“In 2014, Maha Shirah founded SheWorks, the first coworking space and business incubator for women in Saudi Arabia. In this interview, she talks about how society and the world of work are changing in Saudi Arabia, what dreams drive her – and why she has since closed SheWorks and is realigning the concept.“ Annika Brohm, Journalist
Maha, Saudi Arabia has changed and opened up considerably in recent years. How did you experience your childhood and youth in the kingdom – before the social reforms?
I was born and grew up in the capital Riyadh. Back then, everything was still strictly segregated by gender: we attended girls-only schools and universities. Men and women were not allowed to work together in the same room, with a few exceptions, such as in hospitals. Even restaurants were segregated by gender. There was a singles area for single men and a separate area for families and women.
What role did women play in the labour market back then?
For a long time, we were excluded from many areas of the labour market. To work in factories, for example, we needed the consent of our male guardian, usually our husband or father. This was not because we women were not qualified for this work. Rather, most male guardians did not feel comfortable seeing their wives working in a mixed environment. They were not used to it, especially men from traditional families.
Then in 2005, King Abdullah declared that from then on, women would be allowed to work in all industries without permission. That was the beginning. Ten years later, the government gradually abolished gender segregation. After that, everything changed for us. Women are now allowed to drive cars, travel freely and set up businesses.
How did you come up with the idea of founding the first coworking space for women in Saudi Arabia?
About ten years ago, I was looking for a coworking space myself. There were only three or four in the whole country at the time. All of them were for men and were run by men. They were afraid to rent a space to me as a woman.
So I opened SheWorks in 2014 and created a space for women. They could rent an office space from me on a monthly basis. I also organised regular workshops and events on a wide range of business topics.
A year later, the gender segregation was lifted. But such changes are of course a process. I realised that women still appreciate having a space all to themselves. At SheWorks, they could be themselves and take off their abayas, niqabs or hijabs. Because we could see each other and speak freely, we were able to build a network and a community. There were no boundaries in terms of industry, age or background. Saudis were just as much a part of the community as people from abroad. What united us was our love of entrepreneurship.
With “Vision 2030”, the royal family has set itself the goal of empowering women in the world of work, among other things. Did the government support you?
Not in 2014, when the business ecosystem in Saudi Arabia was still in its infancy. Few people knew what a start-up was, and even the government paid little attention to the topic. The royal family only presented its Vision 2030 two years later. This marked the beginning of a new era for the world of work: small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups became more of a focus. However, I didn’t benefit from this. My biggest curse was that I entered the market when the concept was still new. I was one of the first to educate consumers: What is a coworking space, what is an incubator (a facility that promotes the founding and growth of small or medium-sized companies, editor’s note)? Even the investors who were interested in our work didn’t understand this at first.
At the same time, we had to keep up with all the changes and new regulations in Saudi Arabia. I invited experts from different industries to give workshops at SheWorks and get the women on board. What is the vision for 2030, what will be the next trend? What can we do and who can we talk to in order to benefit from this?
The response to SheWorks was positive and the concept received international recognition. Why did you close the coworking space?
Corona hit me hard. During the lockdown period, I had to continue paying the rent for the space. At the same time, I had to refund my customers’ contributions and cancel all workshops and activities. For example, we had planned some programmes with universities. My mistake at the time was that I couldn’t transfer my coworking space and incubator into a digital space. It’s difficult to convert something tangible with human emotions and interactions into something digital. I tried it. It didn’t work.
About the person
Maha Shirah, born and raised in the Saudi capital Riyadh, is an entrepreneur and mother of two sons. She has university degrees in English-Arabic translation and finance as well as a diploma in photography.
In 2014, she founded SheWorks, a coworking space and business incubator for women in Riyadh. Since then, she has made a name for herself as a mentor and consultant for entrepreneurs, freelancers and start-ups – for both women and men. Her current activities include giving workshops at universities and running a beauty salon.
What’s next for the company?
I want to bring SheWorks back, but this time in a different way. Because as I said, the whole eco-system has changed. I still have the network and the relationships. Now I have found investors who want to work with me.
In future, the incubator will be open to men and women. To this day, people come to me who want to start a business in Saudi Arabia. Many are expats from sectors such as culture, energy or tourism. I want to create a business accelerator to make it easier for them to get started. Many services, for example in public authorities, are only offered in Arabic. Some of the processes are complicated even for us locals. Not to mention people who come from abroad and don’t speak the language.
The concept is new, the name SheWorks will remain – why?
SheWorks remains an initiative to empower women. We want to help them understand the business world better through workshops and events. Women don’t just start businesses to earn money. They want to make a difference in society and have a social impact. When our children ask us one day what we worked so hard for, we want to be able to say: I helped make a difference in the community and prepare your future. I was part of the Vision 2030 that you are now living.
What are the most common stereotypes about Saudi Arabia that you encounter in everyday life?
Most prejudices have to do with my appearance, my education, my freedom: As a woman, am I allowed to do this or that or not? Do I have a bank account? Do I need my husband’s permission to work, travel or study? Do I have to cover my face? These are all outdated stereotypes.
What dreams and hopes do you have for women in your home country?
We need more programmes to empower women. That’s why I continue to push SheWorks. The government has given us many opportunities. It’s up to us to seize them. My generation had to earn things and take them, sometimes by force (laughs).
In this new era, anything is possible. We can open a business, travel freely and do what we want. In my day, that was difficult. We had to convince our parents, our husband or the government. Society used to think that the business world was too tough for women. Now many men say: We can’t keep up with you women. In fact, companies are hiring more women today, for example because they are good at marketing and PR. But many of the younger generation still need a push. We need to do more for them.
What advice would you give to female entrepreneurs?
If you fall and fail along the way, it’s not the end of the world. You can cry, you can be angry, you can wallow in your drama. But then you have to motivate yourself to get up again. I had to overcome many hurdles and broke down often enough. Then the next day it’s: Yallah – let’s go – let’s get back to work. Life goes on.
Annika Brohm …
… quit her job in Frankfurt in 2021 and has been travelling between southern Africa and the Middle East as an expat and freelance journalist ever since, always on the lookout for new stories. While searching for coworking spaces in Saudi Arabia, she came across Maha Shirah and SheWorks – and was immediately impressed by the concept.
Fotos: © SheWorks, Annika Brohm
