On Friday, 17th January 2014, the University of Strathclyde along with its Abu Dhabi Alumni Association launched the first Abu Dhabi event to support Strathclyde affiliated entrepreneurs in the UAE as part of the 'Strathclyde 100' series.

Strathclyde 100 events feature a platform for University of Strathclyde student and alumni entrepreneurs to pitch the concepts and needs of their innovative young enterprises or well-developed business ideas to a supportive and business-savvy audience with a shared interest in seeing entrepreneurial Strathclyders succeed. The audience serves as a support network at Strathclyde 100 events, and the type of help received can range from constructive advice or new business relationships to investments or formal partnerships.

The Strathclyde 100 concept was launched in Glasgow in 2003, and has been running successfully in the UK ever since. Following on the heels of last year's Strathclyde 100 UAE launch in Dubai, this past weekend's event marked the second Strathclyde 100 in the UAE, and was the first such event in Abu Dhabi. Held at the Sofitel Abu Dhabi Corniche, the Strathclyde 100 Abu Dhabi was attended by entrepreneurial Strathclyde graduates, local MBA students, and businesspeople from the wider community.

Friday's event began with Opening Remarks by the Executive Dean of Strathclyde Business School, Professor Susan Hart. Her introduction celebrated the Strathclyde 100 series and contextualized its international expansion within the multifaceted approach to fostering entrepreneurship that recently earned Strathclyde the 2013/2014 Times Higher Education UK award of 'Entrepreneurial University of the Year'.

Next on the agenda was a keynote speech by Nader Atout, a Strathclyde MBA alumnus, entrepreneur, and Executive Director of Business Development at twofour54. Reflecting on his own entrepreneurial journey as well as the journeys of companies he has mentored, Nader shared insights about how to avoid some of the common yet easily overlooked dimensions of startup failure. His powerful address also encouraged the audience that one is never too old to begin a new entrepreneurial endeavor.

The keynote was followed by the first pitch of the night, presented virtually by Jonathan Macneal of Glasgow-based University of Strathclyde spinout Insignia Technologies Ltd. With patented smart pigments and inks that change colours when exposed to a variety of gases and UV lights, Insignia is initially focusing on applications of its sensing technologies in the intelligent food packaging industry to help reduce food wastage by giving consumers and retailers a visual scientifically based indication of freshness and safety. The company is seeking agents, partners and distributors with regional expertise as they pursue expansion of the technologies into new geographical markets.

The next pitch was delivered by Strathclyde MBA alumnus Mohammed Johmani, a well-known serial entrepreneur whose new ventures incubator Johmani Ventures consists of component businesses O2 Network, the initial creative advertising agency and parent business; Next Public Relations, an independent boutique PR agency; Belong Interactive, a digital agency; Mobibus, the region's first multilingual app maker; and Cary!, the world's first mobile app to buy and sell cars. Mohammed presented candidly about his entrepreneurial experiences, focusing the presentation on novel social mobile auto app Cary! and plans for further expansion of the app into new markets. As Johmani Ventures becomes an increasingly global player, Mohammed is seeking to attract further network contacts with guidance and/or private investment. 

The pitches concluded with a presentation by Strathclyde MBA student Manal Hamid, Partner & COO of Moms Guide Abu Dhabi, a nonprofit social enterprise whose mission is to connect mothers and their families in the city of Abu Dhabi. Moms Guide Abu Dhabi operates in the cloud and on the ground, with www.momsguideAD.com providing information about what is happening in the city as well as a space for mother-led projects (Moms Lead) and a community of blogging moms (Moms Talk). The multicultural site and group is growing fast and looking for mentorship in fine tuning the business plan in preparation for next stages of the organization's development.

Strathclyde MBA alumnus and UAE Alumni Committee member Aamir Khan (Projects Manager at Tectronics WLL) served as Chair of the Strathclyde 100 Abu Dhabi event, providing smooth segues throughout the evening and facilitating Q&A sessions after each pitch.

For help in contacting any of the Strathclyde 100 Abu Dhabi presenters directly, or to find out more about the event series (www.strath.ac.uk/s100/) or Strathclyde Business School UAE (www.strath.ae), please contact the school's UAE PR Manager at deborah.blinder@strath.ac.uk.

About Strathclyde UAE: 
Winner of the Times Higher Education UK 'Entrepreneurial University of the Year' award 2013-2014, the University of Strathclyde is one of only 1% of institutions in the world to hold all three major international accreditations (AMBA, AACSB, and EQUIS) for its MBA programme, which is also accredited by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research. In the 2013 Financial Times Global MBA rankings, Strathclyde Business School ranked in the top 100 MBA programmes in the world. In the 2013 Economist Which Executive MBA rankings, Strathclyde Business School ranked 28th best worldwide. The University of Strathclyde was established in 1796 as 'the place of useful learning' and this remains its mission today: to combine academic excellence with social and economic relevance. The university is committed to the advancement of society through the pursuit of excellence in research, education and knowledge exchange, and through creative engagement with partner organizations at local, national and international levels. With a UAE presence that was established in 1995, Strathclyde Business School offers the part-time executive MBA programme via state-of-the-art campuses in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi. For more information, please log on to www.strath.ae.

Media Contact:
Deborah Blinder
Mobile: +971 50 661 7519
deborah.blinder@strath.ac.uk

© Press Release 2014