Wassim Kari

Wassim Kari is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Parallel Health and Beauty LTD, a company focused on health and beauty e-commerce in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.12 He is also the winner of the Mercure HEC Award for Entrepreneurship.2

Career Background

Wassim began his consulting career in Paris in 2000, following the collapse of the Internet bubble.1 In 2011, he joined Strategy& (formerly known as Booz & Company) in their Communications, Media, and Technology practice in Beirut, marking his first professional experience in the Middle East.1

Education

Kari pursued a master's degree in business at HEC Paris in 2004, majoring in e-business.1 His interest in tech startups and the "new economy" led him to question how technology would transform economies in the Middle East region.1

Entrepreneurial Journey

After his time at Strategy&, Wassim, along with his wife Elsa Aoun (also a Strategy& alumna), founded three tech startups targeting the MENA region.1 In 2016, they secured Series A funding and focused on growing two of their ventures:

1. Sohati: Focused on the health industry
2. Loolia: Concentrated on the beauty industry

Initially pursuing an advertising business model, they pivoted to content-driven e-commerce during an economic crisis in the GCC markets.1 This strategic shift proved successful, allowing their team to grow to 30 people and leading them to close a Series B funding round.1

Current Focus

Wassim and his team are working on expanding their e-commerce success beyond their pilot market in Lebanon to other countries in the region.1 Their objective is to create one of the leading beauty and para-pharmaceutical e-retail channels in the MENA region.1

Personal Life

Outside of work, Wassim enjoys traveling and spending time with his family, including his wife Elsa and their two children, Jack and Laura.1