Etisalat opens one-stop shop for setting up small businesses

13/02/2018 05:48 AST

Etisalat has teamed up with 11 partners to offer a one-stop shop - Hello Business Hub - for setting up a small and medium business or a start-up in the UAE.

"Any new business undergoes challenges, and that is why we are here to help ease the process for SMBs as well as start-ups in the UAE by getting their businesses off the ground. SMBs are contributing 60 per cent to the UAE's GDP. The new hub caters to the needs of SMBs by offering comprehensively integrated propositions," said Esam Mahmoud, acting senior vice-president for small and medium business at Etisalat.

It will aid in all the procedures ranging from company set-up to company registration, banking to insurance and VAT, office leasing to furniture, combined with the latest telecom products and services from Etisalat.

"We believe that removing complexities and providing the best-in-value offerings all under one roof is another way the hub can help your business grow in the UAE. Our aim is to simplify and make flexible the procedures for SMBs. Right now, all the entities to provide services such as licences, visas, registration, etc are separated and not in one place. With this one-stop shop, a customer doesn't need to go anywhere else," he said. Mahmoud said that Etisalat serves more than 300,000 SMBs in the country and this hub will cover the entire UAE.

The specialised business hub located at One JLT, Jumeirah Lake Towers, include Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) as well as Virtuzone, Oman Insurance, National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah, Sharaf DG, Amer for Government services, Skylines Tax Consultancy, CBRE, Advanced Business Concept (ABC), The Ambassador, Leader Consulting, in addition to Etisalat solutions and Digital Marketing services for SMBs.

He said that DMCC will offer licences for freezone customers and Virtuzone for mainland customers.

Industry reports estimate that more than 100,000 new businesses will set up shop in the UAE over the next three years. Moreover, he said that this shop is not only for new businesses but also for expanding operations in the UAE.

Based on the success of this hub, he said that a similar hub will be opened in Abu Dhabi and mini-hubs in Dubai as well as in the northern emirates. "We are seeing an increase in start-ups in the UAE and we do licenses for 150 start-ups per month. We are present in Dubai for 10 years and helped 14,000 companies to set up bases here. The hub will definitely ease the process for consumers," said John D, Hanafin, CEO of Virtuzone.

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