Marketer Hady Salem is passionate about art. Most artists lack the knowledge and budget to market their work. Two years ago he launched Artlova website as a digital hub for artists.
Egyptian Gazette: Why did you start? What’s the passion that drives you?
Hady Salem: My partner Ahmed Fattah and I found that most artists and galleries are interested in digital marketing but they don’t have enough know-how or sufficient funds to invest in their digital channels, which is why I created Artlova to support artists in the digital world and open new markets for them.
EG: What is your background?
HS: Artist, design and marketing and my partner is the president of Association Culture Illimite, an organisation in Paris that supports artists.
EG: What is the issue you are working on? What are the value propositions?
HS: Artlova is a multi-vendor market platform that allows artists to have a free portfolio and an e-shop to help them sell more work online. We plan to add more categories: antiques, fashion and music.
EG: Tell us more about the process, users, and business model.
HS: The process is simple. Any artist can visit our website and create a profile in three steps. We target artists, buyers and galleries.
EG: What is the main challenge?
HS: To create a mobile platform and make it easier and to manage logistics as we don’t have team yet.
EG: What are your achievements and future plans?
HS: We have helped 102 artists to sell online. We have sponsored two offline exhibitions and we are working on a third to be held in El-Gouna on May 20. We plan to invite more artists from all over the world and develop more services on our platform. We are also looking at adding non-fundable token (NFT) market to sell intangible assets online.
EG: Is the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Egypt supporting you?
HS: The ecosystem has been evolving in Egypt since the emergence of the entrepreneurial mindset. However, I see that most of the investors are looking for rapid cash flow startups.
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