Farewell 2020 and Hello to an amazing 2021

2020 was an unprecedented year in so many respects for everyone. A pandemic that changed the way we worked, lived, and connected. It’s impact on our wellbeing, families, employment and safety has been profound. It was also a year that helped me find the courage to leave a well-paid corporate job to join the humble, and hallowed ranks of all the entrepreneurs that have started great companies.

I had always revered these amazing human beings and that unique gene that drove them from concept to consummation, from design to product, from plans to execution.

There is so much excitement in starting a business. A business that demands all your time, resources, let alone finding others who share your faith, vision, and commitment to creating something amazing.

Technology is tough to get right, products take time and tremendous experience. It takes great wisdom, compassion, context, and thinking and seeing ten steps ahead.

The clarity to articulate the opportunity that has people say, “wow, that’s cool.”, or “why hasn’t anyone done that before?” takes great experience and a profound ability to walk in other people’s shoes. This is not a skill you are born with, nor can you read it in a book. It takes, having tried, and failed, and then found a path to success before you can even attempt this. It takes great humility and at the same time audacity to even think this way.

For me it took more than half a lifetime to begin imaging it was possible to create something that would change the world, that would inspire others to invest and come on the journey - partners, family, friends, and customers who say, “I believe, let’s do it!”

Markaaz has been that for me. A lifetime of experience and a commitment to create something amazing, the business of finding those others, who have the courage, commitment, faith, and experience to leap, screaming “Geronimo” all the way.

We have done the impossible, founded and created that at Markaaz.

We have a talented team of bold experienced individuals, great partners, and advisors, all of whom truly care and are committed to changing the lot-in-life of small and medium businesses (SMBs) - the driving engine of our society and the world. SMB’s drive 90% of the world’s employment and despite the current challenges faced because of the COVID-19 pandemic, SMB's are and will be the driving engine of economic recovery.

We listened for a long time, and understood their challenges, reflected on the things we know, and have done before. We learnt what best-in-class technology looks like and what it can do, and we created it.

We have created the world’s first global directory supporting all SMB’s, and soon all three hundred million of them will be able to access these verified businesses across the world. We are confident this will become the new norm for connecting with other verified businesses.

We have also begun creating the first ever operating system for SMB’s, bringing together the most important resources and tools they need to run and grow their businesses. This will help them access things they would not normally have access to, and more importantly, we help them remember and get back to the reason they started their own business in the first place. All the while helping them save some of the over $4 trillion in waste and inefficiency, they face every year as a group globally.

Thanks to the Markaaz team, our partners, our advisors, and our investors for a great 2020 and helping us get as far as we have in 2020. We are so excited about what is ahead in 2021 and are so thankful to have you all on this exciting journey with us.