Name: Habib Wehbi
Designation: Chairman and CEO
Company: W Ventures Holding
Sector: Media and marketing
‘Be different, be daring, be anything that will translate your vision into success,’ is how Habib Wehbi grew his first business 27 years ago into W Ventures, a holding operating in a wide variety of industries, and managing a diversified portfolio in three major sectors, through its subsidiaries: W Group in Out-of-Home Media & Technology, BMI in Manufacturing, and W Invest in Start-ups with a focus on Tech. W Ventures Holding was made possible with the support of their major strategic partners who believe in their vision, trust their deliverables, and share their goals.
Leading the digital transformation across the region
Established in 1999, W Group works on digitising and optimising brand-consumer experiences, while transforming their media assets into technologically led and state-of-the-art landmarks. The Group’s mission is to transform the current advertising industry into a top-tier futuristic, experiential ecosystem.
W Group manages and invests in DOOH media and technologies, leading the digital transformation in the region through its subsidiaries Hypermedia and DigitAll, which began as a pioneer digital signage consultancy start-up back in 2014 that has grown into a Smart & Creative Solutions company that presents technologies for digital OOH interactions with high ROI.
Today, DigitAll invests in smart and connected technologies to expand services in measurable digital communication tools. It has also revolutionised Hypermedia’s most impactful DOOH media network in the UAE, using the latest technologies to leverage brand-consumer experience, through data analytics & measurements, programmatic DOOH and smart solutions.
Hypermedia obtained the advertising rights from RTA for the Dubai Metro project for the subsequent next 10 years, the biggest OOH strategic partnership in the country.
Aside from venturing in the media and communication sector, BMI HOLDING serves as the industrial arm of the group, partnered with RELY Industries in the UAE and KSA, one of the largest production powerhouses of its kind in the region in custom fabrication.
How did your industry and business performed in 2021-22?
We are all aware of the fact that DOOH is going to dominate the industry in the coming few years; therefore, we have dedicated a lot of time in the past few years to improving our capabilities to offer new solutions and opportunities to our clients. We positioned Hypermedia as the ‘OOH Media Tech Company’, through investing in new product and service innovations to enhance media environment in the region by using latest technology and data analytics tools.
As for DigitAll which started as a pioneer digital signage consultancy start-up back in 2014, has grown into a Smart & Creative Solutions company that presents technologies for digital OOH interactions with high ROI. Today, DigitAll invests in smart and connected technologies to expand services in measurable digital communication tools.
What is your outlook for the industry for the year ahead?
In such an aggressive market, we need to be ready to venture into new, uncharted territories. We must keep up with upcoming technologies and solutions that can distinguish us among our peers. In this transformative phase, W Group’s subsidiaries (Hypermedia and DigitAll) will be leading the charge in revolutionising the DOOH industry with the eventual aim of positioning the group as the leading tech company in media in the MENA region.
We have completed the digitisation phase of all our media assets, which is a large inventory, and integrated our high-tech solutions to better reach target audiences. We are also spearheading the programmatic DOOH endeavour along with a pool of smart media solutions that would provide our partners with data analytics and measurement tools. Our aim is to sustain our campaigns with a full 360-degree media experience to engage marketers with their consumers.
What is one key challenge the business has faced during the year and how is it being tackled?
In recent years, we were faced with several global ‘forces majeures’ that put us at an inevitable crossroad. We either had to pack up and go home or adapt and survive. But possessing the challenge-driven mind-set, we carved our own third lane and decided to expand and grow.
We drove-in new business opportunities, expanded our team – our biggest asset – and went head-first to tackle our obstacles during the Covid pandemic. One should be a firm believer in the people to face any crisis. When deadlocks occur, they force us to think and look for great opportunities that lie in every crisis.
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