Ambition & Success: Paola El Sitt

1. Tell us about your journey so far as a digital influencer?

My journey has been very exciting and rewarding, I graduated when social media was emerging and directly started my company back in Lebanon.I feel like my whole career has been shaped by my status as a digital influencer. Its been growing with the growth of my online community.I have been learning and succeeding with them and even when I was hit hard after the unfortunate events in Lebanon my home country, they were part of the healing and my comeback journey too. So what can be more exciting than having an online squad that walks you through the journey of life.

 

2. How has Lebanon influenced your career and life?

Lebanon is a country with very unique cultural mix. Growing up there exposes you as a person to 18 sects of different backgrounds. You learn to open up to the world and live with everything different, these aspects made me a very flexible and creative person.Also, the turbulent and unstable political situation makes you strong, we have witnessed wars and never had any security so we learned somehow to live and survive on the edge . This nurtured my courage to take blind risks in life and stand up every time I fall. As sad as it may sound but I look at it as a blessing having this limitless ability as an entrepreneur to always create and take risks and never quit.

3. How did your association with Maybelline New York come about?

This was a beautiful turning point in my life when I was approached for this collaboration as the first Arab influencer to have her own lip kit. I was overwhelmed and I was at an early stage of my career, it was a dream come true. I was able to explore the beauty world as it was my first venture.I started in the fashion sector with my e-commerce platform and it opened doors for me to start my journey in the beauty industry too.

4. Tell us more about your Fragrance line?

My fragrance MP was launched in 2018.I jumped into a world I didn’t know anything about, all I knew is I wanted to create something from the Middle East to the world.

I learned a lot about the industry and the massive success story we had in Lebanon after the launch was overwhelming and a bit bigger than me at that time.I was just a very young entrepreneur taking big steps and trying to find myself in the business world with new products that represents my passion for curating everything beautiful.

I wanted to live up to the standard of trust of my online community, so I worked on learning the pros and cons and everything about this industry. End of 2019 after the economic crisis in Lebanon and the unofficial capital control that was imposed on us I lost everything I had made. This was heartbreaking because I didn’t fail but I was forced into a situation like every other Lebanese business in Lebanon.I closed my company there and moved to UAE where I luckily got acquired by an investment company that was interested in the success story of MP perfume.

I am currently working with them on uplifting my perfume brand and I am also creating another perfume brand with them.

5. Which upcoming projects are you working on?

So in parallel to creating my personal perfume brand and another one ( still confidential), I am launching an Italian collagen water brand and we have acquired the distribution rights for the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt . Its a revolutionary patent product in the beauty and wellness industry because the new technology works in dual way not only providing a higher rate of absorption compared to all other collagen products but also stimulating the natural production of collagen in the body.

I’m also relaunching my e-commerce paltform again from Lebanon with my team working from there. This was my first venture as an entrepreneur and I want to see it come back to life.

Along with these projects I am simultaeneously working on regional and international brand collaborations.

6. When did you move to the UAE permanently and how has the UAE helped your career?

I moved in January 2020 and I always knew I should be here but never wanted to leave my home country as I had the luxury of traveling back and forth doing what I love and still be next to my family and loved ones. But when the situation in Lebanon crashed as an entrepreneur I didn’t want to surrender and I always believe in second chances in life, so I felt this is the place to be to restart and continue my journey because the UAE is heaven for every every dreamer and UAE's healthy and positive entrepreneurial environment is a blessing, you find motivation and opportunities in every corner.