Latest news with #Choucair
MTV Lebanon
11-07-2025
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
Choucair receives Director General of Qatar Fund for Development, new UNIFIL Commander, meets Tunisian Ambassador on farewell visit
Director General of Lebanon's General Security, Major General Hassan Choucair, received in his office, the Director General of Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), Fahd bin Hamad Al Sulaiti, accompanied by a delegation from the IOM office in Lebanon. The discussion addressed ways to support Lebanon and its stability during the current exceptional circumstances. Major General Choucair also received the newly appointed Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), Major General Diodato Abagnara, who paid him an acquaintance visit upon assuming his new duties. The visit was a chance to discuss the latest field developments in south Lebanon. Major General Choucair then received Tunisian Ambassador to Lebanon, Bouraoui Limam, who came on a farewell visit upon the end of his diplomatic mission in the country. Major General Choucair wished Ambassador Bouraoui success in his new duties.
Campaign ME
11-07-2025
- Business
- Campaign ME
Flywheel expands to MENA, replaces OMG Transact
Flywheel, the digital commerce business that was acquired by Omnicom in 2023, is expanding its footprint into the Middle East, building on the regional operations of OMG Transact. The move brings Flywheel's advanced AI platform and profitability-first commerce technology to one of the fastest-growing digital markets in the world. Flywheel powers digital commerce for over 4,500 global brands – from the largest CPGs to breakout challengers. Its Commerce Cloud integrates retail media, marketplace operations, and product intelligence into a unified platform. With near real-time data and AI automation, Flywheel helps brands optimise product visibility, media performance, and profitability across major marketplaces. 'This is more than a new platform; it's a new era of commerce intelligence for MENA, and we're only just scratching the surface of what's possible,' said Elda Choucair, CEO of OMG MENA. The MENA launch combines Flywheel's global AI capabilities with OMG's local strength in retail media, CRM, and DTC strategy. The integrated team is ideally positioned to build and execute connected commerce strategies that grow both sales and share across all digital touchpoints. 'With Flywheel, clients are no longer guessing what drives growth – they're seeing it, shaping it, and scaling it,' Choucair said. By connecting retail media, retail operations, and marketplace intelligence, Flywheel delivers real-time insights from product catalogues, search data, and sales performance. Its AI-driven tools enhance product placements, catalogue efficiency, and full-funnel commerce execution – driving incremental sales, market share, and margin growth. 'This is a major milestone in e-commerce innovation for the Middle East,' said Raoul Zenon, General Manager of Flywheel MENA. 'It's particularly exciting because this is just the beginning. We have a robust pipeline of innovations launching in the coming months, each designed to drive deeper investment in commerce marketing and unlock full profit visibility.' Flywheel aims to leverage its global network of retailers and marketplaces to provide scale and data advantages for its clients.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Trintech's CFO still values his CPA license after 30 years
This story was originally published on To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily newsletter. Trintech CFO Omar Choucair has spent his career navigating the full spectrum of CFO challenges. Areas like public markets, private equity, M&A, ERP overhauls and everything in between have made up the bulk of his career in corporate finance. Now, he brings a perspective rooted in collaboration, clear communication and a long-standing commitment to staying active as a CPA. In a recent interview, Choucair discusses the biggest lessons learned in his career, what makes ERP transitions succeed or fail, how to survive private equity oversight, why being frugal when hiring for the finance team may backfire, the declining number of CPAs among CFOs and more. CFO, Trintech First CFO Position: 1999 Notable previous employers: Multiview DG FastChannel Chancellor Media KPMG Audit This interview took place at Gartner's CFO and Finance Executive Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, on May 20. It has been edited for brevity and clarity. OMAR CHOUCAIR: I've kept it up for 30 years. One of the few CFOs who do. It's really important to me personally. The issue of young, smart people not getting into accounting isn't going to be solved by changing to four years. It's about the money. There has to be more money in public accounting. I firmly believe my success is tied to my 10 years at KPMG. The experience, deadlines, challenges, communication skills, stress — you can't get that anywhere else. That's the best starting ground for a CFO. I have two daughters. They did 150 hours and got their CPAs. Early on, their friends were making 30, 40, 50% more than they were. That's a downer. And millennials, the kids today, want to get paid for what they've done. "The answer, or at least a big part of it, is that young people have to get paid more money in public accounting." Omar Choucair CFO, Trintech The Big Four have increased salaries somewhat, maybe 20–30% in the last two years, so maybe there will be some alleviation there in the future. But from an education perspective, I got my CPA after 120 hours and turned out fine. I don't think that's the answer. The answer, or at least a big part of it, is that young people have to get paid more money in public accounting. Yes, absolutely. Now it's changed. A lot of people come through finance or operations. But for me, I'd rather have the base of how things work in a company and then get the operational experience. I love operations, but I think it's very hard to come from ops and then understand how the program works. COVID changed it for me because when it happened, people were really distraught. And the only thing they knew to do was go, 'Hey, we need to go check with the CFO,' because there were capital issues, there were debt issues, you had employee issues, culture issues, IT issues — every issue could come up. That March [2020], people were doing hundreds of different types of forecasts. I think that was like the watershed. Communication across the C-level. I think many companies worked in silos. Even though they didn't want to, I think many organizations did, just because that's the way the CEO set it up. But once COVID hit, everything had to be on the table, and the CFO was the go-to person in many companies. Everybody had to talk to each other. There had to be somebody taking notes, setting up execution items — who was going to do what by tomorrow? Who was going to do what by next week? And in many cases, it just fell on the CFO. So I'm just saying, to me, that's it — everything accelerated because the world got more complicated. It taught me the value of streamlined communication and cross-collaboration. I spent a little over 15 years in public companies and then did my first period with private equity for five years. You have to be incredibly organized around both organization and communication. Those are the two keys. "As a public company CFO, you can't miss more than two metrics. If you miss revenue growth, EPS or another metric, your stock's gonna collapse 20-30%." Omar Choucair CFO, Trintech You have to be able to see around corners. And the only way to see around corners is to make sure you're organized and can communicate. And that's what I would tell people trying to take their first step. As long as you're aligned with the CEO and you're aligned with the private equity team, even if there's misalignment between CEO and PE, the train will go off the rails if the CFO communication isn't there with both parties. It's not less demanding, it's different. This is what I tell everyone: As a public company CFO, you can't miss more than two metrics. If you miss revenue growth, EPS or another metric, your stock's gonna collapse 20-30%. In private equity, you have 20 metrics. And it's OK if you miss a metric or two here and there, as long as you have a very well-filed, executed recovery plan for those metrics. It's just so much different. This is another major difference between working for a public company and one owned by private equity. It's hard in private equity. In public companies, it's more important. When people leave private equity, you often promote internally or restructure. My view has always been: get the absolute best people — people smarter than me. And when that happens, there's an opportunity. We just did that recently with a departure. From what I've seen in private equity, formal documents that have outlined succession plans for executives don't usually exist. The board may have an idea. If something happened to me where I had to suddenly leave, I think my fellow executives and finance team could keep things going for six months to a year. And if someone internal can step up, great. If not, they'd go external. It's a timely question, because we're looking at that right now. Nothing can prepare a company or a CFO more than complete, massive documentation — flowcharts and documentation narratives. I spent 10 years in public accounting, and I learned quickly that finance needs a narrative that can take people across the organization through the accounts payable cycle. For companies to be successful, you need all those narratives and flowcharts completely cooked, baked and ready to go. "I spent 10 years in public accounting, and I learned quickly that finance needs a narrative that can take people across the organization through the accounts payable cycle." Omar Choucair CFO, Trintech In the last 10 years, we've done order-to-cash implementations, ERP implementations, HR implementations — they're all incredibly difficult. Make sure you have all your narratives and your flowcharts done, and you have to hire and onboard really good people before any implementations. Typically, you don't have those people on staff, so you have to hire consultants. If you do this proactively, and you're not cheap on hiring people, it will help make the process much smoother later on. I never blame salespeople. It's procurement, it's legal, it's me. You can't contract with an ERP company and then six months later say, 'Well, that's different than what they said.' It's always going to be different. It's up to the company. People who have been around discount a lot of what salespeople tell them. And that's what we do — so you have to assume what people are telling you is not 100%. As an organization, we automate front-end solutions and reconcile third-party data systems into ERPs, but we don't replace the ERP. We make it stronger and more effective. So luckily, we can use our own tools. However, over the last four years, we've aggressively tried to upgrade every piece of the stack. That includes the FP&A tools, all the data tools and now our ERP. Recommended Reading Cin7 CFO Erik Rothschild on scaling finance under private equity Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Campaign ME
20-02-2025
- Business
- Campaign ME
Omnicom consultancy Sparks & Honey expands to the Middle East with Dubai office
Omnicom's cultural intelligence and foresight consultancy Sparks & Honey has expanded into the Middle East with the opening of an office in Dubai. Until recently, it was part of the Hall & Partners network. By integrating the expanding Sparks & Honey network, Omnicom Media Group's research capabilities will now include a broader range of services and technologies, especially in the field of cultural intelligence and foresight. These purpose-built solutions are designed to help brands identify the cultural trends shaping the future and their impact on brands. Elda Choucair, CEO of Omnicom Media Group MENA., said, 'We've always been driven by operating at the cutting-edge of our industry to keep our clients at the forefront of theirs. Bringing our research unit into the growing Sparks & Honey network allows us to not only bring something new in market research in terms of practice and technology but also differentiating and impactful.' 'In today's rapidly changing context, brands need to connect the dots between cultural intelligence and understanding cultural change as this drives their success. In order future-proof organisations, we leverage both human and artificial intelligence to quantify culture and ignite transformation for brands and their consumers,' Choucair added. In addition to uncovering emerging trends and market segments with Sparks & Honey's Q Cultural Intelligence, the Culture Engine in Omnicom's marketing orchestration platform Omni, the consultancy is also offering comprehensive quantitative, qualitative market research and analytics solutions. Its Brand Intelligence Tool, a locally developed system being implemented globally, is a powerful always-on brand tracking system. Chady Debs, General Manager of Sparks & Honey MENA, said, 'For years, we've provided market research services that help our clients grow their brand equity, elevate their products and services, and improve their customer experience. As sparks & honey, we can be innovative while staying true to our core values, mission, and commitment to serving our partners,' Debs concluded, 'As we embrace new technologies to help them respond to growing challenges, our new approach is a timely expression of our own transformation and the expansion of our service offering. This evolution goes beyond the cosmetics. It reflects a deeper alignment with our mission and sets the stage for a dynamic future.'
The Guardian
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Fashion's ongoing obsession with football jerseys: ‘I would absolutely die for that shirt'
Instagrammer Mariame Choucair has built a steady following from her love of football and obsession with football jerseys. The Sydney pharmacist is a lifelong fan of the game, but it's her 'fit checks – photos of her, red lipped with a chic brunette bob, sporting a retro football kit – that have positioned her as a style influencer. The Guardian's journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. 'I love wearing my football shirts – and not just to matches,' she says. 'I love incorporating them into everyday looks. I like to dress it up in a feminine way; I'll wear [a jersey] with an A-line skirt, short or long.' Choucair posts photos to her followers of her styling the retro football shirts she collects – think a long-sleeved, cherry-red Bayern Munich top with a black-and-white tweed miniskirt. It's a look she's rocked for years, but Choucair says it has been 'really cool' to see the rise of 'blokecore' on TikTok over the last two years, a term used to describe men and women styling vintage football shirts with baggy or straight-cut jeans, knee-length shorts, skirts and trainers – especially Adidas Sambas and Gazelles. Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning In the last year, Hailey Bieber, Sabrina Carpenter and Dua Lipa have posted photographs of themselves wearing football shirts, both team jerseys and custom designs, and fashion brands Balenciaga, Stella McCartney and Armani have embraced football culture in their collections. The trend has surfaced globally over the last five years, with Australian stores noticing the impact more recently. When vintage football shirt store PFC Vintage opened in Melbourne in 2019, its director Paul Blake recalls most customers were straight-up football fans. Nowadays, he says, 'festival culture and the 'blokecore' movement' has transformed jerseys into 'socially acceptable' casualwear. This article includes content provided by Instagram. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'. Ed Podlubny, the owner of clothing store Vintage Sole, also in Melbourne, agrees. 'There's been a noticeable shift in the demand for football shirts, driven by a more diverse and fashion-savvy crowd,' he says. 'Football kits have transformed into a cultural phenomenon, merging sport, fashion and personal identity. It's a huge departure from the classic game-day look.' Dr Harriette Richards, a senior lecturer at RMIT's school of fashion and textiles, has noticed more football jerseys on her students too. 'It's not a particularly gendered trend,' she says. 'I think it's wrapped up in the broader 90s fashion trend, a throwback to 90s football culture that's different from contemporary football culture. 'The graphic designs of the 90s shirts are cool, and the sponsorships of the clubs are different now. They're not accountancy brands or betting brands. Back then it was Mars bar and Sega.' Football jerseys have never been cheap, but now that retro kits are sought-after fashion items, retailers are capitalising. Ultra Football in Sydney sells current kits of the world's biggest teams for about $120, but a limited-edition 1974 Lazio shirt goes for $220. And if you're seeking match-worn shirts, PFC Vintage sells them for over $1,000. Brisbane-based Mystery Kits Australia, a company that sells gift boxes containing a 'mystery shirt' from any club in the world, says sales have 'skyrocketed' among gen Z customers. 'Once seen as dorky or childish, pairing a football jersey with shorts and a nice pair of shoes has become commonplace,' says co-founder Harry Johnson. 'Part of the appeal is wearing a rare kit from 20 or 30 years ago that no one else has.' Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion Most teams with an international following have a 'retro' section on their website where you can buy replicas of discontinued kits. And teams are leaning on celebrity football fans to launch new versions of vintage styles. When Manchester United revealed its 2024-25 kit, it did so with a campaign featuring the Irish actor Barry Keoghan wearing a club tracksuit, soundtracked to 90s dance music. Then there are teams generating more buzz for their fashion than their football. Venezia FC, a middling Italian football team, was dubbed 'the world's most fashionable football club' by GQ, and the team routinely launches new shirts with elegant shoots that would be more at home in fashion magazines than on the training ground. FC Versailles, the third-tier semi-professional French outfit co-owned by Formula One driver Pierre Gasly, is also cashing in on its kit with a streetwear collaboration with Kappa. 'You have to credit Venezia and Versailles for marketing their shirts as fashion items,' says Podlubny. 'They're tapping into a wider audience beyond traditional football fans. These clubs recognise the crossover between sport and fashion.' But clubs that prioritise aesthetics and high-end collaborations 'risk alienating dedicated football fans who value the shirts as symbols of team pride rather than fashion statements', he says. Choucair, who collects both jerseys and football boots, welcomes fashion's interest in football. 'If I am wearing something original and vintage, people will ask about the era of the kit,' she says. 'I love connecting with people who love the game.' She owns about 60 Sydney FC shirts, 40 Germany shirts ('the oldest I have is from 1994') and countless others from Bayern Munich, Germany, England, the Socceroos and Matildas. 'I'm always on the lookout for vintage Sydney FC kits that were never for sale commercially,' she says. But her 'grail jersey', she says, is a France 98 home kit with Zidane on it: 'I would absolutely die for that shirt.'
