“Dubai has reaffirmed its position as the world’s most attractive destination to do business”

How can Creative Zone help entrepreneurs set up business in the UAE amid the uncertainties of the pandemic?

Since the start of the pandemic, we had to quickly adapt and alter our key operation methods to ensure safety for our clients and staff members, while offering unrestricted customer service to our clients.

With Creative Zone, you can set up your business from the safety of your home. We have made the entire process virtual and electronically enabled. We have also introduced several payment gateways and easy payment plans to make the business set-up process stress-free.

As the new CEO, what should you focus on to navigate the next 12 months?

Last year, we spent a lot of time in researching and building our capabilities to assist the SME sector in a more integrated way and this year, my team and I will focus on capitalising the productivity and creativity that came from this experience to ramp up our innovation competencies. Over 44,000 entrepreneurs have trusted us to set up their businesses in the UAE and our top priority in 2021 will be to strengthen this trust by perfecting our operations and customer relations. I am extremely happy with the way we managed the recent challenging times and I continuously keep pushing myself and my team to think about how we can use this inflection point to reimagine our potential together as opposed to allowing our organisation to just go back to the comfort of ‘Let’s do what we’re doing.’

How do you see the company changing in five years?

We are continuously working towards expanding and optimising our products and offerings. Our growing strategic partner network offers the most advanced value-added business solutions to the UAE’s entrepreneurial community which brings us closer to our ultimate vision of becoming an accredited authority when it comes to business set-up and beyond. In the next few years, we see ourselves playing an important role in shaping the UAE’s business landscape and complementing the government’s efforts to make Dubai the most dynamic and future forward business ecosystem in the world.

How does Creative Zone maintain its edge over other business set-up consultants in the UAE?

Our execution and empathy is what sets us apart. Providing an unmatched customer experience is what we strive for on a daily basis. Being in the industry for over 10 years, we have our fingers on the pulse of our clients. The vast amount of reviews and referrals are testament to the quality of service that Creative Zone provides and that is something we take pride in. We are always behind our clients in tough times and are also there to celebrate and promote their businesses through our networks. Apart from that we offer the maximum number of extended business solutions and initiatives that give them a chance to network, grow, and sustain.

How would you like to assess the start-up ecosystem in the UAE?

This is undoubtedly the most active start-up ecosystem in the Middle East as more than half of the start-ups started last year have proven to be highly lucrative. Ever since the pandemic struck, the country has directed all efforts to protect the burgeoning start-up community and Dubai has reaffirmed its position as the world’s most attractive destination to do business. The UAE is strategically building an environment conducive to risks and has a fairly young and tech-savvy population with a rising income that supports consumer demands. E-commerce, health start-ups, delivery apps and remote online working platforms continue to see a steady growth.

Finally, what are your top tips to people looking to embark on an entrepreneurial journey?

Start with knowing your product or service inside out, be your biggest critic, and don’t be afraid to fail.

Beyond business set-up

In conversation with Alistair Paine, Business Set-up Manager, Creative Zone

Could you tell us about the key services that Creative Zone offers?

Creative Zone is the UAE’s largest business set-up advisory and provides 360-degree solutions for company incorporation and its growth. Apart from providing business licences, we also assist our clients with our concierge services, and help them with everything right from getting visas, Emirates ID, medical, and tax certificates to document delivery.

Our strategic partnership provides an extensive range of business services like insurance, media and marketing, funding, business suites, logistical assistance and much more.

Alistair Paine, Business Set-up Manager, Creative Zone

Creative Zone’s Tax and Accounting and Business Hub are two integral arms of the group that assist start-ups with formulating and maintaining a coherent legal framework and our co-working Business Hub provides young businesses a modern, flexible and cost-effective office space. Furthermore, our strategic partnership provides an extensive range of business services like insurance, media and marketing, funding, business suites, logistical assistance and much more.

What are the key jurisdictions where you can help entrepreneurs start their businesses?

We deal in all Jurisdictions across the UAE — mainland Dubai and Abu Dhabi and all the 50+ free zones in the UAE. Selecting a jurisdiction is a crucial decision for entrepreneurs and our business set-up advisors are experts in that. Creative Zone shares strong synergy with the Department of Economy and is also the channel partner with Sharjah Media City (SHAMS).