Before she was furnishing Dubai's most photographed cafes, Christiane Nasr was advising high net worth clients at Credit Agricole. The Lebanese entrepreneur left investment banking to chase a different idea, and in 2014 she founded The Bowery Company in Dubai, betting that the Gulf was ready for Scandinavian design at a time when it was still largely unknown in the region.
That bet paid off. The Bowery now calls itself the GCC's leading curator and distributor of Scandinavian design, with headquarters in Dubai and Riyadh and large turnkey interior projects running across the Middle East.
A Catalogue Built on Nordic Labels
Its catalogue runs to more than 10,000 products from 12 premium Scandinavian brands, including GUBI, Audo, &Tradition, Ferm Living, Verpan, Louis Poulsen and 101 Copenhagen. Those labels sit at the higher end of Nordic furniture and lighting.
Furnishing the Region's Cafe Culture
Cafes have become the company's calling card. The Bowery has furnished more than 100 of them across the UAE and Saudi Arabia, including Saddle Cafe, Knot Bakehouse, BKRY, Toby's Estate, Trio Cafe, Brew Cafe and Cherry House, along with work for the Independent Food Company. "We have completed more than 100 cafes in the past year," Nasr said. "Hospitality is no longer just about serving food or coffee. It is about creating destinations people return to."
Demand That Held Through Regional Tension
The growth continued even as the wider region grew unstable. "Many expected food and beverage to slow, but requests accelerated during the Iran conflict," Nasr said. "Groups kept expanding and opening new outlets."
The Next Bet Is Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is now the company's main growth story. Following its expansion into the kingdom, Nasr said The Bowery has secured a major Saudi government project to furnish entertainment venues across 14 cities over the next three years, work tied to the Vision 2030 plan to build out leisure and tourism.
For a founder who began her career in private banking, a national entertainment rollout is a long way from advising clients on their portfolios. It also puts a Lebanese run business at the center of one of the largest cultural spending programs in the Gulf.
