A Gaza-based startup is helping digitize e-commerce across the Arab world
Palestinians in Israeli-besieged Gaza Strip launch online e-commerce site, Matjaree, to stimulate sales and economy during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.
A Gaza-based startup is helping the Arab world shop online during pandemic
A Gaza-based team of internet and computers experts are helping the Arab world deal with the Coronavirus lockdowns through online shopping and ecommerce.
Matjaree, Arabic for my store, is one of Arabic-language primary drivers of online shopping that specializes in developing tools for other startups and established companies alike to offer their products online.
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip launch a new ecommerce site Matjaree to help stimulate economy during coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic.. Photo supplied by Matjari
As the coronavirus pandemic is wreaking havoc on traditional business models and traditional shopping, things are changing and adapting to a new reality.
Matjarree was founded by Basem Temraz, a Palestinian-Canadian engineer who worked for years for international high tech companies in the region before he started Matjaree in 2018.
“Online shopping is safe and carries no risk at all especially when people want to avoid placing themselves in crowded stores where they might get infected with the virus.” said Temraz president and founder of Matjaree
According to Visa Middle East, shoppers in the Gulf region alone, spent US$3.2 billion dollars online in 2019
Temraz said he had established his company in Canada where he made it his home years earlier but relies on his team in Gaza to develop products and services.
Gaza is about 25 mile long and between 4-7 mile wide populated by about 2 million people making it one of the most densely populated areas in the world.
Temraz stresses that the primary asset of his company is his team of men and women all based in Gaza. He described them as “talented” and innovative”
The company is already making its business model felt throughout the region by helping small to medium business develop their online business model and have an online presence.
Temraz said his company is operating over 1000 stores serving 7000 customers throughout the region.
According to statistics, online shopping in the Arab world is rapidly growing mainly due to heavy use of smart phones and the region and high internet penetration which offer consumers convenient shopping experience.
Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.
Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992 at the Daily Southtown and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began writing in 1975 publishing The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper (2004-2007).
Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues as Special US Correspondent for the Arab News ArabNews.com, at TheArabDailyNews.com, and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel, Houston Chronical, and Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.
His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.
Hanania is the US Special Correspondent for the Arab News Newspaper, covering Middle East and Arab American issues. He writes for the Southwest News newspaper group writing on mainstream American issues.
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