نبني.
ندرّب.
نشارك.

تشاركنا المؤسسات لإدارة برامج تحقق نتائج، وتستعين بنا الشركات لبناء تجارة إلكترونية تبيع. الفريق نفسه، على الجانبين.

البرامج التي ندير المنتجات التي نبني
As featured on Euronews · Inspire Middle East 5:36
Saleem Najjar and Noora Shanak being recognized at the European Commission in Brussels, 2019
Hello, Brussels
— that's us. Saleem & Noora at the European Commission.
A working session with business owners during the refugee entrepreneurs program in Amman
Amman
— a working session on the World Bank program, Amman.
Saleem Najjar moderating the refugee entrepreneur panel at SPARK Ignite, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
— leading the refugee-entrepreneur panel at SPARK Ignite.
Saleem Najjar profiled by Euronews Inspire Middle East at iPark Amman
On camera
— filming with Euronews Inspire Middle East at iPark, Amman.
⁨— Section 01 / Organizations⁩

⁨For⁩⁨organizations.⁩

⁨Curriculum, funding structures, trainers, on-the-ground delivery. We build the whole program and we're there when it runs.⁩

  • منظمات غير حكومية
  • حكومات
  • منظمات تنموية
  • جهات تمويل

⁨Our work in Jordan is documented in a published World Bank report, co-authored by our co-founder.⁩

⁨6,500+ SMEs and entrepreneurs trained across Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.⁩

البرامج والاستشارات

التدريب والكوادر

كل الخدمات للمؤسسات
⁨— Section 02 / Companies⁩

⁨For⁩⁨companies.⁩

⁨We measure the work in sales, revenue and growth. Built by people who have run the business on the other side of the checkout.⁩

  • تجزئة المؤسسات
  • كتالوجات متعددة العلامات
  • B2B + D2C
  • متعدد العملات
  • ⁨Field operations⁩

⁨1M+ orders processed on a marketplace we scaled, 72% of them on a phone.⁩

⁨9,000 products, bilingual, in a single catalogue — and 45,000 orders carried in load testing.⁩

الرقمية والتجارة الإلكترونية

تدريب الموظفين

كل الخدمات للشركات
— دراسات حالة مختارة

⁨Stories
from the field.⁩

⁨A working session with business owners during the refugee entrepreneurs program in Amman⁩⁨01 · World Bank · Featured⁩
⁨A SPARK refugee-entrepreneur session — the network the bilingual e-commerce curriculum was designed for⁩⁨02 · SPARK · Curriculum⁩
⁨The SPARK Innovation Hub sign-up screen beside a panel reading "Your next opportunity starts with who you meet"⁩⁨03 · SPARK · Green Forward⁩
⁨Illustrative mockup of a Makani storefront for a Saudi home-based business, showing an Arabic-first product grid⁩⁨04 · Social Development Bank⁩
⁨Saleem Najjar profiled by Euronews Inspire Middle East at iPark Amman⁩⁨05 · Euronews⁩
⁨Four screens of the Waqtee storefront — category browse, a watch product page, the cart, and checkout with cash on delivery⁩⁨06 · Waqtee⁩
⁨Noora Shanak, smiling, outdoors in front of a colonnaded building⁩
⁨— Woman of the people⁩
⁨07 · Parachute16⁩
⁨Organizations · For The World Bank · 2017—2020⁩

⁨Creating market opportunities for refugee entrepreneurs.⁩

⁨The brief was blunt: refugee-owned businesses were selling to whoever walked past the door. Three years and 1,500 businesses later — catalogues photographed, payments connected, delivery arranged, and the owner trained to run all of it after we left.⁩

1,500⁨Businesses digitized⁩
⁨JD 217K⁩⁨B2B price offers⁩
6,214⁨Clicks on their products⁩
⁨Organizations · SPARK · Türkiye⁩

⁨Turning refugee entrepreneurs into online store owners.⁩

⁨SPARK needed a curriculum that produced working businesses, not certificates. Ten weeks of design, thirteen modules in two languages, and 381 live storefronts later.⁩

1,315⁨Refugees certified⁩
381⁨Live stores launched⁩
100%⁨Client satisfaction⁩
⁨Organizations · SPARK · Green Forward · in delivery⁩

⁨Delivering Green Forward, the green-economy program SPARK leads⁩

⁨Four years of cohort delivery across the region. The Innovation Hub is the platform built inside the programme — led by SPARK, funded by the European Union, and open to entrepreneurs, NGOs and donors across the region.⁩

⁨Organizations · Social Development Bank · Masar 3500 · 2023—2024⁩

⁨Home-based businesses across Saudi Arabia, online.⁩

⁨With the Social Development Bank: home businesses given a storefront, a payment method and a first customer.⁩

3,525⁨Stores launched⁩
⁨Organizations · Euronews · Inspire Middle East · 2019⁩

⁨"E-commerce can lift entire communities."⁩

⁨Inspire Middle East profiles the work bridging founders in the region with global markets.⁩

05:36⁨On film · EU⁩
⁨Companies · Waqtee · branded watch retail⁩

⁨Built the store, then rebuilt it when they outgrew it⁩

⁨Gulf⁩⁨Expanded from Jordan⁩
⁨Organizations · Parachute16 Podcast · Episode 6 · 2021⁩

⁨Building e-commerce for people, not just platforms⁩

⁨Parachute16 profiles Noora Shanak on the twenty years she has spent moving between the technical and the human sides of e-commerce — consulting, then co-founding ShopGo, and the programmes she runs now. The through-line: understanding the person on the other end of a transaction is the harder half of building a store.⁩

⁨34 min⁩⁨In conversation⁩

⁨Five of the engagements we can name publicly. The rest — enterprise storefronts, marketplaces and internal platforms — sit under NDA.⁩

⁨— Selected work / Platform⁩

⁨Spark Networking and Community Hub.⁩

⁨A social platform built for SPARK's entrepreneur network — community infrastructure, knowledge sharing and events, in one place.⁩

⁨SPARK entrepreneur community session — the network Spark Hub was built to connect⁩

⁨Spark Hub. Built for SPARK.⁩

⁨Community infrastructure · knowledge sharing · event integration⁩
⁨Social platform⁩
⁨The challenge⁩

⁨SPARK's entrepreneur network had no central platform — organizations, entrepreneurs, and professionals were connecting ad hoc, with no shared space to exchange ideas, resources, or partnerships.⁩

⁨Our approach⁩

⁨We designed and built Spark Hub, a social platform purpose-built for business networking — combining community infrastructure, knowledge sharing, and event integration in one place.⁩

⁨Social platform⁩⁨Community infrastructure⁩⁨Knowledge sharing⁩⁨Event integration⁩
⁨Read the case study ⁩
— بكلماتهم

⁨Every word,
unedited.⁩

⁨Umbrella500’s approach was both strategic and practical—bridging vision with execution. The program created real, measurable outcomes for our beneficiaries.⁩
⁨Giacomo de Giorgi⁩⁨Senior Consultant, World Bank⁩
⁨Umbrella500 went beyond the brief. They understood our mission, moved fast, and delivered a platform that brings our community together like never before.⁩
⁨Samer Haffar⁩⁨Creative Manager, SPARK⁩
⁨My experience working with Umbrella500 on launching my first online store was a valuable step toward growth and success. I was genuinely impressed by the results, to the extent that I decided to hire them again to revamp and upgrade my website. Once again, the Umbrella500 team exceeded expectations and delivered outstanding results.⁩
⁨Baha Abdeen⁩⁨CEO, Waqtee⁩
⁨Our collaboration with Umbrella500 significantly contributed to the growth of Alissar’s online store, leading to a truly integrated success. Their team stood out for dedicating time to deeply understand our customer needs and thoroughly analyze data to ensure we remained ahead of the competition.⁩
⁨Leen Nabulsi⁩⁨E-commerce Manager, Alissar⁩
⁨It was a great honor for us at Nafeeseh to collaborate with Umbrella500. They were unmatched in their professionalism and deep dedication to their work. Throughout the entire project, they were exceptional in meeting deadlines and consistently providing timely feedback and input.⁩
⁨Mahmouad Safi⁩⁨COO, Sally Marketing & Nafeeseh⁩
⁨Throughout the collaborative process, Umbrella500 has demonstrated a keen understanding of the unique needs and requirements of SPARK’s young entrepreneurs. Their receptiveness to feedback and their proactive approach to incorporating suggestions have been instrumental in refining the curriculum to align perfectly with the goals and objectives of our program.⁩
⁨Halil Can Emre⁩⁨Project Manager, SPARK Türkiye Office⁩
⁨In my capacity as Impact Program Manager at beVisioneers, leading the grant-making efforts, I worked closely with Saleem. Saleem and the Umbrella team produced Pitching Masterclass videos covering every element of the pitch deck, led live group and one-on-one coaching sessions, and provided detailed, actionable reviews of our Fellows’ decks to prepare them for the demo days.⁩
⁨Ibrahem Ashraf Ahmad⁩⁨Senior Impact Program Manager, BeVisioneers⁩
⁨Thank you, Saleem, It was an honor to have you join us on this incredible journey to support artisans across the Kingdom through the Nama Accelerators. 🙏🚀⁩
⁨Muhammad AlHashmi⁩⁨Director of Innovation, TAM⁩
01 / 08
⁨— Two regions, one team⁩

⁨Across Europe and the Middle East.⁩

⁨We work between two ecosystems — the Middle East's growth and Europe's standards. That bridge shapes what we build, who we train, and the programs we lead.⁩

⁨Amman office⁩⁨Luxembourg office⁩⁨Saudi Arabia⁩⁨Iraq⁩⁨Lebanon⁩⁨Turkey⁩⁨Germany⁩
⁨EUROPE⁩⁨MIDDLE EAST⁩⁨BERLIN⁩⁨GERMANY⁩⁨ISTANBUL⁩⁨TURKEY⁩⁨BEIRUT⁩⁨LEBANON⁩⁨BAGHDAD⁩⁨IRAQ⁩⁨RIYADH⁩⁨SAUDI ARABIA⁩⁨Luxembourg⁩⁨49.61° N · 6.13° E⁩⁨Amman⁩⁨31.95° N · 35.93° E⁩⁨EUROPE · MIDDLE EAST · 2026⁩
⁨— Open now⁩

⁨Awards and
opportunities.⁩

⁨Awards you can enter, and programmes you can join. If it says open, it's open.⁩

⁨The three Impact Awards →⁩
⁨Open now⁩

⁨Green Forward — join the community⁩

⁨Join the Innovation Community to access green-economy programmes, resources and open calls across the region — and to enter the Umbrella500 Impact Awards.⁩

⁨Who⁩
⁨Founders, startups and green innovators across MENA⁩
⁨Where⁩
⁨Online · English and Arabic⁩
⁨Cost⁩
⁨Free to join⁩
⁨Join the community ⁩
⁨Open now⁩

⁨Impact Startup Award — 2026⁩

⁨Cash and expert support for one founder building a business with real environmental or social impact, anywhere in the wider MENA region. Idea stage to fully operating — all of it welcome.⁩

⁨Who⁩
⁨Founders and co-founders building a business around environmental or social impact.⁩
⁨Closes⁩
⁨10 September 2026⁩
⁨See the award ⁩
⁨Open now⁩

⁨Green Community Initiative Award — 2026⁩

⁨Cash and expert support for one initiative already creating real green impact where it operates. Open to an individual, a group of community members, a local association, a charity or a small NGO.⁩

⁨Who⁩
⁨Anyone running a real, community-based green initiative that is already operating and has already created green impact.⁩
⁨Closes⁩
⁨10 September 2026⁩
⁨See the award ⁩
⁨Open now⁩

⁨Green Content Creator Award — 2026⁩

⁨Two cash prizes for the video that makes people care about a green topic. No startup, no organisation, no track record.⁩

⁨Who⁩
⁨Anyone.⁩
⁨Closes⁩
⁨10 September 2026⁩
⁨See the award ⁩
⁨More awards and calls opening through 2026.⁩⁨Running a program and need a delivery partner? Talk to us →  ·  Or tell me when the next call opens →⁩

⁨Latest from the studio⁩

⁨Impact Awards 2026⁩
⁨Open call⁩

⁨Applications are open for the Umbrella500 Impact Awards 2026.⁩

⁨Three awards — for a startup, a community initiative and a content creator — open to the wider MENA region, with cash and expert support behind each one. Applications close 10 September 2026 and winners are announced in late October.⁩

⁨See the three awards ⁩
⁨Shipped⁩

⁨The SPARK Innovation Hub, explained.⁩

⁨Who the community is for, what membership gets you, and where the awards fit — the page we send people to before they join.⁩

⁨Read the page ⁩
— تواصل

⁨Let's keep in touch.⁩

معظم أعمالنا تبدأ بمحادثة. أخبرنا بما تعمل عليه — أو عرّفنا بنفسك وسنفعل المثل. نردّ خلال يوم، وغالباً أقل.

⁨saleem.najjar@umbrella500.com⁩

لا نموذج ولا قمع تسويقي — هذا العنوان يصلنا مباشرةً.

⁨Request the company profile ⁩
— النشرة

رسالة واحدة شهرياً: ما أطلقناه، وما نجح، والأرقام خلفه.

إلغاء الاشتراك بنقرة واحدة · لا نشارك القائمة إطلاقاً.

⁨You're on the list.⁩⁨First dispatch lands at the start of next month. Nothing until then.⁩