Dubai-Based Beauty Brand Amaani Pockets US$3 Million From Peak XV’s Surge

Dubai-based beauty and wellness platform Amaani has secured US$3 million in seed funding for its debut beauty brand AÏZA, in a round led by Singapore-based venture capital (VC) firm Peak XV’s seed platform, Surge. This is Surge’s first consumer and seed investment in the MENA region. 

Founded by Shubham Poddar in the UAE in 2023, Amaani, which means “wishes and aspirations” in Arabic, is developing beauty and wellness brands inspired by Middle Eastern heritage. Its flagship brand AÏZA, which was launched in May 2025, blends regionally relevant ingredients such as dates, black seed, bakhoor, sidr, frankincense, and saffron with clinically tested ingredients from labs in Italy, Japan, and South Korea.

In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Poddar said that his aim with AÏZA is to put Arab beauty on the global stage, a step that he believes is long overdue. “The region is one of the most beauty-centric markets in the world, with beauty accounting for 10-11 percent of retail spend, versus 2-3 percent in the US, UK, or Korea," Poddar said. "This speaks to how deeply beauty is woven into people’s lives here. That intensity of demand, combined with a young, diverse, and opinionated consumer base, makes it a true innovation hub. AÏZA is the first brand to put 'Arab beauty on the global stage, blending centuries-old rituals and ingredients with world-class innovation."

AÏZA first launched online with products including Sukkar Rush, a lip treatment with date and honey, Scent Storm, a bakhoor and rose hair mist, and Date Setter, a brow and lash serum with date seed and castor oil. Within three months, it crossed $2 million in annualized revenue, with strong uptake in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Such wins reinforce Poddar's statement that Arab beauty, which has not received as much attention or investment as Korean (K-beauty) and Japanese beauty (J-beauty), for example, warrants attention not just from the region, but from the world as well. “Unlike K-beauty or J-beauty, which have already travelled the world, Arab beauty has long been missing from the global conversation," Poddar said. "We’re here to change that.” 

Image courtesy Amaani.

And that mission is reflected not just in AÏZA’s formulations, but in its storytelling, Poddar adds. “Arabia today is young, bold, and modern, yet deeply rooted in heritage," he explained. "That dichotomy is what makes it so exciting, and that’s the energy we channel at AÏZA. We call it 'Past Forward': honoring the past, while reimagining it for the world today. Our emblem, the Nuqta, the starting point of Arabic calligraphy fused with a modern dot, embodies that. It’s a symbol of creation, tradition, and progress in one. Each product reimagines a story from Arab households, like turning the ritual of fragrancing hair with bakhoor into Scent Storm, a bakhoor-rose protective mist against heat and humidity, or transforming a do-it-yourself sidr scalp mask recipe into Bayt Blend, a hyaluronic acid-infused treatment.” 

In the coming months, Amaani intends to expand AÏZA across regional and international markets through both retail and online channels, while also working on future brands that build on modern interpretations of Arab culture. And looking further ahead, Poddar sees three major trends shaping the beauty and wellness industries. “First, inclusivity and cultural representation—consumers want brands that feel authentic to their identity and cultural background," he said. "Beauty that honors regional stories, reflects real people, skin tones, and hair textures. Second, clean and transparent beauty—clean is no longer a differentiator, it’s the baseline expectation. Brands that don’t reveal their ingredients, manufacturing practices, cruelty-free/vegan status, or clean standards will fall behind. Lastly, an experiential and multisensory beauty experience—beauty brands are becoming storytellers through packaging, visuals, and content, while products are expected to deliver more than visible effects, it’s expected to invoke a feeling, a memory, an emotion.” 

Poddar also shared advice for other entrepreneurs eyeing the beauty and wellness space in the MENA region. “Build with global standards in mind from day one," he said. "Consumers in Arabia are already used to the world’s best beauty brands. They expect homegrown brands to meet, if not exceed, that same bar. If you do that, GCC can be not just a large, fast-growing home market, but a launchpad for brands that resonate worldwide. At Amaani, our ambition is exactly that: to build the next generation of beauty and wellness brands from the Middle East for the world.” 

Pictured in the lead image is Amaani founder Shubham Poddar. Image courtesy Amaani.