Enterprising young Egyptians seize Ramadan business opportunities
The festive atmosphere and nightly feasts of Ramadan represent a unique commercial window for young Egyptian entrepreneurs.
For some young Egyptians, the holy fasting month of Ramadan is not only a spiritual time, but also an opportunity to launch small businesses. It's the high season for specific goods such as sohour and Iftar meals, colorful lanterns, khayameya work and other decorations.
Serving sohour — the pre-dawn meal during the holy month — can be a profitable business during Ramadan as many people like to spend the night eating together with friends. Some enterprising young people have started to compete with big restaurants in offering good quality meals at reasonable prices in the streets, where customers can enjoy the summer breeze.
Taking advantage of the holiday, Ahmed Abouda, 25, and Habiba Ashraf, 22, took over one of the sidewalks in Nasr City in Cairo and transformed it into a traditional seating area furnished with kilim carpets, cushions and small tables made of pallets to serve the famous meals of foul (beans) and ta’meya (falafel) made in a food cart they called Edrtna.
“We started the project because we wanted to invest our time in doing something profitable,” Abouda told Al-Monitor. He could not find a suitable job when he graduated from law school, so he established his own Ramadan business.
