Hamed Eslamian is the founder of Black And Blanc Fleur, a UAE online delivery service for premium flowers, candles and sweets .
Born in the Middle East and living in Dubai since childhood in 2004, he began his career with his family's petrochemical trading company.
Mr Eslamian, who is 28 and owns a home in Dubai’s Jumeirah Golf Estates, holds an entrepreneurial business certificate from Harvard Business School.
He launched his e-commerce platform in 2017.
Were you brought up around money?
My dad has been an entrepreneur all his life, creating multiple businesses around the world. I was raised in a wealthy family. I had friends who had everything they wanted, but my father never gave us that feeling that we had everything. From a young age, he made us work for whatever we wanted.
I used to go to his office in summer, to do simple tasks. I wanted a PlayStation PS1, so that was my payment at the end of summer. This taught me that things were not going to come easy. I didn’t appreciate it at that point, but I do now.
What was your first salary?
After university, I applied to different companies and got a couple of offers but, due to some visa problems, I could not start working. So, I ended up coming to the family business against my wishes seven years ago. I don’t like to put myself in a comfort zone.
My father paid me the exact amount I was offered, Dh12,000. I was initially paid lower than other people. I was considered an entry-level employee in the purchasing department. I didn’t feel like I was being treated differently. I liked that.
You should always dedicate a percentage to high risk [assets] but, for the other 90 per cent, it is better to go with safer options that have long-term returns
Hamed Eslamian,
founder, Black And Blanc Fleur
Why launch a flower delivery company?
I was not going to be the final decision-maker (in the family business). I wanted to make sure my ideas and perspective were applied 100 per cent, so looked for an opportunity to start something.
I always enjoyed the online part of business, offering products and services from a B2C (business to consumer) perspective. After a couple of years, when I had savings, I saw potential in selling flowers. A flower business could be the same all around the world; what makes the difference is the marketing you put into it.
We started our own marketing company and IT infrastructure so that, no matter what products you put into it, it could turn into an online business. Black And Blanc was a starting point.
How did you feel committing your savings?
You are counting every cent you are spending and making sure everything is being put into the business properly. Sometimes you have to make sure you are working harder, but when you have something of your own in the business, the amount of effort, time and thought you put in is different than when you bring an investor from outside. If it succeeds, you succeed.
Are you a saver or a spender?
In general, I’m a saver but I can be a very big spender. When it comes to technology, I don’t really have much control over myself and make sure I have the latest products for work.
I make sure that money I’ve earned is not going to waste. I rarely spend on things I consider unnecessary, but never sacrifice quality of life for saving. At this point, I have the quality of life I’m expecting for myself to perform at the highest level.
One thing I do to avoid burnout, no matter how busy my schedule, is go to the gym from six to eight every morning. Travelling, whenever I get a chance, is also my escape.
How do you grow your cash?
I have investments in properties in Dubai and elsewhere in the Middle East. I made my first investment in cryptocurrency before the Covid-19 pandemic – before it was so hot. I’m trying to put eggs in different baskets.
You should always dedicate a percentage to high risk [assets] but for the other 90 per cent, it is better to go with safer options that have long-term returns. I’ve seen people put 100 per cent of their investments into cryptocurrencies.
What investment are you most proud of?
A townhouse in Brooklyn, New York. The price has risen rapidly. When I bought it in 2018, Brooklyn was not considered an interesting investment place, but now it is one of the fastest-growing communities. I was there with a friend who suggested this, looked at the numbers and we bought it, did a renovation and it’s rented out.
Making that decision, at that point in life, was very important. It was risky, but turned out to be a good investment.
Did it increase your risk appetite?
It’s had a better result than expected, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to get lucky with future decisions. Sometimes, the market goes in a way you don’t expect – it doesn’t mean you are lucky or unlucky. I’m still using the same logic I did at that time to make new decisions. Having success in that investment is not going to increase or reduce risk in my current decisions.
How do you view money?
I consider it a tool that can facilitate things that improve life. I never work for money. I’m always trying to do the kind of work that makes me happy in the best manner I can.
At the end of the day, I don’t think money is the prize for what you are doing. Instead, it is the experience you gain from that work (that is important). Money is an indication of how successful that experience has been. It’s a measure; it’s never been the final goal for me.
Are you wise with money?
Over the long term, I make sure I’m putting money into areas that could help me and my business to grow. I try not to be reactive when it comes to spending, never do emotional purchases or make irrational investments. I measure every aspect before taking action when it comes to expenditure.
Do you spend on luxuries?
You should call something luxury when maybe it is a bit out of your budget. If I travel five times a month, maybe that’s a luxury, but when it’s necessary for me to have in my life to make sure I’m performing at my best … luxury and necessity really depend on where you are in life. Good food … usually, I’m very careful in terms of what I’m putting in my body. Something luxury for you could be a necessity for me.
What impact has the pandemic had on your business?
There were not that many businesses selling flowers online and our figures increased maybe 300 per cent over a week. People could not see each other, so by sending flowers they were sending a message.
The pandemic taught us all a lesson: no matter how smoothly everything is running, it could stop in an eye blink.
Do you think about retirement?
Never, but I’ve been thinking about a point in life where I don’t need to work anymore. This was my main aim, to make sure I have businesses that are self-sufficient so that I have the option to step back. I don’t see myself not working, but my goal is to make the businesses reach a point [where] they don’t require me anymore.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Miss Granny
Director: Joyce Bernal
Starring: Sarah Geronimo, James Reid, Xian Lim, Nova Villa
3/5
(Tagalog with Eng/Ar subtitles)
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
Four%20scenarios%20for%20Ukraine%20war
%3Cp%3E1.%20Protracted%20but%20less%20intense%20war%20(60%25%20likelihood)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E2.%20Negotiated%20end%20to%20the%20conflict%20(30%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E3.%20Russia%20seizes%20more%20territory%20(20%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E4.%20Ukraine%20pushes%20Russia%20back%20(10%25)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EForecast%20by%20Economist%20Intelligence%20Unit%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 3 (Sterling 46', De Bruyne 65', Gundogan 70')
Aston Villa 0
Red card: Fernandinho (Manchester City)
Man of the Match: Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
The%20pillars%20of%20the%20Dubai%20Metaverse%20Strategy
%3Cp%3EEncourage%20innovation%20in%20the%20metaverse%20field%20and%20boost%20economic%20contribution%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20outstanding%20talents%20through%20education%20and%20training%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20applications%20and%20the%20way%20they%20are%20used%20in%20Dubai's%20government%20institutions%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAdopt%2C%20expand%20and%20promote%20secure%20platforms%20globally%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20the%20infrastructure%20and%20regulations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Mane 51', Salah 53'
Chelsea 0
Man of the Match: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
