This time last year we were on a plane flying to Dubai for the first time, to meet and make meaningful connections, learn, listen, explore, enjoy new experiences and much more for a few days whilst we started to shape and form FamBiz UAE. This is more of a personal reflection 12 months on, but some business learnings in there too, which I hope will help others.

This trip was an investment for us to make as a business to see if we could make FamBiz UAE become a thing! As always there are many that encourage you, and some who don’t…but this is always a reminder to me personally that unless you try and take some risks then you will never know.

With no real expectation it was a definitely a case of eyes wider open, and for me personally I loved it from start to end of our packed and productive trip in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. From being briefed on the schedule and the week ahead at 1am in the morning when we arrived to our hotel, followed by our first meeting being held whilst swimming in the sea (yes really Michael Mateer Dave Clarkson !) a few hours later.

There were times during my first week there I felt overwhelmed, but that was more because of the sheer scale and speed that things can happen if you are talking to the right people and opportunity for valuable and credible introductions for you and your business. As its not uncommon to start the day with 3 or 4 meetings, and by the end of the day you have ended up doing 7 or 8 meetings. There are a lot of helpful people, but you do need to trust your gut and instinct at times, on who you surround yourself with for the longer gain, don’t just think short term, which is very easy to do when you are there and caught in the moment.

The above paragraph is probably my key learning and take away from my first trip last year, I am not the most patient person at times, and I want to run before I can walk. But when you come away for the first time you need to consider your learnings, and process what will be right for our clients, which in my case is the family businesses. How best can we add value to them and what support are they looking for, and will it be right for us, and the business we have built and our future plans.

Where are we now; We have been over twice, there is a team member in place who is on the ground and lives there which for us was an important first step. Its been brilliant to welcome Josh Smith to our team this year. We have a UAE programme (a second one is in development) to help educate UK family businesses who are thinking of trading, distributing, using the UAE as a global hub, or maybe planning to relocate their business operations and/or family life… this is before you step on a plane. We are starting to now form partnerships and collaborations with Emirate and Global business leaders and their organisations, to ensure as we evolve and scale, the right foundations are in place to build on our global community of family businesses. This is also being helped by our UK Scale up, as it presents even more connections and opportunities for the family businesses who are part of The Family Business Community if they want too.

Next trip is February 2026 where we also plan to take some UK family businesses with us, and experience for the first time the UAE like we did 12 months ago.

The above reflection has personally been written by me (not AI) from the heart and these are my own personal thoughts, opinions and learnings.

If you are involved with a family business and want a conversation, or learn how you could be involved, then please do message me direct sue@fambizcommunity.com