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This isn’t just any blog post - it’s our 5th birthday blog post. A lot’s changed since we last blew out
Our Arabic PR Executive and Game-changer, Maryam, indulges in life’s little pleasures. From turning up the radio on her drive
Rosa is the founder of SOCIATE, where she also leads the PR department.
Moving to Dubai in 2013 with the vision of making it in the big city, she was determined to not let bumps in the road set her off track. Putting her international PR and marketing experience into motion, she launched SOCIATE. Starting off with two people at a coffee shop, the agency has evolved into a eight-person team with its own HQ in JLT.
With a passion for female empowerment and public relations in the Middle East, Rosa is determined to lead by example. She hosts intimate workshops at the office and gives insightful talks about pressing industry topics.
With a BA in Fashion Management and Marketing, Rosa has worked within a broad spectrum of industries. Prior to launching SOCIATE - she worked in modeling, promotions, product management, marketing, and public relations. Brands she has previously worked with include Mulberry, River Island, Grazia, Tribeca, W Dubai - The Palm, Restaurant Secrets, and Al Noor Training Centre for Persons with Disabilities.
In her limited spare time, Rosa juggles fitness pursuits with raising her infant daughter – Ayda Grace. Amidst the diaper changing sessions and power smoothies, Rosa squeezes in intimate dinners with her husband. She is on a constant pursuit to seize the day, both personally and professionally. Always up for a productive chat over coffee, no conversation is too small for Rosa!
Sabrina is passionate about all things digital. With over a decade’s experience in the music and entertainment industry, Sabrina brings her specialist skills in mobile and digital marketing to SOCIATE.
Having worked both agency and client side, Sabrina understands the demands of planning, executing and delivering success for brands. Her career has seen her working for Universal Music Group, Sony Music, and Telstar Records. Sabrina has enjoyed great success in rolling out strategic marketing partnerships with brands across the automotive and mobile industries.
Passionate about homegrown startups, Sabrina actively works with and supports budding brands in Dubai. Making personal and professional connections that survive the test of time is a priority.
Marketing maven and digital enthusiast, there’s little Sabrina loves more than devouring a book or a juicy Netflix series in her downtime. She is also an active supporter of the A21 campaign, an NGO that tirelessly strives to fight human trafficking, exploitation, and slave labor. Jamie Oliver’s healthy eating campaign is also a cause she keeps close to her heart and dinner table.
Tazeen brings international PR experience to SOCIATE's table. Having worked in San Francisco, Dallas, and now Dubai - her portfolio boasts notable brands.
Working on diverse accounts - she has worked with technology and fashion brands to shopping malls and interior design firms. Basking in the spotlight, her most notable clients have been Stradivarius, Arabian Center, Medecins Sans Frontieres aka Doctors Without Borders, women’secret, Bounce, Selva, and Smartworld.
At SOCIATE, she liberally flexes her knowledge and skills.
Starting off as a PR Executive and Storyscaper, her efforts were recognized with a promotion to Senior PR Executive within 1.5 years of joining the company. In this time, she has successfully executed multiple PR projects from start to finish and lead or managed various PR accounts.
Her ultimate goal is to achieve a summit in her career, and to change the perception of women with a Muslim-Pakistani background.
What keeps Tazeen going every day are her team’s positive vibes and the obligatory caffeine hit, of course. When she’s not typing away at her computer, she decompresses with kickboxing and swimming.
Born in the UK and raised in the US, the UAE is the latest pin in Reena’s map.
After completing her Bachelors in Marketing in England, an exciting new opportunity saw Reena hit the skies and land in Abu Dhabi.
Reena spent her first three years in the UAE working with Glamour Hair Salons, one of the capital city’s leading hair and beauty salons.
Looking to try agency life on for size, Reena joined SOCIATE. Working with the company’s Marketing Director, Sabrina Moutarde, and her dynamic team of marketeers, Reena co-handles SOCIATE’s social media and marketing accounts.
With a goal to put a creative and compelling spin on client concepts, Reena plays a critical role with client marketing and social media campaigns.
When she isn’t being a general marketing badass at the office, Reena kicks back in the kitchen. She’s also an avid social bunny with a blazing passion for all things social media.
Writing has always been what makes her tick, so a career of turning ideas into words was a no-brainer. Before making her foray into the world of public relations, Nichole was an independent journalist and copywriter.
A typical day at Nichole’s desk involves pitching stories to the media, compiling content calendars, and chalking up engaging copy.
She has written extensively about food, fashion, the UAE’s budding arts and culture scenes, business, education, real estate, and lifestyle. As SOCIATE’s resident gastronome, she also co-handles its restaurant PR accounts.
Nichole’s portfolio boasts brands like SoBe and Wet Deck at W Dubai - The Palm, Taikun, Distillery, The Loft at Dubai Opera, and Tribeca.
When she isn't smashing her keyboard - Nichole is brewing yet another pot of coffee, urban gardening, country hopping, and keeping up with F&B trends.
Raised in Saudi Arabia, Maryam relocated to the UAE in 2008.
After having earned her bachelor’s degree in International Business from Skyline University and a PR diploma from Alison Galeway in Ireland, she kickstarted a budding career in Marketing and PR.
Maryam’s portfolio boasts names like Magic Trading, Fam Properties, Aziza Communications and Yugen Marketing. Her experience has helped her develop a diverse skill set; having worked with notable clients including AMATO, Ollia Tzarina, Tips and Toes, Banyan Tree Hotels, River Island, Alina Anwar Couture and several more.
Passionate about networking and forming genuine connections with her industry peers, her mission to scale the local PR ladder gets her out of bed in the morning. Influential blogger and entrepreneur, Salama Mohammad, inspires Maryam to be her best self as a working mother.
When Maryam isn’t working her way around a networking event or pitching stories to editors, she enjoys juggling mommy duties with her social calendar.
Nurturing her childhood passion for storytelling into a career, Emjay is SOCIATE’s Social Media Executive and Shutterbug.
Enlisting at her university's digital media publication, she fused her talent for writing and photography by adopting social media marketing as her craft.
With a BA in Communication Arts from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines - she brings deep knowledge about social media marketing and photography to #teamSOCIATE.
With international experience as an events and portrait photographer, her portfolio is also peppered with roles ranging from video editor to junior social media manager. Emjay has worked with the likes of TomasinoWeb, Manila Concert Scene, and Wunderman Manila.
With a passion for female-driven initiatives and representation, Emjay is delighted to work alongside the majority-female team at SOCIATE.
When she isn’t compiling content calendars or strategizing with the social media team, she’s working on her novel and pursuing photography.
Bringing fresh design skills and visual wizardry to the table, Rene is SOCIATE’s in-house graphic designer. With a Bachelor of Science in Information and Communication Technology, design has always been Rene’s passion.
Prior to joining #teamSOCIATE, Rene diversified his skill set with jobs as a computer technician, production executive, and sales representative.
Relocating to the UAE in pursuit of more exciting opportunities, Rene juggled multiple roles at Dinodrops before making his way to SOCIATE.
With an appetite for knowledge and rock-solid tenacity, Rene’s mother - an entrepreneur with multiple businesses, is his source of inspiration.
Rene's long-term goals are to lead SOCIATE's Yellow Ducks (design) team and eventually launch his own personalized tee-shirt printing shop.
Helping #teamSOCIATE with its ever-growing laundry list of tasks, Lovely Castillejo is our Office Angel and Multitasker Extraordinaire.
Juggling the office’s organizational responsibilities, her Bachelor of Science in Office Administration has given her a profound understanding of the craft.
Calling Dubai home for five years, she strutted her skills as an administrative assistant at a local bank and was the secretary of a municipal mayor prior to joining SOCIATE. Her career highlights include working with the Philippine Bank of Communications, Stowe Legal Services and Ontario Legal Translation.
Outside the office walls, Lovely unwinds by indulging in life’s simple pleasures. An ideal weekend for her is a homemade meal bubbling away on the stovetop while she catches up on her favorite shows on Netflix.
Email: lovely.castillejo@sociate.ae
Phone: +971 52 300 1644
Hailing from Pakistan, SOCIATE is Sabahat's foray into the UAE’s public relations and communications industry.
With an educational background in business administration and a specialisation in operations management, she has worked with leading international giants like Coca Cola, Mango, Aldo, Pepsi, and Splash.
Working closely with the creative director, Bilal Mukhtar, in Pakistan - Sabahat will be adding to the growing wealth of international expertise at SOCIATE.
With the long-term goal of evolving into a PR strategist, Sabahat hopes to sharpen her skillset and eventually direct PR campaigns.
Passionate about interpersonal skills and social media, she is committed to ensuring all the parties she works with (from clients and their in-house teams to the media and their audience) are benefited.
When Sabahat isn’t forging relationships with the UAE’s digital media and blogger community, she enjoys blogging about lifestyle.
Starting her career interning with start ups in Georgia, USA, Sameeta has always been fascinated by the way brands and marketing work.
With a BBA in Marketing from Sukkur IBA, Pakistan and an MS in Marketing from Georgia State University in the US - Sameeta returned to Pakistan where she worked with Symmetry Digital (one of Karachi's leading agencies).
When she was working with brands like Nestle, Unilever, TCS, UBL Bank at Symmetry Digital, Sameeta lectured on Business Communications at Iqra University. She then moved to the UAE, growing her portfolio with the likes of Cabello Lounge, Socialicious, and Al Rostamani Communications.
She aspires towards making a dent in the local communications landscape with emotive campaigns, drawing inspiration from timeless storytellers like Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, and Dr. V.K. (a former professor of hers).
When she isn't working with SOCIATE's marketing team or exploring the world of marketing analytics, she’s chasing her next adrenaline rush.
A member of SOCIATE UK’s growing team, Tanya’s portfolio is packed with notable titles from Business Insight (a magazine partnered with the DMCC where she was Content Director) to Smart Business. Not drawing the line there, she has also worked with global moguls like Zurich, Lloyds, Shams, Creative City, Arsenal Soccer School Dubai, and Shamida Ethiopia.
Experienced in events across the Middle East, she has been Conference Manager for the GFIA - welcoming 216 speakers over two days in seven auditoriums, with the likes of Bill Gates as a speaker, and Conference Director for conventions across the UAE and Saudi Arabia, partnering with governments and corporations.
Tanya currently co-handles SOCIATE UK’s PR accounts - Bite Me Burger Co and Get Plucked, with outlets in London, Southampton, Marlborough, Dubai, and countless new locations around the world.
When she isn’t wading through emails or networking, Tanya presses pause with her family or cosied up with a good book.
Email: tanya.selley@sociate.ae
A rarity in the design industry, Carla is considered a retail and environmental branding specialist with particular experience in designing shopping centres, department stores, beauty and fashion brands, food retail and cinemas. Her instinctive yet highly strategic design expertise is the major force behind the work she has produced in North America, Latin America, the UK, Asia and presently the Middle East.
Carla’s strength is providing key brand strategy assessments that translate into results driven design solutions that draw on a multidisciplinary approach. Having worked over a decade for one of North America’s top branding agencies, Carla’s experience in the field is truly one that spans the globe and shows impressive variety in terms of project scale and type.Her career has seen her design work executed for major international brands and Fortune 500 companies.
When she isn’t wading through emails or networking, Tanya presses pause with her family or cosied up with a good book.
Carla was awarded design:RETAIL’s 2017 Top 40 Under 40 Retail Designers Worldwide as well as being listed in CID’s Top 50 design influencers for the 5th year in a row. In recent years, a number of Brand Creative’s projects have been awarded with top honours and shortlistings from Commercial Interior Design, MEIDA, IIDA, IADA, WIN Awards, Chain Store Age and A’ Design Awards.
Email: carla@brandcreative.net
In a nutshell: Barry’s portfolio boasts leading IT giants like Microsoft and EMC. As a digital marketing consultant, he provides digital marketing strategy and consultancy services to companies to help them generate business through digital marketing strategy creation. Passionate about the next generation’s relationship with technology, he’s the driving force behind Beat The Cyberbully – a platform providing awareness, education and training to promote safe and responsible online communication.
Email: barry@maximumnetgain.com
In a nutshell: With business in her blood, Rosa is a second-generation entrepreneur. Having launched her own communications agency at the age of 28, she has made significant contributions to the local SME and communications scene.
In a nutshell: With more than a decade’s experience in the marketing industry, Sabrina brings her specialist skills to the region. Passionate about brand authenticity and visibility – she masterfully helps brands communicate their message across the right marketing channels with excellent results. Her client portfolio boasts brands like Jordan F1, Sony Music, Universal Music and Citroen automobiles.
In a nutshell: With more than a decade’s experience in the marketing industry, Sabrina brings her specialist skills to the region. Passionate about brand authenticity and visibility – she masterfully helps brands communicate their message across the right marketing channels with excellent results. Her client portfolio boasts brands like Jordan F1, Sony Music, Universal Music and Citroen automobiles.
Email: rabab.hussain@sociate.ae
Phone: +971 55 123 4567
Calling Dubai home for 16 years, Renelyn “Glitzy” Robles had a tumultuous start to her life in Dubai. Despite facing inequality and racism, her career has taken her from being a beauty consultant to working at a well-known UAE developer and semi-government company. After years of dedicated work and polishing her skillset, Glitzy decided it was time to put a crack in Dubai’s glass ceiling.
With a mission to empower women from all over the world in the UAE through modelling presentation, she founded and launched Niche Modelling Agency alongside Ingrid Aureada. Debuted in 2017, the Filipino-run agency is rapidly building a sparkling portfolio featuring renowned brands like Dior, Alexander Wang, Beaume et Merci, Furne One Amato , Micheal Cinco, Emarati local designers and more.
Email: glitzy@nichemodels.co
Phone: +971 55 942 3333
Tracey Devine-Smith // Creative Global Director at Glamour Hair Salons
A paragon in the hairdressing industry, Tracey Devine-Smith is the proud winner of several international awards and a British Hairdressing Awards Hall of Fame member. Her shelf of achievements boasts three Scottish Hairdresser of the Year awards with a fourth salon title in the same category, British Men’s hairdresser of the Year award, and a British Fellowship Hairdresser of the Year.
Tracey is also the global ambassador for Affinage Salon, a hair brand manufacturer, where she is responsible for developing the brand’s seasonal photographic collections and trends forecasts. Tracey also helps develop new products and is in high demand all over the world for her education shows and seminars. Additionally, she mentors the younger team at Affinage regularly.
When she isn’t globetrotting for Affinage, Tracey splits her time between working as a guest artist at the award-winning London salon, Zoology, and as the Global Creative Director for Glamour Hair Salon group in the UAE. Tracey is in big demand at its Abu Dhabi flagship salon and flies in every month to attend to her elite list of clients. She also runs internal educational and team development.
Tracey is a member of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing and can often be seen flying the Scottish flag at hairdressing conferences around the world.
Scottish-born Tracey now resides in Cyprus with her husband and three children. She was born and raised in Elgin, Moray where she trained at Clancy’s hair salon in the 1980s. Tracey loves supporting Scottish women in business and owned her salon for over 20 years in Aberdeen. During this time, she racked up multiple major awards before she sold the business to concentrate on global session work.
Once named Woman Of The Year at the Scottish Business Awards, Tracey is a force to be reckoned with but keeps her feet firmly on the ground. Family and roots have always been important, and she is extremely proud of her Elgin heritage.
Website: www.traceydevinesmith.com
Phone: +971 56 932 5471
Thanj Kugananthan // HR Consultant & Founder Visible HR
Thanj is the Founder of Visible HR. After successfully consulting within HR in the UAE for five years and with over 15 years of experience within the HR field Thanj realised there was a real need for Visible HR – an online portal providing small HR consultancies visibility to large Companies.
Website: www.visiblehr.com
Phone: +971 50 105 2284
Mazen Aloul is the founder of WebQuest SEO, a Dubai-based digital agency specializing in search engine optimization for English & Arabic websites. He has built a significant portfolio working with notable industry players throughout the UAE and greater Middle East and has provided his SEO consulting services to the benefit of some of the largest websites in the region.
Mazen earned his undergraduate degree in Computer Science from Western Michigan University. After graduation, Mazen settled in the UAE and worked as a technical instructor, adding networking and programming to his skillset. During this time, Mazen obtained numerous technical certifications and coached the UAE Youth Programming team for seven years.
Following his years as a technical instructor, Mazen transitioned into a business development role at ManafSoft, a fintech firm. He remained in this role for eight years. In 2013, he joined the Baraka Ventures team and developed a passion for communications and consulting. This role launched Mazen into the world of SEO in 2014 and two years later WebQuest was born.
A proponent of lifelong learning, Mazen is constantly looking for opportunities to develop his skillset. Most recently, he earned his certificate in Advanced Google Analytics. He’s committed to strengthening ties within the SME community and has been a member of Business Network International (BNI) since 2015. Additionally, he is an active member with Young Arab Leaders and acts as a mentor for new startups. He takes pride in helping businesses maximize their web presence and strives to remain the authority on Arabic SEO in the region and worldwide.
Website: www.webquestseo.com
Warrior of the martial arts industry, Sebastian Bates is an award-winning international professional athlete.
He is the founder of The Warrior Academy, a global martial arts organization which was voted as the top 5 in the UK. His vision is to build a socially conscious global organization, to inspire a generation to make a global impact and put the development of character as a higher value than achieving good grades. While also working with cognitive scientists to link bullying with cognitive development in an inter-continental, culturally diverse experiment.
Over the 25 years of expertise in extreme sports with over 500 skydives and base jumps around the world, Sebastian had near fatal parachuting accident which inspired him to write a book in the area of character development. In 2018, he became a best selling author for his book, "The Warrior Method". Currently, he is hosting a podcast, “The Warrior Academy”, and is writing his second book "Not A Victim", a practical, emergency survival guide to help parents mentor their children through bullying.
Juliana Khalil is a certified mind mapping specialist and MBraining Coach, who trains individuals and corporates using Tony Buzan’s interactive graphic techniques to unlock the mind’s full potential. She has developed and delivered powerful programs for children and adults, focusing on French and Arabic language learning, memory training, soft skills and business leadership. She is also the author of the books, ‘One Day MBA’, ‘CEO Business Growth Program’, ‘Mastering Rockefeller Habits’, and ‘Diamond in Your Business Courses’.
Some of her MindMapping trainees include, Hult University, Dubai Islamic Bank, Sharaf DG, Vogue ME, Mediclinic, EMC – DELL, Shuraa and Emirates Coop among others.
It would be a challenge to fit Arushi’s various roles at Fiona Environs on a business card. On paper, it’s Creative Director. At heart, a landscape architect.
Arushi is involved in all phases of project work, ranging from site analysis, planning, design, detail design and contract administration.
From concept sketches to site supervision, Arushi has a focused approach to her projects. She possesses an ability to think out of the box - objectively and clearly. Arushi plays a significant role by using her strong design and graphic skills to convey a clear, creative vision to the delight of several clients.
Claire Donnelly is an MCIPD qualified Human Resource professional, with 30+ years’ practical experience working within various industries, and 10 + years’ experience of HR practices across the Middle East.
As an HR generalist, Claire has held several senior and board-level HR positions. She is experienced in working at both strategic and tactical levels.
In 2013, Claire achieved her dream of moving into a Business Consultancy role, working on specific HR related projects for corporates and helping small businesses grow and expand as they scale.
Claire is an Innermetrix Consultant and uses this psychometric tool to help companies source talented team members.
He joined the company in 2016, and brings a wealth of experience in assisting SME and MNC companies in establishing and protecting their business operations in the UAE. Having worked with a range of foreign businesses in the Middle East and Africa over the past 10 years, Greg understands the importance of providing clients with accurate and timely information to support their business goals.
Greg is a dedicated and committed professional who consistently goes above and beyond for his clients. Throughout his career, Greg’s innate business acumen, combined with his unmatched experience, makes him well equipped to deal with the varied situations that arise in corporate structuring requirements. Greg is honest and hardworking, ensuring his clients are satisfied with their results, consequently saving his esteemed client’s time and money.
As CEO, Jane Ashford has played a strategic role in the vision and development of the PRO Partner Group and her leadership of the company has resulted in reformulating the standards of client relations within the company formation industry, through the utmost integrity and transparency.
Jane's local and global experience gives her a rare dual perspective that lends integrity and pragmatism to everything she undertakes. Her innate business acumen, combined with her approachable nature, has helped establish strong and trusting relationships with both clients and employees. With over ten years of experience within the company formation sector, Jane has built herself into a dynamic and astute business leader propelled by her devotion and strong business morals.
An expert in company formation, Jane has gained extensive experience in her field over the past decade. Jane has built solid relationships with trusted partners, global organisations and other professionals within the legal profession. To date Jane has assisted in the formation of over 200 Limited Liability Companies, Representative and Branch Offices in the region. Jane has been recognised for her remarkable skills building relationships and providing excellent client services. Jane is focussed on bringing more businesses to the UAE as well as assisting PRO Partner Group clients to establish a presence in Oman and Qatar.
As Deputy CEO of PRO Partner Group, Jess Ashford is responsible for the day-to-day management of the company and maintains a watchful eye over all aspects of the business.
Renowned for her passion, leadership and steadfast commitment to consistently producing a high level of achievement, Jess oversees business development and corporate structuring initiatives throughout the region, and manages the overall operations of the company.
Jess' commitment to client interests, along with her analytical approach, has qualified her as an advisor to many clients who seek guidance in their business set up needs. With a strong background in finance and administration within the Middle East, Jess’ experience includes some of the largest multinational companies in the world, including AXA and Shell.
Jess' efficient organisational skills and strong communication abilities made her the perfect individual to implement and manage PRO Partner Group’s ISO Certification. Her key skills lie within gap analysis, process mapping, implementing quality management principles and creation of quality policies which help drive the efficiency and profitability of the company.
Mike has been successful through his coaching and mentoring efforts in developing individuals to their full potential. His energetic style, passion for people development and effectiveness coupled with an in depth understanding of business at both a strategic and operational level creates a unique blend.
His passion for supporting SME CEOs in their personal and business growth led him to launch a unique, exclusive and powerful peer to peer executive board platform in the UAE. This enables them to apply a structured focus on their business with liked-minded peers and to be held accountable for delivering on agreed actions.
Email: mike@mhc.consulting
With over 20 years of experience, Shalini continues to be actively involved with the company, ensuring it raises its own - and industry - standards.
Underpinning Shalini’s success is an intuitive talent for translating client briefs and plans into eco-conscious designs. Shalini, and Fiona Environs, have taken a host of notable projects from the drawing board to reality.
Making new connections everywhere she goes, Shalini is passionate about travel, often globetrotting for work. She most recently visited Ethiopia on business, immersing herself in the local culture. A natural networker, Shalini is a social butterfly, seeing clients become close friends over the decades.
Email: shalini@fionaenvirons.com
Phone: +971 55 220 3426
Passionate about art and writing since she was a child, Saakshi found that the public relations industry fused her love for communications and socialising.
While pursuing her BA in Media, PR, and Advertising at Middlesex University Dubai - she further explored the local media scene with several internships, workshops, conferences, and competitions. Her internships gave her backstage access to world-renowned brands and industry giants like ADNOC, Burberry, Roberto Cavalli, the Jumeirah Group, and Tiffany.
With a voracious appetite for the communications industry - Saakshi’s opinion piece on mass communication in the UAE was notably featured in Gulf News, she co-developed a PR campaign that won second place in a competition hosted by the Ramada Ajman, and participated in a Student Integrated PR campaign at the Dubai Lynx - Festival of Creativity 2019.
Having noticed that the local media scene is saturated with content targeted at only a handful of ethnicities, she hopes to create content with wider appeal. When Saakshi isn’t working on reports or coordinating with bloggers and influencers at SOCIATE, she’s sketching, writing tiny tales, or watching Netflix.
