Kuwait-Based Trendle, The Company Behind Custom Tailoring App MASAHA, Closes US$1.5 Million Seed Round

Trendle—the company behind Kuwait-based customer tailoring app MASAHA—has closed a second seed funding round that has given the company a valuation of US$1.5 million. 

Founded by Faisal Al-Qarnous and Bader Aburezq in Kuwait in 2022, MASAHA is a technology platform dedicated to modernizing and transforming the tailoring sector through automation and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions, bringing digital innovation to the industry. 

The investment in MASAHA/Trendle was led by Fifty Studios Holding, a Kuwait-based technology development firm, Waleed Al-Sulaim as a marketing partner and angel investor, as well as Green Company, represented by Mohammed Al-Fahad and angel investor Abdulmohsen Khaled Al-Sane.

In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Al-Qarnous explained that he founded MASAHA with the aim to modernize one of the region’s most traditional industries. “The idea started from a personal pain point," he shared. "Despite tailoring being deeply rooted in daily life across the GCC, the experience remained fragmented, manual, and inefficient for both customers and tailors."

As Al-Qarnous explored the industry, he identified a few key structural problems in how it operates. "Tailoring in the region suffers from three major challenges," he said. "First, inconsistency. Customers face unpredictable quality, timelines, and outcomes. Measurements are often manual, records are lost, and rework is common. Second, operational inefficiency. Most tailors rely on outdated workflows with no data, no forecasting, and no standardized procedures. This limits scale and profitability. Third, lack of transparency and trust. Customers have little visibility into production stages, delivery timelines, or pricing logic." 

It is thus to bridge these gaps that MASAHA has built a technology platform that connects every layer of the tailoring experience, combining ordering, measurement, production tracking, and fulfillment through a single application. “MASAHA addresses these issues by introducing standardized workflows, digital measurement profiles, order tracking, and structured operating procedures that tailors plug into," Al-Qarnous explained. "For customers, this means clarity, consistency, and a modern experience. For tailors, it means higher utilization, better demand management, and access to technology they could not build on their own." 

And to execute on this mission, Al-Qarnous built a deliberate organizational framework. MASAHA functions as a flagship portfolio company within Trendle, the parent holding enterprise created to develop, oversee, and expand technology-driven ventures in both consumer and B2B markets. Trendle is responsible for high-level strategy, corporate governance, and setting the overall direction, while MASAHA concentrates on operational execution, product innovation, and capturing market opportunities in the tailoring and apparel technology sector. 

Central to this structure is the company's operating model, which Al-Qarnous sees as the key to viable expansion. "MASAHA is building a plug-and-play operating model where local tailoring partners operate using MASAHA's systems, standards, and supply chain," he explained, noting that this allows the company to expand without owning factories in all of the geographies that it operates. "This asset-light approach allows us to scale faster, control quality through systems, and adapt locally without heavy capital expenditure." 

The new capital MASAHA has secured is thus set to support the company as it expands both operationally and geographically, with its new partners contributing more than just capital. "The funding supports product development, operational scale, and regional expansion, while strategic partners contribute execution power, governance, and market access," Al-Qarnous said. "We intentionally structured the round around strategic value creation. Each partner strengthens a core pillar of MASAHA's growth, whether it is technology, brand, operations, or legal structure."  

Al-Qarnous also highlighted that the company’s structural approach of providing technology as a service as a layer to a traditional industry like tailoring, resonated strongly with investors. “What attracted our investors was not just the size of the opportunity, but the structure of the model," he pointed out. "MASAHA is not a marketplace built on commissions alone. It is an operating system for tailoring." And now, with the capital secured, MASAHA is preparing to scale across the region. “Our GCC expansion timeline for 2026–2027 focuses primarily on Saudi Arabia and Qatar as initial markets," Al-Qarnous revealed. "These markets combine high demand, cultural alignment with tailoring, and strong purchasing power." 

For other startups wanting to follow MASAHA's lead in disrupting traditional industries in the fast-evolving Gulf markets, Al-Qarnous shared clear advice. "Do not underestimate operations," he said. "Technology alone does not fix traditional industries. You must understand how work is done on the ground, then design systems that people can realistically adopt. Start with structure before scale. Standardize processes, pricing logic, and quality benchmarks. Growth will expose any weakness you ignore at the beginning." 

Above operational and structural considerations, Al-Qarnous also highlighted the human dimension of industry transformation. “Build trust before disruption," he said. "Traditional industries move slowly, because relationships matter. Respect that, design around it, and you will unlock a scale that others cannot reach."

Pictured in the lead image is Faisal Al-Qarnous, co-founder and CEO of MASAHA. Courtesy of MASAHA.