education Award’ for the young industry chefs in the UAE, a first-of-its-kind innovative industry education initiative undertaken by the International Centre for Culinary Arts - ICCA Dubai. Not the kind to be confined to the hearth alone, Chef Uwe started the Gulf Gourmet magazine that produces ten issues each year to be used as a communication tool and to document the commendable work of the chef fraternity in UAE. It is the official magazine of the Emirates Culinary Guild, recognized by Worldchefs.org, and is the leading magazine for professional chefs in the Middle East. “The magazine focuses on chefs and the events and competitions we are doing in the region. For me it was a tool for my corporate partners as a source of marketing. However, now things have changed as social media has taken over.” He is clearly not impressed with followers and their count as for him what matters more are ‘real people’ on the table. He has also penned two cookbooks, his first being the ‘Chef At Home. The second book he wrote - ‘Flavours of Dubai’ was awarded 2nd prize in the ‘Best Chef Author’ category at the 22nd Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, 2017. The cookbook brings together traditional Emirati and other modern recipes using locally sourced ingredients, and a historical insight into Dubai’s culinary metamorphosis.

Cooking through the storm The COVID-19 crisis has not caused a personal setback for Chef Uwe, as he has made progress on other endeavors during this time, which took a backseat otherwise. “Teams have been cut down, and the way people work at restau-

Televised cooking shows are a rage, and his take on them is blunt and straightforward. “Half of the television cooks cannot cook, but they are good entertainers. Many of them are good in front of the camera only, and I can tell you they cannot cook. The ones who are good at both have a great marketing team behind them. However, it has helped our industry get more acceptance, especially during the recent times.” Chef Uwe has an indelible optimism about him, an antidote as the hospitality industry trundles through trying times. “If there is something positive that came out of COVID-19, it is that families are now cooking together as a single entity. Food has a great binding quality,” he says.

A unique recipe

With wife Annette

For someone whose culinary journey started in 1975, the last 46 years have been full of positive and not so positive experiences, his words are tinged with this wisdom - “You have to seek knowledge as no one will come to you. It’s an advice I give to all young chefs. The more you seek, the more you get. Just be open-minded and you can gain from everything as you are never too old to learn.” He has a philosophical bent of mind and believes that doing good will give you good. “Not all days are the same, but I think you must wake up feeling positive, and you will have a good day. I believe that we are responsible for what happens to us. If we can handle situations positively, life is much easier. I learn from other’s mistakes and make sure that I don’t make them. I am a realist by nature, and I have always done well when I listened to my inner voice.” He feels that cooking is about being who you are. “In the kitchen, you can be yourself and be creative. When I cook at home, I never make the same recipe twice as I just cook with what I have. And when you do not follow the rules, it makes an amazing dish.” For Chef Uwe, food is akin to music, and it changes with his moods. “A good German sausage is something I love though. Even a good bread with a nice sauce is fine with me and I do not need meat. It’s a myth that chefs need elaborate meals; in reality, it is the opposite.” For a man of his stature, his needs are pretty simple.

Doing his own thing rants has naturally changed. The biggest change for me was that I could not travel and had to cancel all the events I had previously committed to.” Mostly confined to his home, he trooped to the restaurant every three weeks to motivate the team to keep going. Since mere motivation would not cut it, as the situation was bleak, he took to ECG’s YouTube channel, which only had 143 subscribers at that time. “We did virtual cooking competitions and started with one where anyone could send us a video and we gave out simple prizes for the winners. Soon, we had sponsors and did over eight competitions, and now we have over 6000 subscribers after a year, which has been an organic growth, and we hope for it to keep growing,” he says, beaming.

All set to retire soon, he shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon, which is to the benefit of food enthusiasts. A YouTube channel is in the works, continuing his penchant for food and connection. “During the lockdown, my wife filmed me making many dishes, and I hope to use the channel to do my own thing and keep in touch with people.” He likes to watch football and play board games with his wife in his free time, a luxury he is now afforded due to a less busy schedule. Is there anyone he is inspired by? “There have been many chefs – from some I learned how to cook, from few others I learned how to manage and connect.” Chef Uwe’s life mantra has held him in good stead, as it would do us all, if we drink it up - “Never give up, and never let anyone decide what you have to do with your life. If someone pushes you, get up and work harder.” ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

INTERVIEW

LIVING THE

ELECTRIC DREAM

There’s very little he hasn’t done. Meet ADAM RIDGWAY, the man who has made innovation a way of life. BINDU GOPAL RAO speaks to him on his idea of altering the mobility landscape

n his office at The Sustainable City in Dubai, Adam Ridgway has a large teal-hued artwork in his office that he says was his way to celebrate a small win at a time when he first set out in business. The CEO of ONE MOTO, is making waves in the electric vehicle space with a clutch of sustainable products. For someone who believes living life to the fullest while making a difference is of utmost importance, he recollects his journey in this exclusive conversation with ASPIRE.

Cruising ahead Growing up in the UK, Ridgway admits he was not academically inclined and found ways to barter deals to ensure his homework was done when he was just 12. While he excelled in art and the creative side of schooling, he never really felt challenged, so he decided to do a course in business. “I, however, failed the cash flow forecast and

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business financing courses. My teacher came up to me and asked how I could dream of running a business empire having failed at the financial courses. I told him with utmost respect that I would simply employ someone who can do it better than I can.” Only 17 then, it was also when he set up his first company in London that organized boat cruises on the River Thames. This was all before mobile phones and the Internet, so he made calls to bus companies to organize the transport and called the yacht company and convinced them to work without a deposit. “Building relationships was key and has been the foundation of who I am today,” says Adam. He continues to say, “After various other creative roles, I was trying to find my reason, my what, and who I was.” When he was about 19, he soon moved on from the cruise business and set up a company that helped others

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INTERVIEW

recruitment, a term he had never heard before. It was eight months before he got another job, and during this time he learned about Arabic culture, communication between different nationalities, and working on new content formats. Noticing an opportunity, Adam goes on to say, “I noticed there wasn’t a portal for the media industry to communicate like in the other parts of the world, and that was the catalyst to start MEDIACUBED The Creative Group in 2009, an online portal for the media industry to communicate,” and after a decade he successfully exited the business in late 2019.

Sustainable Mobility

About five years ago, Adam thought there was a problem with delivery vehicles in the UAE, and this was the spark of ignition for ONE MOTO set up companies doing various bits and pieces. In his early 20s, he took a leap of faith and started an incredible career in television.

Show Time Starting as a Production runner on Ready Steady Cook (BBC) working with celebrities and contestants on UK’s favorite cooking show, Adam moved on to a Senior Researcher role at Enteraction Productions LLC and worked as an actor for a month at Tiger Aspect. He then worked as a Senior Researcher and Assistant Producer at Endemol Shine UK on BBC’s reality show Living with Kimberley. After working as Assistant Producer in Ricochet TV, Optomen Television and Tiger Aspect, he worked as a TV Presenter for Life TV Production on a show called ‘Dress My Mate’. He also had a stint with BBC London as a Radio DJ co-presenting a daily evening talk radio show with themed music selections. “The TV career was probably one of the most treasured times of my life because I was working on very creative and high-pressure timelines with hundreds of different personalities that helped my personal development in terms of being able to build relationships,” says Adam, clearly pleased with his progress. It was this combination of creative ability and business acumen that helped him when he decided to shift to Dubai about 13 years ago. “I had a job, so I shipped out all my stuff to Dubai before I even arrived, absolutely committed to the country,” he recalls. While he was offered a job with a leading production company to head the program developments they were looking to produce, but when he got here, he was informed of a freeze on

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About five years ago, Adam thought there was a problem with delivery vehicles in the UAE, and this was the spark of ignition for ONE MOTO. A tech-driven electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer for what he calls “smartphones on wheels.” The current product portfolio includes ‘byka’, a purpose-designed delivery motorbike, ‘electa’, a modern classic-looking scooter, and ‘commuta’, the commuter’s choice of two-wheeled transport. The ‘deliva’ range includes Mobicool, Hypa-Go, Parcel, and Tri-wheel for grocery and parcel delivery vehicles, while ‘scoota’ is the micro-mobilitator, and ‘ryda’ is a range of e-bikes for commuters, weekend riders, and fitness lovers. Adam is also the first and only ESMA and RTA approved electric vehicle manufacturer in Dubai. Being the first mover in the EV space, the challenge has been about educating the market about the concept. With a vision to be in 100 cities by 2028, he remarks, “That is a very audacious goal that needs the right team to build a brand based on five core values that relate to the community. We are not about selling or creating vehicles that my generation and those above relate to, but it is looking towards delivering to our future customers, who believe in transparent core values they relate and engage with - that’s the future.” He further adds, “Reports suggest that the youth may not get a driving license or be able to afford a vehicle or perhaps even need one in the future, meaning it is all about how you can make a cost-effective, affordable, and convenient mode of transport that everyone can experience.” Therefore, his goal is not just to design these vehicles that have longevity but is also futuristic as it uses 3D printed recycled materials that can be swapped and changed as they aim to provide mobility for all. “A big part of our CSR initiative is that for every vehicle that we sell, we look at providing mobility in weak financial countries to be able to give access and ability for those to commute. My goal is to make a difference as long as I am around,” says Adam with one focused am-

bition to switch the commercial delivery vehicles in the UAE electric by 2024.

Business Mantra ONE MOTO is a very modular business in foundations and operations, the structure of the team as well as the vehicles themselves. In the first phase, the company is focusing on producing the vehicles they have already launched globally, trialing and testing them with some of the world’s largest last-mile operators and grocery companies. “Phase two, which is what I am working on now, is to build a UAE manufacturing plant and as we expand in 14 territories globally to create a manufacturing plant in each country,” says Adam very optimistically. His engineers and designers are also working with a leading University to design the next fleet of vehicles, the prototype of which will be ready by the end of June 2021. While ONE MOTOs parent company is in the UK, the “business is very much home-grown in the UAE,” and the head office in Dubai has a sustainably focused core team. The company has been five years in development before launching in Dubai 16

“It is about you believing in yourself and having the tenacity to give it everything you have got and hopefully enjoy it along the way. If you don’t enjoy it, don’t do it”

months ago in December 2019. “We spent 2020 on building market awareness, to educate the e-bike’s benefits to the environment, residents, riders, and to demonstrate the profitability to the companies operating in the last-mile delivery sector. We launched our flagship e-bike range at GOTEX last year with overwhelming success,” Adam tells us. This helped the company win five awards, and one of them was the UAE Sustainable Business of the Year. While he does not give away the turnover figures, he admits they have doubled their turnover last year and declared a profit - in the first 12 months of arguably the most challenging of years they also successfully closed a raise.

The Future is Electrifying Currently, the company has three vehicles in the prototype stage, including a three in one motorcycle, e-bikes designed for men and two e-bikes for women, and a fat-wheel off-road bike. The futuristic CEO adds, “We are also in development with two cars, a microcar, and an SUV. With the development of these two, I believe that would complete our product portfolio. As the industry expands, it will become a very small space as we will not have as many manufacturers. All vehicles will have very similar operating systems or digital experience and the same safety features. We’re focused on our niche and believe in collaborations.” In October 2019, when he was becoming a father for the first time and on the verge of turning 40, Adam decided to give up his media career for ONE MOTO. He credits his wife, who is his pillar of support, and his daughter, who lights up his life, as his source of motivation. “On a personal level, I love what I do. The belief everyone shares in this collaborative state is definitely a motivational driver, and I have a clear three-year plan that motivates me too.” All set to embrace fatherhood again, he prides on managing his personal and professional life well. While he loves playing the guitar and cooking as much as possible, he was recently also a finalist in the UAE’s Amateur Barbecue Master. His advice to people who have entrepreneurial dreams is straightforward. “It is about you believing in yourself and having the tenacity to give it everything you have got and hopefully enjoy it along the way. If you don’t enjoy it, don’t do it. Speak to strangers; they are as significant as your friends and family who will support you. You need to balance self-belief, ego, and modesty. It’s only wisdom (coming from experience) that’ll teach you when to give up, which direction to take, what opportunities to create, and how best can you implement ‘your current hand’.” He signs off with these words, “Stay focused on your goal (and make sure you have one).” ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

INTERVIEW

THE GREAT GAMBLER

From flashy Dubai, rustic Russia and the glitz of suburban Bombay, to selling clothes and electronics and helming a glamorous beauty empire, Nitin Kalwani’s is a true tale of sheer ingenious, smartly manoeuvring life’s unexpected turns with a smattering of luck on the side. Interviewed by Shagufta Patel Written by Qiraat Attar

ome find adventure in scaling mountains, others dive into the deep sea, but Nitin Kalwani found his heart racing at the prospect of creating new businesses. His is a success story you may not have heard of yet but should have. He has turned around many a venture through his knack of finding opportunity in adversity, mining it with his impeccable acumen and ingenuity. Nitin was born in the sleepy small town of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, known for its pristine beauty, agreeable weather, and well-run schools. Being the eldest of three children, he felt the pressure to set a positive example for his siblings. His father was a professor by profession (with four Master’s degrees in English, Sanskrit, Political Science, and Hindi) and wrote for the national newspaper Indian Express in his spare time. His business-oriented family, who had well-running enterprises in Dubai, had later invited his father to the UAE and helped him in setting up a textile business. But given his academic disposition, Nitin’s father found it difficult to put his heart into the business.

Matters of the Family At the fledgling age of 18, while still pursuing studies, Nitin travelled to Dubai in 1985 to assist his father in managing the show and soon took over the business. Life had taken its first unexpected turn, and bereft of choice, he stepped into his father’s shoes. The textile stint, though short-lived, was his first brush with business. However, it helped him garner great

experience. He later sought apprenticeship within the vast enterprise of his uncle, Mr. Lal, where he gained tremendous exposure in the sale of electronics, food, and computers. Jumping between departments, he learned on the job, absorbing knowledge at every chance he got. Still harbouring a deep desire to continue studies abandoned halfway when he’d travelled to Dubai, Nitin now planned to travel to faraway USA. His first independent business was purely incidental, a ploy by his father who pleaded with his brother (Nitin’s uncle) to deter him from going. As part of the tactic, the young lad was asked to suggest an alternative that he’d want to pursue, and he stubbornly decided to suggest something so outlandish that his father and uncle would have no option but to let him go. He asked to start his own business, with a quarter of a million Dirhams as seed money. Against his wildest expectations, his uncle assented.

Trinkets and Threads Bulked with money, Nitin started his independent foray into business with imitation jewellery, handpicked from places like Taiwan and Japan, enjoying patronage amongst the citizens of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in multitudes. There were some kinks in business; after all, he was still an amateur. But margins were good, the business thrived, and the future did not pose a spot of worry. Having one hell of a beginner’s luck, his business kept expanding from a single to five stores in the first year itself. His uncle was infinitely proud, bragging about his nephew’s growth to the senior directors at his firm. And then, it was over as quickly as it had begun.

HIS FIRST INDEPENDENT BUSINESS WAS PURELY INCIDENTAL, A PLOY BY HIS FATHER WHO PLEADED WITH HIS BROTHER (NITIN’S UNCLE) TO DETER HIM FROM GOING 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

INTERVIEW

The 1990 Kuwait War took lives and livelihoods, and fledgling businesses folded under duress. Profits were destroyed, and Nitin lost the initial investment as well. “Business collapsed, and one by one, I started shutting down shops. As quickly as I had grown, I was folding up faster than that,” he recalls. For a minute, it all seemed non-existent. Humbled, he returned to his uncle, but not empty-handed; he had something new brewing. His uncle’s defunct supermarket provided the stage for this next venture, inspired by Mumbai’s bustling Fashion Street, where high-end fashion surplus found their way for dirt cheap prices, which brand enthusiasts snapped up readily. Nitin rebranded this modest idea, designed like a warehouse, the idea becoming its namesake. Essentially an outlet mall before the concept became commonplace, his venture possessed his signature gusto, as he travelled to India, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines, knocking on factory doors, hunting for quality products, buying them way under the sticker price, and selling it at handsome margins. It was a gamble that paid off, and his uncle’s forgotten store saw heyday again.

A Treaty with Russia Around 1992, when the store’s lease was set to expire, Nitin was introduced to a Russian customer. Fascinated by their striking language and somewhat enchanted by the foreign land, he impressed them enough for an import– export business opportunity to come his way. After a stellar first meeting, for which he had hired a Russian for a hundred dollars an hour to translate, the deal was in the bag. The Russians felt an uncanny connection with him, admiring his tenacity, resourcefulness, and quick-wittedness, and offered him a contract worth half a million dollars. He admits that he frankly did not believe the deal had gone through until his banker called him, bewildered, that he was richer by half a million dollars, which was transferred into his account overnight. His diligence ensured he had a successful stint of supplying goods to Russia, and soon he had gone from

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a business in ruins to a millionaire again. He was then all of 22. The venture gave him the self-assurance to contemplate a permanent move to the frigid land to expand his business and consolidate his place in it. Russia was the untamed Wild West; where Dubai offered the chance to interact with people from every nationality with diverse perspectives, Russia handed him the threat of the mafia, entrenched bureaucracy, and otherworldliness to the country continually in political strife. Nitin was like India’s unofficial ambassador to

the semi-republic land of Azerbaijan, one of the first Indians there, and he was flourishing against all odds. If something could be bought and sold, he leaped at the possibility. “One day, I was selling frozen chicken, and the next day I was selling Gillette razors.” No product was off-limits, and he soon established himself across the board, picking up some Russian language, making Azerbaijan his home. He has numerous achievements to his credit—the first new Mother-care (a UK brand) store in Russia was started by him, as was the first western super-

“DO YOU KNOW RAJ KAPOOR?” THE SOLDIER ASKED. AND THIS IS HOW HE FOUND HIMSELF SINGING AWARA HOON IN THE FREEZING NIGHT, SURROUNDED BY SOVIET GUNS AND SOLDIERS

market. However, in a twist of events like a noir Hollywood film, concerned with safety and security issues, he regretfully left the Russian land, the story unfinished. To Nitin, however, Russia features as a reminder that home is never as far as you think. During his first time in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, he remembers arriving at a freezing, dilapidated airport, where martial law was in full force, and he was perplexed by the language. The streets would not be open for hours, so he bribed his way into a person’s car to hitch a ride into the city. The militia patrolling the roads with guns and impassive faces accosted them, and Nitin stepped out with bated breath. “They asked me, ‘Indus?’ to mean India, and as he nodded, their whole demeanour changed,” he remembers. Suddenly, they were laughing, friendly, looking on with fanfare instead of intimidation. “Do you know Raj Kapoor?” one asked hope-

fully. And this is how he found himself singing Awara hoon in the freezing night, surrounded by Soviet guns and soldiers, who’d adopted him as their VIP guest and personally dropped him off at his hotel. Years later, as a hat-tip to this fond memory, he launched a tea brand in Russia called ‘Awara’ with a handsome picture of Raj Kapoor on the label, which would sell out in minutes owing to the craze around the legendary star.

Business in Bollywood After Russia, Nitin was rudderless, but unbeknownst to him, he was on the cusp of something new. His stint in Russia introduced him to L’Oréal, which got him interested in beauty. The USA-based Toni and Guy, an unpretentious up-and-coming enterprise instead of the global rage as we know it today, offered him distributorship for their products in India. Impressed by their funky, colourful design and

quality products, he dived in. But selling was more complex than procurement. High-end salons were unheard of—the beauty scene still dominated by small street parlours. Beauty was not associated with lifestyle or self-care as it is now, and Nitin was once again a pioneer. Takers for his products manifested as Farhan and Adhuna Akhtar, a director-stylist duo, the latter operating ‘Juice’ hair salon in Mumbai and the former thick in the middle of his first directorial venture, Dil Chahta Hai. They expressed interest in the product, but money was tight; Farhan had placed all his bets and money on his movie. So, they offered him a partnership in the salon instead. Ever the collaborator, Nitin came on board. What followed was a stupendously successful Bollywood classic, forever changing Indian cinema. As word spread about the actor’s chic styling being curated by Adhuna, ‘Juice’ boomed, opening 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

INTERVIEW

With wife Jiya and enjoying the ride with his son

NITIN PROVIDED HIS TEAM TO CAPITALIZE ON INDIA’S EMERGENT BEAUTY BOOM; ‘JUICE’ EMERGED INTO A MULTI-MILLIONDOLLAR BUSINESS WITH OVER FORTY STORES IN INDIA AND SEVEN IN DUBAI up more branches, with Nitin, Farhan, and Adhuna reaping the rewards of their faith and tenacity. As Adhuna moved on to her own individual styling ventures, Nitin helmed ‘Juice’ and took it from strength to staggering strength. Under the freedom, he provided his team to capitalize on India’s emergent beauty boom; ‘Juice’ emerged into a multi-million-dollar business with over forty stores in India and seven in Dubai.

Capturing Endless Milestones Nitin’s latest ventures include the professional salon-quality hair and skin brand titled ‘LYN - Live Your Now’,

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blazing a path across nearly 2,000 stores in India and growing steadily. Manufactured globally and inclusive of experimental new products, he also plans to expand it with a new, as-yet-unrevealed business model that will revolutionize the business. He is also the creator of a concept-driven venture called @the lab, where independent brands of stellar quality but limited reach can be made available to buyers, along with an in-depth hair and skin analysis with the recommended products suited for them. In an era of hyper individual needs, this new idea is sure to hit the nail on the head. Besides the business of beauty and grooming, he also holds the fran-

chisee of the immensely popular F&B brand, Jones The Grocer for Qatar. His days are pretty occupied also managing the continuing import–export venture. Nitin has not been infallible or without second thoughts. He wonders about the roads not taken, if he had stuck with ‘The Warehouse’, or if he could’ve cemented the Russian import–export business. But he does not dwell forever for he loves the adventure life took him on. On the personal front, he has a kindred spirit in his wife Jiya, who aids him with the aesthetics of his enterprises and with social media. He admits that work–life balance is tricky. “Instead of allocating a fixed slot I cannot adhere to, I keep it flexible and take lighter moments as they come,” he says. He is passionate about wellness, hiking, cycling, or simply walking to keep himself shipshape, and conscious about the food that nourishes his body. Also a mountaineer he has summited Mt Kilimanjaro amongst many others. One desire he yearns to check off his bucket list still is to cross the Atlantic on a wind-whipped sailboat. To date, Nitin remains a voracious reader, irrespective of genre, and credits technology, which he says has made reading more accessible onthe-go, while so many of us complain otherwise. He remarks that perhaps his insatiable learning instinct is to compensate for not having earned an MBA, the one he wanted to pursue in the USA, which his uncle so deftly veered him off. But he takes it all in his stride. He may himself not be an MBA, but many who work for him are. After all, a successful business makes a successful businessman. Degree or not, fate intended or not, Nitin Kalwani is an accidental yet incredibly well-suited businessman. In the end, he credits his parents with the upright teachings of always doing the ethical thing and learning at every given chance. His story is a testament to the importance of going against the tide. “When everyone is getting off the bus, that is when you climb on and create something worthwhile,” says the entrepreneur with no limits as he signs off. ✪

FEATURE

The

Holy Grail

In an unexpected correlation, QIRAAT ATTAR draws out the similarity between Business and Ramadan

or Muslims across the world, the holy month of Ramadhan is a time of piety and self-reflection. This mandatory tradition in Islamic culture invites an individual to deliberate on their personal conduct and righteousness. Drawing a parallel between business and the Muslim holy month, it would be fair to say that erecting and running a business requires the same single-minded devotion and faith. A broader interpretation of the tenets of this sacred month can give us sacrosanct com-

mandments that could forge prosperity, mindful growth, and stay on course in business.

Discipline tames an unruly outcome The foundational cornerstone of Ramadhan is the act of fasting or ‘sawm’, an exercise in self-control and discipline, testing an individual’s 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

FEATURE

your business. Instead, work your hardest at the aspects you can govern and mould.

Rewards for the faithful ‘Shahada’ is a profession of unshakeable faith. In business, faith is the foundation on which all future edifices are built. The market is an unpredictable place, and the freedom of business consequently brings paralyzing uncertainty. To combat this, practice building faith in your customer by establishing a strong feedback loop. Have faith in your product or service, even in the experimentation phase when perfection may seem unattainable. Stay firm on your business model, regardless of how much you lag behind the competition. Faith speaks directly to patience, for there is no such thing as instant turnarounds in business. Faith tells you that the tree will bloom, even when you can’t see the roots flourishing underground.

Faith speaks directly to patience, for there is no such thing as instant turnarounds in business. It tells you that the tree will bloom, even when you can’t see the roots flourishing underground patience to the core. Not unlike it, an entrepreneur makes a covenant with their business to make any sacrifice necessary in order to keep the business thriving and successful. Ask them and they will relegate the challenges in kickstarting a business – constant multitasking, juggling innumerable responsibilities, the renunciation of the comfort zone. Not to mention the self-control from adhering to the tightest schedule, the most demanding deadlines, to declining recreation and vacation for the business, the late nights and early mornings. Establishing a business takes courage and risk-taking, strength, and a little brazenness. It may feel tempting to slack off given the cycle of fatigue that an entrepreneur endures, especially in the early days. When failure hits, inertia sets in, sending our self-control haywire. Arguably, there is no replacement for well-deserved rest and recharge. However, remember that discipline is a hard-won commodity, which some spend a lifetime cultivating. Against your worst base instinct, stoically adhere to this discipline. Abstain from distractions, procrastination, or anything that does not serve your goals. If this tenacity is a part of your life, it is infinitely easier not to be dogged by the uncontrollable aspects of

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Guiding light piercing an obscure future ‘Salah’ stands for prayer, which may baffle as to how it fits in the scheme of business. After all, prayer is often misconstrued as calling upon someone to rescue you only when your ship is sinking, unimaginable to a proud entrepreneur. But prayer is a humble admittance that you don’t have all the answers, an acknowledgment that even the most infallible among us need help. Or it

manifests as a more personal meditation, on the past follies that nearly crumbled your enterprise or the many opportunities the future presents. It is remarkable how quiet contemplation can often reveal solutions right in front of you. Every entrepreneur, irrespective of the stage of their business, should not hesitate to ‘pray’ and seek guidance from a mentor or deep self-reflection to course-correct their endeavor.

He who gives, prospers For some, businesses are defined by profit, but they are more accurately defined by the tribe they create through their work. There is no community stronger than that built on the tenets of helping the less fortunate. ‘Zakat’ or donation is a collective social responsibility and one that businesses of today shoulder with pride. Every successful enterprise generates a flow of wealth and goods in the market. Still, an unsaid expectation is to improve the lives of the people, who may not necessarily be your customers. Goodwill is created by those businesses who put profits aside for society’s collective wellbeing. This, of course, does not mean to donate until your coffers run empty, but simple measures such as adhering to fair wages, ethical policies, non-discriminatory service, and other egalitarian practices go a long way and are a symbolic gesture of ‘Zakat’, especially for new start-ups.

The wanderer always finds the way A business cannot take a pilgrimage, but its leader certainly can. While rules of religion seem etched in stone, in business, metamorphosis is the only constant. Sometimes, hypervigilance about your enterprise can make it hard to be objective about your shortcomings, flaws, or rickety plans. A closeup look offers nothing but insistent focus on the day-to-day, with the long term pushed in a dangerous blind spot. But a bird’s eye view, away from the nitty-gritty of the situation, allows you to take a breather and assess the situation. A calmer head steering the ship means a voyage that will certainly reach its destination. Ramadan is an earmarked period for intense self-reflection, contemplation, devotion, and remembrance. Businesses can seek to look in the mirror and improve to avoid the pitfalls that beseech them. Reflect on the choices your enterprise makes in terms of the product or service, how you seek to treat your employees or how you interact with competition. A thorough self-reflection will reveal if your decisions are rooted in positivity and collaboration, or fear and envy. Contemplate the direction of your business, its sustainability, its inclusivity, and how your work impacts the people. Assess your devotion to your

Goodwill is created by those businesses who put profits aside for society’s collective wellbeing. This, of course, does not mean to donate until your coffers run empty vision and mission statement and if you have wandered away from it. Above all else, harbor the spirit of remembrance, with gratefulness for the journey so far. Never forget the ups and downs, the triumphs and the tribulations. There were periods of stagnation, but there were also blessed showers of abundance. Business follows a very evident sinusoidal wave, and a knowing of this truth helps you treat it all as fleeting - the good and the bad - and focus on showing up with purpose every day. The tenets of Ramadan, when boiled down to their essence, speak of an honest living and high thinking. What better than to use this holy month to get rid of the bells and whistles and focus on the original ideas, the seed which started it all? By simply striving to do the right thing and ensuring that the community progresses hand-in-hand with your passionate endeavor, your business can flourish with the spirit of Ramadan all year. ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

Culture eats strategy

FOR BREAKFAST

PRO TALK

Transformation Program Expert

Adil Hosgor

Here’s how to break down those invisible barriers in the global world we all live in

aving always had a passion for understanding and creating high-performing teams, Cross-Cultural Management (CCM) and Culture is a topic near and dear to my heart. Delivering complex programs in environments with 160 different cultures meant that I quickly understood the importance of Culture. Developing this skill was priceless throughout my career that also helped me develop as a better human being, respecting and learning from all cultures. Business Development, Operations, Employee Engagement, Talent Optimization, Retention, Marketing, Product Penetration, Innovation, and the success of Digital and Organizational Transformations, can be made or broken as a result of strength or lack thereof in Cultural Awareness and Cross-Cultural Management.

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What is Cross-Cultural Management? There are many definitions of CCM, from Holden to Nancy Adler. They basically state that CCM shows and guides people from different cultures on how to work together. They do go on to say much more, but that pretty much sums it all up! But understanding CCM is pointless without first understanding ‘Culture’, which is “the way we do things around here” (Deal and Kennedy, 1982); and “how people behave when no one is watching” (Hofstede, 2001). Academics, Organizational Behavioral experts, and many others have dedicated their lives to understanding Culture, CCM, and how people behave in specific settings better to understand the impact of these factors on an organization.

Once you have this knowledge, the next logical step is knowing how to apply it. That is where the Management part kicks in, and if the knowledge isn’t used well, failure is likely, or as Peter Drucker states, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” Thankfully, you do not have to spend a lifetime getting it wrong. As always, there are tools and frameworks available to help you gain a deep understanding of Culture, and then you can adapt and use this knowledge to improve your delivery.

Tools to Help you Excel in CCM and Culture The most effective and widely used tools in organizations are as follows:

PESTLE Analysis: This is a grid that has Political, Economic, Sociological, Technological, Legal, and Environmental headers. One needs to fill in the table and go into some detail for each point. This is a powerful way to see at a glance the external factors that could affect the organization or your approach. It can also be applied to where you are currently to give better clarity on the present situation. A simple search will show you many variations of the PESTLE analysis; do take time to find these out.

SWOT Analysis: SWOT is another effective tool to help you identify your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. This, used in conjunction with the findings from the PESTLE analysis, will be a powerful planning approach to gain insight into and identify mitigating or corrective action. Again, a simple search will identify many variations and applications of this tool. Review them and choose one or more that fits your purpose.

Schien’s Culture Iceberg: This is a great framework used to get under the skin of National Cultures’ or to dive deeper into the culture you are in. Schein uses an iceberg (as many others have) to describe Culture, wherein the part of the iceberg you see are Artefacts which are the visible parts of that culture, and just below the waterline are the Values. Further below the waterline is the rest of the iceberg, which are basic assumptions, or “how we do things”, which make up most of the understanding of a culture.

Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Modeling: Hofstede and his modeling is probably one of the most cited and followed by people in the Culture and CCM landscape. You can compare

Nations by Power Distance Ratios, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance, Long Term Orientation, and Indulgence. I do not have much space to detail these here, but if you work with various cultures, you really should research this model.   There are many other models and frameworks out there, but these four will definitely help you not fall into the pot-holes of Cultural Misunderstandings!

Even Industry Giants Get It Wrong: There are many examples of MNC’s, with all their Teams and Advisors still getting it wrong. One such example is FIAT creating an ad with Richard Gere driving from Hollywood to Tibet. Richard Gere’s outspokenness about the situation in Tibet caused an outrage in China, and millions “vowed” not to buy FIAT vehicles. Coca-Cola and Pepsi also had issues in China, wherein Coca-Cola used a Chinese phrase that sounded like Coca-Cola, but it meant “Bite the Wax Tadpole”, and Pepsi’s “It Brings You Back to Life” slogan translated as “Pepsi brings your ancestors back to life.” They obviously had to revamp these, but not before it had caused some significant damage to the brand’s reputation. Walmart, while entering the German market, didn’t factor in the labor laws, the red tape, and the nuances of German ethos; and the German’s were also ‘creeped out’ by the famous Walmart greeters. The company had to pull out Germany, costing them close to a whopping Billion Dollars. There are many more examples to quote, and a simple search will show you how time and time again, “Culture eats Strategy for Breakfast.”

In Conclusion: Don’t underestimate the

There are many examples of MNC’s, with all their Teams and Advisors still getting it wrong. One such example is FIAT creating an ad with Richard Gere driving from Hollywood to Tibet

power that Culture has on the success or failure of organizations and strategy. You need NOT take everyone’s culture into account in an organization and still get the best out of all Cultures and Nuances. A strong culture like the United Arab Emirates that allows sub-cultures to exist is an excellent example of this. Ignoring the importance of Culture and not paying attention to CCM will more likely lead to increased costs and failed corporate initiatives. On the other hand, its understanding will help at an organizational level, departments, initiatives, employee engagement, corporate strategy, and many more domains, with a strong chance of succeeding in the plans. Enjoy your breakfast! ✪ ADIL HOSGOR CAN BE REACHED AT adilhosgor@gmail.com 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

PRO TALK

Make that

PR CALL

PR Consultant

Anishkaa Gehani

In an increasingly sophisticated business world PR can give you the edge you need. Here’s the low down on how to give your business a high

ne fine Monday morning, Mr. A is hosting a virtual meet with his strategic team. One of the key discussion points is ‘securing funds’. Finding investment is the second most pressing challenge encountered by most entrepreneurs at the evolutionary stage of the company. Here is a crucial question every company asks - will a public relations campaign enable my business to attract the attention of potential investors? A pervasive preconceived notion is that PR is all about press mentions and attractive news announcements. PR strategy, if crafted effectively, can work in congruence with your business plan – be it attracting investments, building a franchise network, or getting a stock listed. It fulfills business goals and can truly make you money. What’s more, strategically planned media outreach is sure to accelerate growth, scaling the business to higher summits. This includes preparing for the long, complex, transforma-

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tional process of taking a company through an IPO. Looking at growing your company franchises? PR is what will help generate brand awareness on a national and international level. All in all, the key function of PR is positioning a brand and building upon the brand equity at a local, regional and global scale by amplifying local market development, news announcements, and crisis management. All of these are vital to any and every business. Back in the day, Public Relations or media communications as a strategy was predominantly deployed by government departments. As time progressed, we’ve witnessed the evolution of the public relations practice as being embraced by the multi-national corporations and today even small-medium businesses and individuals. Corporates today understand the need for a focused PR campaign to being pivotal to raise the brand profile, to attract investment, customers, and talent. 2020 was also the year when Personal

Branding took center stage. Diverse industries use Public Relations differently. Although, in theory, the goal, objectives, and action are similar, practically, the application of a PR strategy differs as per the industry requirements and is unique and customized to each company and campaign. An important and relevant question to ask here will be – why do you buy, what you buy? What is driving those buying decisions? Yes, each purchase decision does have a functional, emotional, and social element attached to the purchase. Having said that, there is more to why people actually buy a product or a service, and how can PR then help facilitate or influence that buying decision? Influencing a stakeholder’s decision plays a huge role in today’s times, and PR works well as a long-term strategy to create the right perception. Below is a checklist for companies to understand the ingredients of a successful PR campaign.

age published by a third party; this could be print media, online media, broadcast media, or influencers as well. The beauty of adopting an earned media strategy is that the business is able to influence a third party to advocate the business without exchange of any commercials. The perceived value of this coverage is far higher than coverage that has been paid for. As Richard Branson says, “Publicity is absolutely more critical. A good PR story is infinitely more effective than a front-page ad.”

PR is story-telling

Digital Landscape

Content creation is at the heart of any marketing campaign. A well-planned content strategy inspires your target audiences to take action that boosts your business. One way to look at a successful PR campaign is that at its foundation is creative story-telling. A gripping story helps slash through the clutter and engage the audience while conveying the brand message. It implies the perfect combination of setting goals, researching your audience, and mapping out how buyers will interact with your content.

Digital rules the 2021 media landscape; this is the main reason why PR today has evolved from just writing a press release, planning an event, or dealing with the media and influencers. PR when integrated with other marketing vehicles gives more than just visibility. It helps connect the brand with influencers, analyze data, monitor feedback, and work around conversion. Digital PR plays a vital role in today’s marketing landscape.

PR increases brand credibility

Another emerging trend is that Entrepreneurs and CEOs today understand the power of personal branding. It is a unique combination of skills, experience, and personality. Personal brand building gives an individual the reputation of being an expert in his / her field while simultaneously amplifying brand ‘U’. Social Media, podcasts, videos, writing books are effective ways to complement the personal brand-building exercise. Once again, the strategy and tactics need to be engineered and worked upon in a consistent manner in order to get recognition. The public relations industry enjoys a position of greater prominence in today’s competitive and fast-paced global environment. I would like to end with my favorite quote from Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft, “if I were down to my last dollar, I would spend it on public relations.” ✪

The ultimate goal of PR is to create engaging conversations with stakeholders, both internal and external. Clear and constant communication helps bridge the trust gap between a business and its prospective clientele. Often worked through press releases, interviews, feature stories, thought leadership articles, influencer connections, and networking strategies, PR helps a brand thrive and offers increased credibility within their given industry. It starts with visibility through the right press features, leading to credibility and eventually translating to business profitability.

PR is earned media With digitalization taking over business today, it has become supremely important for a business to ensure it generates “earned” media coverage equally as it garners “paid” media coverage through online advertising. To simplify, earned media coverage is the cover-

PR is a long-term strategy What brands and companies need to understand is that PR is a long-term strategy. Repetition equals recall. Over a period of time, PR strategy, when executed right, changes the way people think about a business. PR works towards building a positive impression and creating a perception about a business. Perception, though intangible, dictates the brand value and the overall brand equity.

Personal Branding

Influencing a stakeholder’s decision plays a huge role in today’s times, and PR works well as a longterm strategy to create the right perception

YOU CAN REACH ANISHKAA AT anishkaa@yardstick-marketing.com 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

The

BRAND STAND

PRO TALK

Brand Strategist and Graphic Designer

Sumeet Gupta

We all know of it, but do we know what it really is. Take a closer look at the incredibly complex world of branding

e love Brands. We care for them, and we adore them. We love to talk about them and flaunt them. Let’s face it, we’re drawn to brands, we’re connected to them, and we cherish them to the extent that we obsess over them and fuss about them. Though if you ask any average individual walking down the street about what a brand is, they will not be able to define it. In response, they will make a feeble attempt to describe it best as, “Brands. They’re just expensive stuff that makes you look cool and fancy. The nice stuff that makes you look great and represents your status.” Everyone loves brands that appeal, attracts, and stays in the minds of people. But most people find it difficult to explain what a brand is and for many, it’s just a company that has got a name and fame. They simply see a brand as the brand shows itself to be! Why do we even choose a brand and what makes us trust it? Why do companies spend so much money to make it big? What really is a Brand and how does it get to the point of defining a company from just being a name, to a name that evokes awe?

A Brand is a Feeling As stated by Jose Caballer, CEO, The Systm, a brand is certainly not a logo, a color, an image, or a tagline of a product. It goes way beyond that. A brand is connected to the emotions of goodness and trust in a product, service, or organization when customers interact with it. Every product or service you interact with generates a feeling, where some make you feel uplifted, some make you feel let down, and some leave you feeling neutral. And that feeling stays on for a long time. It is only when the customer feels the connection with the product or service, the intention behind the venture

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is successful. We feel connected to brands because they speak our language, what we are inside, the brands represent us on the outside. For example, when you purchase a Louis Vuitton Bag, you feel good, luxurious, and classy. Because the brand ‘Louis Vuitton’ is a style statement. The biggest reason behind branding is to connect with people on personal touchpoints. It’s a promise a company makes to fulfill the needs and desires of its customers. Walter Landor rightly said, “Products are made in a factory, but brands are created in the mind.”

Branding – The making of a Brand Not many are concerned or aware of what goes into the making of a brand. Branding, or ‘making of a brand’ is a well-thought strategy that makes one company stand out and differentiate itself from its competitors. If your goal is to sell ideas (product or service) in the modern world, then creating a brand out of your idea is the first step towards making it a grand success. The maxim ‘Brand is everything, and everything is a brand’ where some ideas are bigger than others, and some flourish to the extent that their popularity constructs the matter in which we see everything around them. Branding reinforces and creates the sense of feeling a product or a company promises to encompass and brings it to pass. It is the ability to translate a person’s vision, words, emotions, and thoughts into reality. It could be through a logo, a website, an image, or texts. According to Ashley Friedlein, “Brand is the total of how someone perceives a particular organization, and Branding is about shaping that perception.” Each part of the business has an opportunity to be managed from the intention which the idea stands for.

Spruce or Lose Branding is a vital part of the business. Most companies are aware of it and spend lots of money on its maintenance hiring big firms to audit the brand to see if it still speaks the language of the products and service. If they are misaligned anywhere, it is realigned to maintain the authenticity of a brand. This is the sole reason why brand manuals or brand guidelines come into the picture. It’s curated carefully post lots of research, trials, and tests to reflect the brand voice and maintain brand consistency on all forums to keep the brand identity recognizable. Companies that fail to act upon this end up losing businesses and customers. If a company’s brand does not align with its purpose, it could misrepresent the services or products, which could disappoint customers or even lose them forever. For example, imagine the logo of Nike placed on the cup of a Starbucks coffee; one won’t feel the temptation to taste it. Instead, one will gear up to run. Similarly, imagine the logo of the brand Apple on an android phone; it’s sure to make one feel it’s fake. Every company grows up with time, and so does its branding changes with the change in perception, purpose, and vision of a company. It could either be a minor adjustment as a brand repositioning or a major overhaul as a complete remake of the company’s identity called re-branding.

Random change is not going to bring you success; incorporating the right change is the game-changer

This is important as it also shows the evolvement of a company or its product after a specific period. It is not necessary to do a drastic change unless required, as even a few refinements may speak volumes. The core purpose remains the same. As the world continues to evolve, we will have to set a pace and adapt to the ever-changing world. As so many new brands emerge, competitions are on the rise. And to cut through the noise and stay on top, it’s vital to work the best on branding and maintain your brand identity to look and feel distinct from others. I have seen people who are not happy with their branding but continue to work with the same formula and strategy. At the same time, they ponder why they keep losing customers or unable to make the business grow the way they want it. They see their competitors doing well and tend to change their branding or be intrigued to move by their tune. But random change is not going to bring you success; incorporating the right change is the game-changer. In my next article, let’s talk about Brand Identity with a brief on how to create and align it to the purpose of your brand and service. Until then, do some audits about where your company stands in terms of being a brand. Good luck! ✪ YOU CAN REACH HER AT sumeet@thepurplestroke.com 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Angels among Us If the Covid virus has proved anything it is this... that humans have hearts that are larger than this global pandemic. Say hello to Fatima Punsalan Ramos as she devotes her energies towards helping others through her own storms

s a single mother herself, 53-year old Fatima Punzalan Ramos from the Philippines, who moved out of the country 18 years ago and works as a nanny to support her five children. She understands the trials and tribulations of parents struggling to make ends meet to provide for their kids. This is one reason that drives her each day to support and make it easy for the less fortunate and their families. After hearing stories of how the pandemic affected the lives of families and their babies, no wonder Fatima’s instincts took charge, and she decided to embark on the journey to make a difference.

Shining through the storms “I know how it feels when your baby doesn’t have milk or even basic needs. That was the very reason I had decided to work outside the Philippines. During globalization, in 1983, I lost my job. I didn’t want to deprive my children of anything, and so when I came across my first job, which was in Hong Kong, I decided to move. Since then, I have moved across several countries and cities from Oman to Macau to be able to provide for my five children,” she narrates. So when Fatima heard of two Filipino babies who lost their mom to Covid after an acquaintance directed her to them, she was determined to help no matter how much time she would have to devote towards the cause. “After hearing of that, I immediately reached out to people over social media and WhatsApp checking if they can help the children in any way, whether it is by raising money or helping them in any other way. Luckily, loads of people responded with what they could do for the children, and we all together

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managed to help them,” she says.

A journey of dedication, love, and selflessness From thereon, more parents in need increasingly have been reaching out to her, some asking for help and some others expressing their desire to join her in making the difference. “Another lady from the UK named Sarah has joined my quest in helping people. From diapers, milk to clothes, shoes, and toys, we have been putting together something for the babies of every family that reaches out to us,” she remarks, pleased that her efforts are being noticed. Fatima notes that what was heartening to see along the way was the magnanimity of people and their urge to help out. “We have seen people being extremely generous in giving away. Even those who couldn’t afford much have in their own ways contributed by either donating diapers or just Cerelac. Suddenly one lady who was unable to pay rent and her business was shut down reached out to us and offered to give away over 1500 diapers,” she recounts. She admits that social media has been imperative in helping her spread out the word, in reaching out to those in need, and receiving help from some others who wanted to contribute to the mission. Moreover, Fatima makes it a point to personally reach out to parents, checking if she can do something for them. “It fills my heart when I see happy children and parents and their smiles. That is unmatched,” Fatima smiles. She believes that good deeds are always paid off. “When you help people, the return to you is always good health and the positivity that you feel in your life after filling someone’s life with love and giving,” she exclaims.

“People are really willing to help when they see that the intention is good and that you are sincere”

Recently, she raised money for a family that could not afford portable oxygen. “So many people contributed to buy the oxygen tank for the family. This is how it works. More and more people are giving their stuff away to distribute to the needy. People are really willing to help when they see that the intention is good and that you are sincere,” Fatima remarks. Moreover, she ensures she extends help to her home country Philippines during any episodes of disaster or adversity. “When the region was struck by the Typhoon storm last year, we gathered huge boxes of goods and sent them over to the right people who will distribute them to those in need,” she shares. Despite working for long hours herself, Fatima believes that reaching out and helping people keeps her going. “I would rather spend my time helping people because I always believed that this world is not permanent, and I’m doing this for the end of my journey. Allah is my biggest inspiration in this.”

Radiating gratitude and love For Fatima, it’s about the sincerity of the heart and innate desire to radiate lives with love that she emphasizes on. “I feel amazing when I put all my efforts in gathering something for some family and finally give it to them. To see those smiles and that gratitude is something different. I sometimes take pictures of happy babies when I give them something, but that is only for memory, and I don’t believe in posting that on social media. They are in a trying situation, so how can we give them something and put that social media. I believe that we should help those in need but don’t exploit them for social media or to be popular,” she asserts. Another thing that keeps her going is the love and encouragement the selfless mother receives from her children. “My eldest one is an engineer. My kids always tell me, mom we are so proud of you, you are such a good person, and we can’t imagine how you are doing this in another country. That is enough to get me through a hard day when the going gets tough,” she says with a twinkle in her eyes. ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

R&R

CELEB TALK TRAVELS HEALTH EXPLORE

HOBBIES

DUBAI HOOKS THE HULK RACHIT GUPTA CHRONICLES THE FASCINATING STORY OF BODYBUILDER, POWERLIFTER AND SOCIAL MEDIA STAR LARRY WHEELS AND HIS JOURNEY TO MAKING DUBAI HIS DREAM HOME

CR E- ‫٭‬

RE S T &

ST & R

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e doesn’t turn green and grotesquely muscular at the drop of a hat, but he does display feats of Hulkulean strength when he’s at the gym and at fitness competitions. Powerlifting prodigy, freak of nature, future strong man, there are many epithets attached to Larry Wheels, but the ones that matter the most are social media influencer and self-made entrepreneur. He’s just 26 and he’s already broken a few world records in the sport of lifting, he’s a popular bodybuilder, a helluva arm wrestler and a real ‘John Connor’ style future contender in the strong-

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man fraternity. A multidimensional celebrity, there’s one quirk that’s less talked about Larry. He gave up the enticing proposition of making a home in Los Angeles and moved to Dubai in 2019. Why did he do it? Well, a few days ago, Larry put up a video on YouTube where he spoke at length about his decision to move to Dubai permanently. But, there’s more to his tryst with the Emirates. There’s a genuine reason for entrepreneurial freedom and social media convenience behind Larry’s choice of calling Dubai home. And that just proves the fact that, this city of opulence and opportunity is one of the best places in the world to be.

R&R / celeb talk IRREFUTABLE OFFER It was early 2019, when social media sensation and powerlifter, Larry Wheels was training in Iceland with strongman legend and ‘The Mountain’ from Game Of Thrones, Hafthor Bjornsson. Thor was basically initiating Larry into the world of strongman, while helping him ascend his abilities as a powerlifter. By his own admission in the YouTube video, Larry got an incredible offer from Don Idrees and Mark Boyd, co-owners of World’s Ultimate Strongman (WUS) competition in Dubai. Larry was offered a six-week incubation programme where his stay and expenses would be covered entirely as part of the WUS programme along with Dubai Sports Council, represented by Saeed Hareb. What did Larry think? “Dubai had always seemed like Narnia to me, in the sense that, everything in Dubai, from what I had heard before getting here, was the biggest and best.” No wonders then that the young muscleman made a beeline to Dubai, so much so that, when he left Reykjavik, he didn’t even go to his hometown LA, he just dashed for the Emirates. When Larry arrived the razzmatazz and allure of the beach city left him mesmerized. There was no going back, and he’s admitted that he has no intention of moving out from Dubai anymore, because quite frankly, it’s paradise on Earth. What has Dubai given Larry, that’s made him a

$ Larry with Eddie Hall

devoted resident? The answer to that question is a resounding, ‘everything’. Ever since he’s shifted base to UAE, Larry’s followers on Instagram have crossed 2.3 million. Not just that, his YouTube channel now has 1.6 million subscribers with aggregate views in excess of 435 million. When it comes to the world of social media and YouTube, those numbers are staggering. And the reason why Larry’s been able to sustain and grow his brand online is the fact that Dubai’s tourism allure and world class infrastructure (not just in terms of fitness) invites a lot of known faces. That’s why Larry’s been able to collaborate with other influencers/fitness names like Blessing Awodibu, Andrew Jacked, Morgan Aste, Ryan Crowley, Devon Larratt and more and create a steady flow of viral worthy content on both YouTube and Instagram.

“DUBAI HAD ALWAYS SEEMED LIKE NARNIA TO ME, IN THE SENSE THAT, EVERYTHING IN DUBAI, FROM WHAT I HAD HEARD BEFORE GETTING HERE, WAS THE BIGGEST AND BEST.”

BUSINESS AS USUAL

It’s great to earn money from your social media presence, but the older, more orthodox channels of business also hold value. In Larry’s case, he’s got a fitness brand called Personal Record aka PR. Under this brand, Larry sells fitness apparel, lifting gear, health and bodybuilding supplements and more. It’s an e-commerce based platform that also has a membership model, where subscribers get additional benefits of following curated fitness programs by Larry, that help them take their lifting and bodybuilding game to the next level. Larry’s case gives us a key reason why choosing Dubai as your base is the best decision for new entrepreneurs. And the reason why this city is such a lucrative place to do business is because it imposes no corporation taxes on its businesses. That’s a huge relief for upcoming enterprises and no wonder then, that a young and happening entrepreneur like Larry Wheels chooses Dubai as his preferred destination.

DIVERSIFICATION Before he landed in Dubai, Larry Wheels was gaining major momentum for his bromance with the likes of Hafthor Bjornsson, Eddie Hall and even some love from Arnold Schwarzenegger. But, ever since he started breaking personal records and creating daily content on YouTube, Larry’s found a new calling. He’s forged new friendships with arm wrestling legend Devon Larratt and the sport’s old guard Suhail Khan has also been one of Larry’s constant support systems in Dubai. So much so that under Larry’s passion and persistence, his gym has become home to a sort of

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" Larry Wheels, Saeed Hareb, Hafthor Bjornsson and Mark Boyd

weekend arm wrestling club. Larry invites anyone and everyone to show up at the gym and wrestle with him and his friends on an open table. The result is that every week, you get pros, amateurs and rank rookies cueing up and having their 15 seconds of arm-wrestling fame on Larry’s channel. Not just that, a new sporting rivalry has cropped up, too, fuelling the numbers on Larry’s channel and adding to his brand value. Larry has already had a showdown of sorts with 21-year-old Russian arm wrestling prodigy Schoolboy aka Aleksandr Beziazykov. So much so that there’s a major match coming up between the two which Larry’s fans are billing like it’s a Mayweather versus Pacquiao main event. In all fairness, this upcoming match to be held in May, is really a big deal because it is being organized by Core Sports as a pay-per-view event sanctioned by the World Armwrestling League. The match is quite appropriately titled, King Of The Table. So, the social media influencer, bodybuilder, powerlifter, personal trainer is about to turn a new leaf and be a professional arm wrestler, too. About 2 years ago, Larry had featured in a 39-second video where he decimates five hulking bodybuilders in a dash arm wrestling match, only in the end we catch him handing out money to the losers and thanking them for their cooperation. While this parody video was just casual entertainment, it actually ended up getting 133 million views. Destiny has a funny way of bringing success to those who try.

NOMADLAND So he’s earning the big bucks, living the good life and enjoying the limelight. But, there’s more pathos to Larry’s glittering Dubai dream. He originally hails from New York, where he spent a considerable amount of time as a young child in foster care. Larry had a tough time growing up in the city streets. He was bullied, picked on and even beaten up on occasions. Even when he moved to the island of St Martin, to reunite with his single mother, life gave him no free lunches.

He was tall, skinny and on most days he had no money to eat properly, let alone get a gym membership. But things changed for the tough boy on tougher streets. His mother helped him forge weights by casting them in cement on an old iron rod. And that was the crucible in which Larry forged his true metal. At first, he bulked up and found an instant liking for powerlifting. His rendezvous with the sport got him back to NY, where he waited tables and also took up a job as a gym instructor. But things turned when his big lifting deeds became popular on Instagram. It snowballed into stardom and eventually, Larry managed to break a couple of lifting world records while competing as a teenager. Next stop was the big, glamourous world of Los Angeles, where Larry found his true stardom and began his collaborations with the likes of Thor and Eddie Hall. The ultimate destination for this nomad was Dubai of course. And for a young man who has experienced such adversity, perseverance and resilience, the abundant offerings of Dubai, seem like the perfect icing on the proverbial cake. Not just that, the city has also given Larry the love of his life Nicole Drinkwater and as most romantic stories of human success go, this one seems like it’s tailor made for a happily ever after for the hulk who calls Dubai his home. ✪

EVER SINCE HE’S SHIFTED BASE TO UAE, LARRY’S FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM HAVE CROSSED 2.3 MILLION. NOT JUST THAT, HIS YOUTUBE CHANNEL NOW HAS 1.6 MILLION SUBSCRIBERS WITH AGGREGATE VIEWS IN EXCESS OF 435 MILLION

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R&R / health

the

fast track Read on to figure out the best fasting method for your figure

I Dt. Geetika Uppal Gold-medalist in Nutritional Science and the founder of ‘Foodmatters by Dt.Geetika Uppal’

nterestingly, whoever has attempted to lose weight and considered feeling instantly good about their body has heard experts and celebrities droll over intermittent fasting. Though the concept of fasting for religious purposes among distinct faiths has been around for centuries, the surging popularity of intermittent fasting in the contemporary world is owed to its ease and health benefits. However, for the majority who believe they understand the art of intermittent fasting, there is a wrong and right way of approaching it. Unlike most of the other diet plans that concentrate on what to eat, Intermittent Fasting is fixated on when to eat! In the course of intermittent fasting, one can only eat during a specific time. Fasting for a precise number of hours each day or eating just one meal a couple of days a week can help your body burn fat. Usually, one consumes three meals and two snacks per day during waking hours, and if there isn’t any activity, then the body is merely converting the food consumed into fats. On the contrary, intermittent fasting functions on prolonging the time between meals to burn calories from the last meal consumed, initiating the burning of fats in the body altogether. Although the idea of giving up food entirely for

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a few days to fit into your favorite pair of jeans or a wedding dress sounds like a quick fix, it is not safe and can have implications on your body in the long run. Therefore, always take consultation from a dietitian or nutritionist and your doctor before starting such a diet.

Different ways of practicing intermittent fasting 16/8 intermittent fasting plan

The 16/8 method of intermittent fasting is the most commonly used plan which encourages a closed window or fasting for 14 to 16 hours, and an open window for 8 hours a day. As an example, you can fast after dinner (8:00 PM till noon the next day) and consume 2 to 3 proper meals or four small meals in the 8 hours open window (12 noon to 8 pm). This method is highly recommended for women. However, people who feel hungry in the morning and have a habit of eating breakfast will find it hard to follow. You can drink water, lemon water (without sugar), black coffee, or green tea during fasting hours. Avoid dairy products like milk in tea or coffee during fasting hours. Also, adhere to a healthy diet during the open window; eating fruits and vegetables is encouraged to have a balanced meal.

5:2 intermittent fasting plan

The 5:2 intermittent fasting plan, also known as ‘fast diet’ involves eating normally for five days a week and fasting for the rest of the two days (restricting calorie intake to 500cal for women and 600cal for men). For instance, one can eat normally on all the days except Sunday and Wednesday. On the two fasting days, eat two meals of 250-300 calories each, along with zero-calorie liquids at other times.

Eat-Stop-Eat intermittent fasting plan

The Eat-Stop-Eat intermittent fasting plan involves complete fasting for 24 hours in between the week, which means that one will have to avoid eating from day one’s dinner to the next day’s dinner, or breakfast to breakfast, or lunch to lunch, according to personal preference. You can drink water, coffee, and other zero-calorie beverages during the fast but avoid having solid food. For other days, you can eat a regular diet which implies that no fasting is needed on these days. Evidently, this diet is hard to follow for some people, but one can start from 14 to 16 hours of fasting and gradually increase the duration.

Alternative day intermittent fasting plan

The alternative day intermittent fasting plan has shown proven results and is recommended for beginners. It involves eating normally every alternate day and fasting between those days, and consuming only 500 calories on the fasting days.

The warrior diet plan

The warrior diet plan is one of the most famous diet plans that has given remarkable results in the past. It includes consuming fruits and vegetables during the day and a proper meal between 4:005:00 pm. One can only consume water, coffee, or zero-calorie drinks after that.

Spontaneous meal skipping plan

The spontaneous meal skipping plan does not have a fixed regime, a person can skip any meal any time of the day, but the other meals have to be with the recommended calorie intake. This method is recommended for beginners, especially those who are not habitual to fasting and

can gradually increase the duration of fasting adapting to other plans.

Dos and Don’ts

» Do drink plenty of water throughout

» »

the day, especially during fasting hours to keep yourself hydrated. Do portion control and avoid any junk food. Do physical activities such as walking, running, and cardio to boost weight loss and increase muscle mass in the body. Don’t do intermittent fasting if you are – a child or a teenager (under age 18), a pregnant or breastfeeding woman, and if you have conditions such as diabetes or blood sugar or a history of eating disorders. Don’t ignore your body, listen to it. If your body is giving up, feeling dizzy or weak, or you’re on your monthly period – it is time to temporarily stop the diet and continue when you are feeling better. Don’t presume that the non-fasting time is open to all types of food. Eat healthily and don’t overeat. Don’t break the fast too quickly; first have something small with high nutrients such as fruits or smoothies.

Benefits of intermittent fasting

Improves Memory: Recent studies have shown that intermittent fasting has improved verbal memory in adults. Increases Stamina: Adults fasting for nearly 16 hours a day have shown to be more physically active than others as they’ve lost more fat and not muscle mass. Prevents Obesity: Intermittent fasting prevents obesity as eating hours are limited, and food consumed by an individual is used as energy rather than being stored as fat. Improves blood pressure and heart rate: Adults practicing intermittent fasting have shown improvement with blood pressure and heart rate conditions. Intermittent Fasting is a weight-loss tool with benefits that serves exciting results for many people. You will only know if this works well for you once have tried it, and with the many options that are available to choose from, not doing so will need some real good excuse. So which of the plans is it going to be for you to begin with? ✪

Recipe GREEN SMOOTHIE (Breakfast recommendation for fasting) --- Ingredients --Avocado

Coconut milk

1 cup

Blueberries

1 small handful

Spinach, kale, or chard 1 cup Chia seeds

1 tbsp

--- Me t hod - - • Add all ingredients into blender, blend, and enjoy! • Serves -2 Glasses

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R&R / hobbies

A Wordy Pursuit

Books are your passport to the universe. SREERAM VISHWANATH explores the many reasons we should keep turning those pages

hen journalist, editor, critic, translator, women’s rights advocate, the first American female war correspondent, and full-time book reviewer Margaret Fuller quoted, “Today a reader, tomorrow a leader,” she knew well the value black print carries in unlocking great potential in a man. All great leaders admit that reading is a habit, either innate or inculcated, to keep them informed and abreast with the happenings and knowledge crucial to them in the position they hold. If you are an avid reader yourself, then here is a thumbs-up for you; if not, it isn’t ever late to begin.

The book culture Agreed that the hassles of the modern world

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keeps us swamped and overloaded. We are either too busy to read or decide not to. And when we do have some time, it’s the television shows that are more alluring, and the easy-toaccess social media platforms also have to a great extent, led to dislodged priorities. The pursuit of reading is thoroughly and ignorantly misunderstood. Let’s take the example of students, some of whose parents consider reading to be a mere distraction from the more important educational curriculum. A note to such parents here – the benefits of reading may not be all-too-obvious. It may not give one an instant vocabulary improvement, help one learn English in 90 days, or make one the Wizard of Oz. However, the most beautiful things in life are subtle and take time to brew. Parts of society still label readers as ‘bookworms’ - those whose lives are encapsulated

in a book or people without the passion and drive to enjoy life’s bigger things. This shows the inertia that people have towards the reading community or towards people who follow a different plane of thought.

Words that matter Despite the plethora of inventions that we have with us today, books and literature continue to rule the roast, well, at least for some. Change is the only constant they say, and the world of literature has also transformed momentously, introducing and bringing together many great writers, editors, columnists, authors, and their transformative works. Without them, we would never have escaped the boundaries of a life that is often mundane. It is our biggest inspiration source and connects us to characters, stories, and minds unlike any other. It throws a vivid light into the human condition while allowing us to live and dream the impossible and truly evidences that life in itself is a most wondrous fairy-tale. All of us read, every day, in some form or the other. But is that enough, and will that do? Let’s dive further.

We read, anyway We all read at some point in our daily lives. We read when we scroll through social media, and we read the caption of the next Netflix watch or the advertisement on that billboard. But what we consume in these forms is hardly deliberate, as we are mostly mindless during the process. Moreover, many things we find on these platforms are not value-centric. Yes, it seems glittering, authentic to an extent but is also sinister in its effects (barring a few exceptions). “You are what you read. The information that you input into your mind informs your thinking patterns and influences your output in the form of the decisions you make, the work you produce, and the interactions you have” – Zat Rana. This doesn’t mean that we should back out of all social media platforms and disconnect our internet connections tomorrow morning. It’s not about the tool; it’s about the way we use it. And the internet certainly has plenty of good content to consume. Amazon reviews and ratings help a reader decipher the quality of the publication and the contents before deciding to finally make the purchase. Kindle, the e-reading platform unparalleled to any other, brings thousands of books at our disposal, all of which can be read with lesser investments and space. The digital medium, in a way, introduces us to people and characters whom we would have

rarely come across or read about.

Some books for you Here is the list of some books that I chanced upon. Some of these I found to be life-changing, while others provided a tinge of warmth and fun, which is very important in a world going dreary with panic messages: ✦ The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini – Some books are symphony towards the lips, while some are to the soul. The Kite Runner, a historical fiction inspired by the author’s childhood, undoubtedly falls among the latter. ✦ The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkein – Is one of the most enchanting fantasy reads of the English language. The tale of getting back the long-forgotten gold from the misty mountains cold. ✦ Rosy is My Relative, by Gerrald Durell – Say hello to one of the most brilliant writers on the planet. This fiction (though the author says it’s an almost true story) provides the reader with a sense of warmth and innocence that one can only associate with the villages. ✦ Just William, by Richmal Crompton – A children’s fictional literature, the book has plenty of humor, and it comes with the potential to grab the attention of kids and avid readers who wouldn’t mind taking a detour to their childhood. ✦ The Naked Indian Women, by Sangeetha Shinde Tee - This book chronicles the lives of the unheard daughters of India. You don’t need to be a feminist to read this non-fiction book; you just need to care for humanity. ✦ The God of Small Things, by Arundhati Roy – The writing is soothingly lyrical, and at the same time, caustic. The fiction is a treat to the senses, despite its unflinching brutality. Consider this quote - “They all crossed into forbidden territory. They all tampered with the laws that lay down who should be loved and how. And how much.”

Not just a classroom activity Reading is something that can begin with the classroom but must extend beyond its corridors. The best of habits are not habits anymore; it’s an essential way of life. And with reading, you have not only built on a great practice, but you have also sown the seeds of great leadership within yourself. The realization will come when in a situation, the words will spring back at you, showing a direction where they seemed to be a black hole. Reading matters, but what you read matters more! ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

R&R / st yle

THE

IMMORTAL

MERC RACHIT GUPTA DELVES INTO THE HISTORY OF MOTORING TO REDISCOVER THE LEGACY OF THE OLDEST LUXURY CAR BRAND IN THE WORLD

# 1998

Mercedes Benz CLK GTR

ercedes enthusiasts in the UAE have a lot to be excited about. The world’s first AMG store is set to open in Dubai in a few months. It’s going to be a one-of-a-kind store, one that combines the experiences of having a showroom, boutique, and a café all under one roof. This comes on the heels of Mercedes-Benz having launched an e-commerce platform earlier this year in UAE, where folks could book test drives and even purchase luxury cars online. While Mercedes is certainly reinventing the proverbial wheel in 2021, in truth, they’ve always had a habit of being pioneers. Go back 136 years, and you’d come face to face with their founder Karl Benz, the son of an engine driver. Born in Karlsruhe, Germany, in 1844, Benz was an apprentice in a local foundry. He started his own engineering workshop in Mannheim. Initially, he wasn’t successful, but he kept at it. At the time, the first models of internal combustion engines came about, and perhaps that’s where Benz got the idea of

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making a machine powered by an engine that could possibly replace horses and carriages. Believe it or not, that was the nascent beginning of what would be one of the most recognized brands in the world.

CREATIVE CONCOCTIONS OF INVENTION

Benz’s first designed tricycle (cars weren’t invented with four wheels) had stiff, big round wheels like a road cycle. The engine sat at the back of the bench, nestled between the two large back tyres. The engine itself was a bare-bones piece of engineering - a contraption of wheels, cogs, belts, crankshafts, and levers. To kick start it, one had to spin a horizontally attached wheel, whose motion used to start the combustion of the engine. The motor used to chug and rattle like an old piston-based engine, whirring and vibrating incessantly. Benz’s first prototype, fuelled by a composite petrol that had to be concocted at pharmacies, made a debut run around 1885, and in the next few months, the first version of the modern car was seen plying the streets of Mannheim. Just before Benz’s fuel-based car system, steam-powered rails and cars had already tried to make an impact, but failed. People were scared of self-powered vehicles because steam cars had been known to explode violently. Benz was apparently quite frustrated because the Mayor of Mannheim had banned Benz and his creations from the streets of their town. In fact, if any accidents would occur due to Benz’s automobiles, he would be held directly responsible, even if he wasn’t physically involved in the accident. But that didn’t stop Benz’s obsession, and he spent more and more time in his workshop perfecting his designs and machinations. The breakthrough moment arrived in 1888 when Benz’s wife and children decided to take matters into their own hands. While Benz was away, his family readied the workshop, prepared the car, and took it out for a drive. They drove from Mannheim to Pforzheim without any mishaps and glitches. The feat put Benz’s creation on the map. It was the birth of the modern automobile. Despite his limited resources and infrastructure, all of Benz’s earliest models ended up being marvels of engineering and design detail. They were made with utmost care and dedication to serve human beings and make their lives better with both practicality and comfort.

Carl Benz made the world’s first production car called the Velo in 1894, which also took part in the world’s first car race in France

! 1885

Benz patent motorwage

Gottlieb Daimler used early engines on a bicycle in 1885, a four-wheeled carriage in 1886 and even a boat in 1887

! 1886

Daimler Motor Carriage

DESTINY’S PARALLEL NARRATIVE

Simultaneously, as Benz was developing his threewheeled motorized carriage, an older German engineer named Gottlieb Daimler was also working on his version of the motorcar. By the mid-1890s, both Benz and Daimler had begun producing 100s of cars for the street. But it was entrepre-

Austrian businessman Emile Jellinek had Gottlieb Daimler name his production cars Mercedes, after his 11-year-old daughter. Mercedes is roughly translated as ‘Grace’ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

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" 1901

Mercedes 35

" 1930

Mercedes Benz SS

neur, politician, and socialite Emil Jellinek who changed the course of automobile production. He was a partner with Daimler in his company and a self-proclaimed fan of Daimler’s creations since 1897. In 1901, he commissioned a completely new, remodeled, redesigned car and asked Daimler to name it after his daughter, Mercedes. After World War I, the German economy was in tatters; virtually every industry in the country was about to shut down. Both Mercedes-Daimler and Benz had no option but to merge to survive, and that’s exactly what transpired in 1924. Just before their merger, one Dr. Ferdinand Porsche joined Daimler as Technical Director. Under his vision, the company started work on a supercharged, 6-cylinder sports car that were later produced and released as Mercedes’ SS and SSK models during the 1930s. That was where the amalgamation of several forces, synergies, and creative minds took place to create the singular direction of luxury and sport that has defined brand Mercedes for the past 90odd years. The SS (Sport Supercharger), SSK, and SSL models of Mercedes-Benz made them very popular with the upper echelons of society. During

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" 1955

Mercedes Gull Wing

Mercedes-Benz 300SL W198 “Gullwing” was the fastest production car of its day. It was the first production car with a direct fuel injection system and no carburetor that time, the chassis of these cars were custom made and would cost more than $7000. That was roughly about ten month’s wages for a middle-class family, so realistically the only people who could afford such luxury were the millionaires, industrialists, and the people on the silver screen.

ASCENSION TO THE WORLD STAGE

When Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933, he wanted to show off German engineering superiority to the rest of the world, so he offered insane subsidies to Mercedes-Benz to participate in Grand Prix races. Between 1934 and 1939, boosted by those SS engines, the Mercedes cars won every motorsport race in all of Europe. That put the spotlight on the brand, and along with its uber-luxurious image, Mercedes also became the pinnacle of powerful engineering. However, with the second World War and the devastation of Germany, the automobile industry and motorsport took a beating. German cars and manufacturers were banned, and Mercedes was limited to making cars for their own country. Seven years after the war, when the ban was lifted, Mercedes decided to make a grand return

Mercedes is a matter of losing your heart to an immortal machine. A day would come when you’d have passed on, but your Merc, will stand the true test of time ultimate choice in automobile luxury is another. Mercedes captured the imagination of the consumers with their infallible approach to quality. Back in the 60s, when their market boomed, Mercedes focussed on producing just a handful of models. It was always quality over quantity, a model which later benefitted Ferrari, too.

BUILDING A HERITAGE AND LEGACY

" 2020

Mercedes G Class

to the motorsport world after 15 years of absence. They brought in new technology like direct fuel injection into all eight cylinders, internal turbo breaks, a new spring-based axel with a lower pivot to their race cars, and won all the races all over again, like they’d never left. That was the beginning of Mercedes’ identity of being the most recognizable and most reputed automobile brand in Europe, if not the entire world. From the mid-50s onwards, up until today, Mercedes cars are made for the ultimate experience. And this legacy comes from a legendary perception of luxury and class associated with the brand Mercedes. Winning races is one thing, and being the

Over the years, a Mercedes isn’t just a fancy car you buy with a lot of money. It’s more than just a status symbol. They say half of the world’s wealth is held by 1 percent of its population; for the remaining 99 percent, owning a Mercedes is a matter of fulfilling a life-long dream. While the upper-middle class and the elite buy the AMGs and the McClarens, the middle-class dreams of owning the E or C class, or even the hatchback coupes someday. The way this luxury brand attained its image was through some timeless models. The 1955 300 SL Gull-Wing, for example, had the insane pop-up (gull wing) doors way before they became the fad with DeLoreans, Paganis, and Teslas. Not just that, it was one of the first cars to come with hybrid luggage space options, since its ergonomic boot could only house the car’s Stepney. Another iconic offering from the Germans was the Mercedes-Benz 600 saloon from 1962. The modern, electronic SUVs and sedans offer multi-directional seat adjustments, but the 600 used to offer motorized seats and a climate control system, almost 60 years ago. Such is the 600 legacy that Queen Elizabeth’s visits to Germany still invite a vintage Mercedes 600 roll out. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of driving a 500E from the 90s or an SLS AMG from the 2000s, or the robust modern G-Class hulks, you know that a Mercedes isn’t just about class, performance, and luxury. A Mercedes is a matter of losing your heart to an immortal machine. A day would come when you’d have passed on, but your pioneering Merc will still be there, standing the true test of time. ✪ 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

R&R / life’s lit tle lessons

Humans of Planet Earth

uantum mechanics and philosophy tell us the spaces between us don’t really exist. Life tells us exactly the same thing… maybe it’s time we started listening. We generally learn lessons as an afterthought. While the lesson is being taught, we aren’t really aware that life is imparting some valuable information to us. We just go along for the ride as we mostly don’t have much of a choice. It’s only later that the lesson hits home in a blaze of enlightenment, or it dawns on us gradually, like gentle rainfall that coaxes flowers to grow out of stone. One of the things I’ve understood from my twenty-five years of globetrotting is that we

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humans, regardless of our cultural baggage, bank balances, passport power, personal talent, or whatever ideology was bequeathed to us at birth... we are all the same. We are all in the same boat. It’s a boat that carries billions of living creatures and travels at roughly 220 kms per second to an unknown destination, and only the universe gets to decide when we disembark. Our human experience of this cosmic Noah’s Ark is infinitesimally small and insignificant. Yet, we waste it on petty rivalry, defending artificial boundaries, and serving our own egos rather than making the journey a pleasant experience for our fellow travellers. It was in the UAE that I was given the first chapter of this valuable learning; that looking

past differences and looking for commonalities with my fellow humans was one of the greatest experiences of this travel package called life that I had been given. I landed in Dubai some two-odd decades ago, still steeped in my small-town India ways, still conditioned by the legacy of my misspent army brat youth and my Hollywood imaginings of what life outside India would be like. The towering buildings, the smooth cabs, the shopping malls, the sparkling waters of the Arabian Sea, the glitter of the city line at night… the parched traveller that had always existed in me soaked it all in. I drank as deeply as I could from the cup of life. I ended up PGing with a Pakistani family in Sharjah, something I was a little hesitant to do given the history between their nation and mine, and thus began one of my greatest life lessons. They were a family of five. A father who I called Bhaiya (elder brother), a mother I called Didi (elder sister), and three gorgeous girls between the ages of 4 and 8 that all called me Maasi (aunt). I payed them rent for only a room but yet I got fed - a lot. The little girls would clamour around me the evenings I was home and share their chocolates with me. The littlest one figured out that running her fingers through my hair relaxed me and took to combing my hair for hours on end whenever an opportunity presented. Didi would wake up at midnight if she heard me come in late and warm up food and sit with me to make sure I had eaten one proper meal in the day. Bhaiya was always respectful and kind, asking after my work and how I was faring, and there was zero judgement or any sense of the fierce political divide between our nations. They cared for me with a gentleness and affection that has stayed with me despite the inexorable march of time. But there I was, this eager beaver traveller, and I stayed out a lot… more than I should have. I took this family so for granted and spent all my time exploring, working, grabbing furiously at whatever life threw my way, ignoring the little family I was living with. On Fridays, I walked miles around Sharjah, entranced by the city and its beautiful lake. I spent almost every evening mesmerised by the fountains and the lights and shops. And sadly, I didn’t care enough to go back early to spend time with three little Pakistani cherubs who loved the stories I told them. I snuck in at odd hours of night, hoping they had gone to sleep, and I stupidly chased far lesser things rather than getting to know the beautiful humans that I was lucky enough to share space with. I eventually left and found my own place. And I lost touch with the members of my first home in the UAE. And the lessons I learned from them, that I picked up subconsciously, registered on me only much later. Much, much later. Today whenever there is news about trouble between our two countries, I think of the faces of those three little girls. Whenever I feel like judging another human for what I believe is an unacceptable cultural foible, I remember Didi’s sleepy face watching patiently as I ate the food she had warmed for me at midnight. Recently,

“The first day or so we all pointed to our countries. On the third or fourth day, we were pointing to our continents. By the fifth day, we were only aware of one Earth.” Sultan Bin Salman al-Saud, a former Royal Saudi Air Force pilot and a member of the Saudi royal family

when an Indian fighter jet was captured across the border, I hoped it was another Bhaiya who was in charge of taking care of one of my own. Today every time the glitz and glamour of the world overwhelms me, I think of that lovely family and try to devote time to the little things, and this always brings me joy. If my few decades of travel have taught me anything, it is this. We, all of us, you, I, the greatest and least of us… we are the same. We want the same things. We are inspired by art and music, we want our children to thrive, we want our human rights honoured, we want to live and die with dignity, surrounded by those we love most. We want to laugh and want to be cared for, and we want to be able to make a difference. We are united by the oneness of our living journey, and we owe it to each other to see the similarities rather than the differences. You see, I’m sure if we all went to space and looked down at our blue and green planet, none of us would be able to see the borders that divide us so deeply. We are all humans travelling to the same place. And if we’re lucky, we get to make the journey a little more pleasant for our travelling companions. It is really all that is asked of us at the end of the day. Sultan Bin Salman al-Saud, a former Royal Saudi Air Force pilot and a member of the Saudi royal family, was a payload specialist aboard the American STS-51-G. I think he summed up in a few lines the point I am trying to make - “The first day or so we all pointed to our countries. On the third or fourth day, we were pointing to our continents. By the fifth day, we were only aware of one Earth.” ✪ Sangeetha Shinde Tee is an author of four books, editor of 3 international magazines, an acclaimed healer, and reluctant entrepreneur. Also an unconventional traveler, rebellious truth seeker, and inveterate animal rescuer, she is working on her fifth book - a collection of ghost stories from around the world. Find out more about her life, books, and work at www.sangeethashindetee.com 2 0 2 1 — M AY — ASPIRE

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the

Must-Go

Cuppa Joe What do cars, barbers and board games have in common? Misbaah Mansuri discovers the answer is a unique coffee experience

No wonder they say that the UAE does unique like none else! Boasting a smorgasbord of culinary delights more than ever, the region is increasingly sidestepping cliches of pancakes and waffles and embracing some nouveau novelties by redefining the concept of cafes. Futuristic, fun, and funkyfrom blending the world of games with coffee and culinary to combining a barbershop with a cafe, welcome to this world of themed cafes that are now attracting a greater audience. The whole scene now appears to be a lot more colorful and appealing to the niche fancies of crowds who may not have seen going out as a desirable option earlier. Listing out three cafes in the region that are tapping into unique themes as they dish out distinct experiences that are worth a ‘nosh’.

DRVN COFFEE

art classic car exhibition, part coffee store and the server of some authentic Neapolitan Pizza, this one combines the love for cars, art, and coffees rather beautifully. The brainchild of Emirati national Rashed and Ukrainian expat Dmitriy, DRVN Coffee Abu Dhabi offers all these unique concepts under one roof. The two-story space features a unique exhibition of rare and exclusive classic cars. Moreover, the team here roasts their own beans in-house and

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sources the finest coffee from the best farms across the globe, including Ethiopia, Panama, Costa Rica, and Brazil. There is also a variety of alternative nondairy milk available, including Japanese Hokkaido milk, Oatly, almond, and coconut. Located in Abu Dhabi between luxury car dealer showrooms, DRVN’s name is an ode to the founder’s love of cars. While food options run the gamut from shakshouka to acai

Photograph: Paddy McGrath, Speed Hunters

bowls, the authentic Neapolitan Pizza is the real deal here. On offer is also an exceptional allday breakfast and dessert menu. Furthermore, a new branch also has just opened on Hudayriyat. Perfect for spending an evening sipping specialty coffee from the in-house roastery as you sit amongst the prized vintage Mercedes displayed in giant glass boxes or above on the mezzanine level, this one won’t cease to fascinate car and coffee enthusiasts.

LOCAL UAE

n independent lifestyle concept combining a specialty cafe comprising highly trained baristas with a bespoke men’s barbershop and an exclusive sneaker and streetwear consignment store, this cafe in Abu-Dhabi offers a complete head-to-store service. The three concepts exude their own distinctive style and are housed under one roof rather than separate distinctive stores. Started by three Emirati and British creatives who share a passion for style and culture, the interiors of the space are kept minimal with urban vibes, neon lights, and cool furnishings spread into three distinct offerings. The men’s grooming on offer at the barbershop includes hair cuts, beard cuts and shaves, plus kid’s hair cuts. A complimentary coffee is offered with every service. The cafe carries a

rotating array of exclusive and hard-to-find products, including footwear, ready to wear and accessories from the finest brands like Adidas, Nike, Yeezy, Supreme, etc. The cafe is known to provide a new retail experience in the capital as well as service for customers who currently have to ship goods from abroad as they cannot source them here in the UAE. As the name suggests, there is a big focus on supporting local businesses. In terms of coffee, the space prides itself on alternating regional and international roasters to provide the customers with the freshest, best coffee in season. Food-wise, there is a limited offering of desserts, sweet treats and baked goods, alongside ready-prepared sandwiches and wraps. With such distinct experiences under one roof, it doesn’t get better than this!

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R&R / explore

THE SIX BOARD GAME CAFE

ho wouldn’t love an evening of brews, board games, and great grub? Offering a unique opportunity to explore an impressive library of over 1000 board games, The Six Board Game Cafe at the boulevard in Downtown Dubai combines the concept of board games, coffee, and good food with aplomb. The concept is simple: you can grab any game you like or have one of the team gurus recommend one. The interiors are complete with super

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high ceilings, natural light, and cozy corners. The castle mural, bold colors, and olive tree lend this place a fairytale-esque vibe. From decorating tiles in Azul to surviving the undead apocalypse in Zombicide, the cafe’s constantly curated and updated library of games is sure to keep you engrossed. On the food side, there are delish gravity sliders, fully loaded mac and cheese, Cheetos and chips, cheesy fries, and Tiger roll sushi, a delicious combination of prawn tempura, cream cheese

avocado, mango cucumber, and crab sticks with spicy mayo that hit the right spot. You can also flag down an in-house gamer who will assist you in finding the perfect games, set it all up for you and explain the rule from A to Z. If you are looking for something new which is not available, the team ensures that it manages to make it available during the patron’s next visit. Undoubtedly, the top-notch coffee and munchies perfectly cater to the hungry gamers on the prowl. ✪

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