The MENA E-Commerce Community held its first meetup on June 21, 2023, in Dubai. This event brought together approximately 60 professionals from across the ecosystem. Participants included D2C brand founders, manufacturers, marketplace sellers, top executives, service providers, and representatives from free zones and government entities. The community’s mission is to help e-commerce entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa connect, learn, and grow. By fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration, it aims to accelerate the growth of this dynamic regional market.
“Collaboration, Not Competition”
In response to the question, “What inspired you to establish the e-commerce community?” Vera Romazanova said, “The initial idea came from Leo Dovbenko, the founder of OS MENA, a Business Software Provider and Systems Integrator. He saw the need for stronger industry collaboration in the region. When I joined, we became co-founders of the MENA E-Commerce Community. From day one, our goal was not just to bring people together for events, but to build a lasting ecosystem where entrepreneurs could receive support at every stage of their journey.”
“This spark came after co-hosting the Marketplace and D2C Conference in Dubai in 2023,” Romazanova added. “The strong turnout and feedback showed us that professionals were hungry for a trusted, neutral space to share experiences, tools, and challenges. From there, the community was designed as a hub where entrepreneurs, top executives, and service providers could come together.”
Romazanova also mentioned that they are open to partnerships that bring tangible benefits to their members, such as knowledge-sharing, business opportunities, or innovative services to help entrepreneurs grow faster and more sustainably. She noted, “At the heart of our community is this principle: Collaboration, not competition. For us, success is not about guarding knowledge but sharing it. By sharing insights, entrepreneurs can shorten learning curves, avoid costly mistakes, and collectively elevate the market. Our experience shows that collaboration always creates more value than competition.”
Services Offered by the MENA E-Commerce Community
The MENA E-Commerce Community offers a one-stop ecosystem where entrepreneurs, executives, and partners can access expertise, collaboration, and opportunities:
- Exclusive offline gatherings (business breakfasts, networking meetups, mastermind sessions)
- Private community chats (peer-to-peer problem-solving in minutes)
- Business case analyses, where entrepreneurs share challenges and receive structured feedback from peers and experts
- Brand promotions and giveaways for visibility and engagement
- Business missions, field trips, and webinars offering behind-the-scenes access to warehouses, logistics hubs, and leading corporations
“UAE Leads E-Commerce in MENA”
Vera Romazanova assessed the development of e-commerce in MENA with the following words: “The MENA region has firmly positioned itself as one of the fastest-growing digital economies in the world. The total e-commerce value is expected to surpass USD 50 billion by 2025, with the UAE leading the charge. In the UAE alone, market volume has reached USD 4.8 billion, showing an 85% increase since 2019, and it is expected to continue growing at a 20% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2027.”
According to Romazanova, the structural factors driving this momentum are as follows:
- User penetration is already at 70%, with more than 30% of the population shopping on their smartphones at least once a week, well above the global average;
- The UAE’s role as a logistics and business hub, combined with a small but wealthy population and a neutral geopolitical stance, makes it an attractive launchpad for regional and international brands;
- Government initiatives (digital IDs, pro-business regulations);
- Fintech adoption (BNPL, digital wallets) are reshaping consumer behavior.
- Categories such as fashion, consumer electronics, food & beverages, and cosmetics are among the fastest-growing, which also aligns with the expertise of our community members.
- The next frontier is adaptation and innovation: quick commerce, social commerce (projected to be USD 3.7 billion by 2025), and creative approaches to customer engagement.
“The MENA AI Market is Expected to Reach USD 166 Billion by 2030”
Regarding AI and innovation in e-commerce, Romazanova said, “The most transformative force today is artificial intelligence. The MENA AI market was valued at approximately USD 12 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow at over 44% annually, reaching USD 166 billion by 2030. On the consumer side, 53% of shoppers in the UAE, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia have already used AI-powered visual search, and 37% trust such tools in their shopping journey.”
Romazanova also explained how these trends are reflected in business practices within the MENA E-Commerce Community: “Members are using AI chatbots / virtual assistants in customer support, which leads to shorter response times, fewer support tickets, and better customer satisfaction. Brands are using predictive analytics to optimize inventory and demand forecasting, reducing costs and stockouts. Marketing teams are using AI tools to personalize campaigns, generate content ideas, and optimize creatives, saving time, testing more hypotheses, and improving ROI. By facilitating these exchanges, our community ensures that entrepreneurs don’t just follow global trends but implement AI in practical, results-driven ways.”
MENA E-Commerce Community in Numbers
Since 2023, the MENA E-Commerce Community has held 10 offline events. These events featured speakers and participants from Talabat, Toys R Us, Bath & Body Works, WhatsApp, TikTok, OS MENA, Dubai CommerCity, Wondergifts, Platinumlist, Himalaya Wellness, FixPrice, and others.
Some key data on the community’s activities:
- 20+ countries
- 250+ members
- 1,700+ applications
- 60–100 attendees
Main categories:
- Food & Beverages (22%)
- Clothing/Underwear (17%)
- Home & Kitchen (13%)
- Electronics (13%)
- Beauty (12%)
Distribution by platforms:
- Amazon (24%)
- Noon (18%)
- Own websites (17%)
- Namshi (11%)
- Talabat (7%)
- Careem (7%)
- Momsworld (6%)
“E-Commerce is Lowering Barriers for Women Entrepreneurs”
Romazanova assessed the impact of e-commerce on women entrepreneurs in the MENA region with the following words: “E-commerce has lowered barriers for women entrepreneurs. Unlike traditional retail, which often requires significant upfront capital and physical presence, digital channels allow women to launch and scale businesses with greater flexibility.
In our community, we see women founders building successful brands in categories like cosmetics, dietary supplements, fashion, and kids’ products. Access to professional networks like ours further amplifies their growth by providing visibility, mentorship, and access to potential partners. I believe e-commerce is one of the strongest enablers of female entrepreneurship in MENA today.”
Challenges Faced by E-Commerce Entrepreneurs in MENA
Vera Romazanova, President of the MENA E-Commerce Community, highlighted three main challenges faced by e-commerce entrepreneurs in the region:
- Market entry and localization – understanding cultural differences and diverse consumer behaviors,
- Regulatory and compliance complexity – VAT, corporate tax, cross-border regulations, and licensing in free zones,
- Operational hurdles – reliable logistics, fulfillment, payment solutions, and digital marketing ROI.
Romazanova said, “That’s why our formats like Business Case Analysis are so effective; members can openly share these challenges and immediately receive advice from peers and experts who have already solved similar issues.”
“Success in MENA Requires Testing Multiple Customer Segments”
Vera Romazanova provided the following advice to e-commerce entrepreneurs looking to expand into the MENA region: “First, carefully analyze your product-market fit. What works in Europe or Asia may not resonate here. Second, allocate a sufficient testing budget. Success in MENA often comes from running multiple experiments across different customer segments before finding the right formula.
Third, invest in creativity. The region is multicultural and competitive, so your brand must stand out. Build a team that thinks creatively about marketing, storytelling, and customer engagement. Finally, plug into communities like ours. Peer support and collaboration can save months of trial and error. I strongly believe in collaboration over competition; by sharing knowledge and resources, entrepreneurs can collectively raise the standard of the entire ecosystem.”
About Vera Romazanova
Vera Romazanova began her career in computer vision-based SaaS. She managed business development and digital transformation for neural network-based video analytics solutions. She worked with retailers, telecoms, and banks across EMEA, the USA, and APAC. Additionally, she worked in the B2C space selling cloud-subscription-based security cameras through e-commerce, which gave her first-hand experience in manufacturing, international logistics and fulfillment, payments, and digital marketing.
After moving to Dubai in early 2023, she joined OS MENA, a Business Software Provider and Systems Integrator for retail and e-commerce. There, she was responsible for developing strategic partnerships and building relationships with new clients. This role provided her with a comprehensive view of how the regional e-commerce ecosystem operates and transforms across technology, retail, and logistics, and highlighted how partnerships can accelerate growth. This experience laid the foundation for her work in developing the MENA E-Commerce Community, where these insights could be shared and scaled among entrepreneurs.
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