Standing Tall: How UAE-Based Entrepreneur Maria Pruna Turned Dismissal Into Drive

It should have been just another routine introduction. But when Maria Pruna, owner of the Sharjah-based My Car Care, said at a networking event in Dubai that she ran a car wash business, the person across from her laughed.

“She dismissed it as ‘small money,’ and implied it wasn’t worth her attention,” Pruna later recalled in a post on the social media platform LinkedIn. “When I asked what was funny, she didn’t even respond. The moment was awkward and uncomfortable. I didn’t go there to be judged. I went to grow.”

Pruna’s story struck a chord online. Her post went viral, drawing attention not just to her personal experience, but to the broader question that she posed: why do we belittle businesses based on their size?

In a conversation with Inc. Arabia, Pruna gave her own take on the matter. “People, especially in the UAE, always want to build fancy and glamorous businesses, and they dismiss ‘boring’ businesses that also have a right to sit at the business table,” she said. “People do not understand that these business models are lucrative. The UAE car wash service market is expected to grow from US$348.5 million in 2024 to $545.4 million by 2030. Globally, the projected value of the car wash market is estimated to be $59.26 billion by 2032, up from $35.26 billion in 2022. People miss on some solid business opportunities, because of this short-sighted mindset, and because they want fast results, at scale.”

However, this is not to say that a car wash business is easy to build either—Pruna underscored the fact that such an enterprise would need time to expand and develop not just its services, but also its pool of customers.

“Most people expect immediate revenue with very little effort,” she added. “The reality is that a car wash needs to be run like any other business: you need someone to build the brand and its social media presence, another person to do business development and attract new clients, and someone else who can create the short-term and long-term strategy. In my case, all of those roles are played by me, because I cannot afford to hire someone else outside of my accountant and the quality manager. That is another challenge of small businesses: limited resources and cash flow, especially in the first year. And the owners need to make incredible efforts to keep themselves afloat.”

Pruna is no stranger to all of this, though—the Romanian native had, prior to moving to the UAE, already ventured into entrepreneurship when she was living in Belgium.

“After going through a painful divorce in 2022, I sold my part of the house [I lived in], and then, I had to take a decision whether to invest my money in an apartment in Belgium, or a business,” she shared. “I had zero background on how to manage a business, but I wanted a change. All my life, I had been ‘obedient.’ Listening to family and social rules, trying to fit in society by following the recipe my parents and grandparents used: you finish university, get married, get a house, make a family, and live your life. Same place, same routine, every day of your life. An easy and stable life. I had used this recipe, but it brought me an empty house, depression, and a burden on my shoulders. I had two choices: keep doing what I had learned, or do something completely new despite the risks. I chose the latter, and together with my life partner, I bought my first car wash in Belgium.”

Taking the leap into entrepreneurship was one thing—living with it, Pruna admitted, was another altogether. “My decision was questioned from day one by family and friends,” she recalled. “My own impostor syndrome was my companion for the first six months of the company running.”

But Pruna persisted, and it eventually paid off—clients came to trust her, the business grew, and the venture found its footing. “Once I saw success, I started to trust myself and once my self-confidence was strong, I knew the sky is the limit,” she said. That conviction set the stage for her next move: a leap from Belgium to the UAE earlier this year, when she bought a car wash in Sharjah and developed it into My Car Care. Offering everything from traditional washes, polishing, and waxing to supercar detailing and at-home services, the business has managed to build what Pruna described as “a very loyal number of clients.”

Given Pruna’s background, one can now perhaps understand better why that moment at that networking event in Dubai stung her as much as it did—and why she decided to turn it into a public reflection on social media. “The post on LinkedIn was rooted in the realization that this situation can happen again to another fellow business woman, and that it was my duty to expose such type of behavior,” Pruna told Inc. Arabia. “I wanted to become a voice encouraging women entrepreneurs to stand up for themselves in business encounters, even if the person in front of them can intimidate them. I wanted to be an example of how a woman owning a car wash tries to create a brand for her business, despite attempts to have her silenced, bullied, or mocked.”

Pruna had thus shared her experience on social media with the aim of reminding her peers in the business realm—especially those who are women—to never let anyone downplay their entrepreneurial efforts. What she didn’t anticipate, however, was the sheer scale of the response it would generate.

“I never dreamt my post would go viral and spark so many reactions, especially in the comments section,” she said. “This shows me that people care about this topic; they agree that bad manners and dismissive behaviors do not have a place in a business environment. The goal of my post was to spark a conversation around the business etiquette, especially in networking events, as well as around the challenges of women entrepreneurs in the UAE have when they start a business. I wanted this to inspire more female leaders to join the conversation, and speak about their experience and journey in the UAE. Because at the end of the day, women entrepreneurs are the most vulnerable in front of rejection and ridicule, and they have less chances to be taken seriously, especially when they own a ‘boring’ brick-and-mortar business in a male-dominated industry.”

But this entire experience has reshaped how Pruna chooses to show up in entrepreneurial circles today. Where she once hesitated to speak about the challenges of running her business, she is now eager to stand tall and spotlight the work she does to build it. “We are not online, we are brick-and-mortar, and our clients cannot find us easily—it takes me three times more time and effort to promote my brand,” she pointed out. “So, when I am sitting in the corner of the room next time, waiting to get introduced at a networking event, please take your time to understand what is my business about before dismissing it. Because at the end of the day, we keep your cars clean, shiny, and presentable to meet clients and impress them in order to sign that million-dollar contract.”

Having thus lived through the doubts, the dismissals, and the demands of keeping a business going, Pruna is emphatic about what fellow entrepreneurs should hold on to as they build their own ventures.

“Founders should never stop believing in their small business, especially in the initial stages, despite negative comments or a lack of trust in their product or service,” she said. “They need to persevere and dedicate themselves, 100 percent, every day to their business, and keep promoting the business, no matter what. Some prefer to sell their business at a loss after a year, just because they do not want to dedicate themselves to it. So, my best advice is to go on the streets, in networking events, conferences, speak to neighbors and friends, and build a brand online. It sounds easy, but most entrepreneurs expect results without putting in the effort. Be relentless—you never know where your one top-tier client will come from, and that will be the start of your business soaring.”

All images featuring (and courtesy) Maria Pruna, owner, My Car Care.

This article first appeared in the September 2025 issue of Inc. Arabia. To read the full issue online, click here.