Entrepreneur Yara Ghouth emphasizes the importance of embracing failure, reflecting on her journey in establishing Naseej Market and charting the path forward. Ghouth, a Saudi entrepreneur, embarked on her entrepreneurial odyssey at the age of 13 with a modest photography studio bearing her name, laying the foundation for her remarkable trajectory. From her upbringing in Jeddah, her ventures have propelled her to engagements with global leaders at the prestigious Davos World Economic Forum.
At just 25 years old, Ghouth stands as the visionary behind Naseej Market, a pioneering e-commerce platform in Saudi Arabia. Naseej Market serves as a conduit for independent artisans, offering them a platform to showcase and sell their creations to consumers through an online marketplace.
Inspired by the success of American e-commerce behemoth Etsy, Naseej Market strives to cultivate a vibrant community of entrepreneurs. Ghouth envisions Naseej Market as the premier destination for empowering and supporting local artists, craftsmen, and designers across the Arab world. In an interview with Al Arabiya English, she articulated, “Our vision is to be the number one platform to empower, encourage and enable all local artists, makers and designers in the Arab world.” Ghouth recognizes the untapped potential of the craft market in the Arab region and seeks to address this gap.
Echoing Etsy’s ethos, Ghouth emphasizes the centrality of community-building in Naseej Market’s mission. She envisions an artisan ecosystem encompassing not only a marketplace but also a thriving community and an academy aimed at nurturing creators and guiding them in building their businesses. Ghouth’s approach underscores the transformative power of community-driven platforms in fostering entrepreneurship and driving economic growth.
Fostering Connection
Ghouth further emphasized, “Within this market, numerous small artisanal business owners exhibit immense creativity, yet may lack the necessary business acumen or technological expertise. We aspire to serve as the bridge that facilitates both the cultivation of their crafts and the monetization of their talents.”
Innately creative, Ghouth pursued studies in architecture at the University of Nottingham and concurrently pursued a full-time career as an architect in Jeddah while laying the groundwork for Naseej Market, which she launched in 2020. Despite her demanding schedule, Ghouth dedicated her free time to nurturing her entrepreneurial endeavor from its inception. However, the roots of her entrepreneurial spirit were planted long before.
“I’ve always had a penchant for creating—I recall my childhood days spent fashioning objects out of shoeboxes,” Ghouth reminisces with a smile. “This inclination evolved into constructing tangible structures through architecture, and now, I find myself constructing applications and fostering communities.”
Furthermore, Ghouth noted that entrepreneurship runs in her family, underscoring a lineage of entrepreneurial fervor and innovation.
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