The ENTERTAINER’s “Our Home. Our Heart.” Initiative To Support UAE Businesses And Residents Draws 250,000 Claims From Across The Country

The ENTERTAINER, the lifestyle platform founded by Australian entrepreneur Donna Benton in Dubai in 2001, launched the “Our Home. Our Heart.” initiative with the aim of supporting UAE-based hospitality businesses and residents amid challenging conditions currently prevalent in the country and the wider region.

The effort saw The ENTERTAINER—a digital platform that provides buy-one-get-one-free offers across dining, leisure, entertainment, beauty, and hotel experiences throughout the Middle East and Singapore—launch a new category of memberships called "One Heart," of which 50,000 were given away for free. UAE residents who claimed these memberships can enjoy The ENTERTAINER’s offers across participating merchants in dining, leisure, wellness, hotel stays, and services until September 15, 2026.

In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Benton revealed that following the initial 50,000 run, a total of 250,000 One Heart memberships were claimed from The ENTERTAINER in just a matter of hours, which, in turn, has since led to the redemption of nearly 100,000 of its offers at venues across the UAE. According to Benton, the initiative serves as a reflection of the responsibility that her enterprise feels toward the ecosystem it has helped shape over the past two decades.

“Our platform has always been designed to connect people with the best experiences the UAE has to offer, while helping venues drive customers through their doors,” Benton told Inc. Arabia. “With Our Home. Our Heart., we wanted to reinforce that mission at a time when it matters most. The initiative is about encouraging the community to continue supporting their favourite restaurants, attractions, and service providers—when it is safe to do so and mindful of the official government advice—while also helping people feel more confident about spending through the added value that an ENTERTAINER membership provides. By offering meaningful savings and experiences, we can help drive footfall to our participating merchants, while giving residents a way to enjoy the venues they love without stretching their budgets.”

The Our Home. Our Heart. initiative has thus come against the backdrop of mounting pressures across the hospitality industry. “The immediate challenge faced by the industry is, of course, the loss or reduction of customer footfall,” Benton pointed out. “For many in the community, concerns around job security and personal spending have understandably made people more cautious about how and where they spend their money. At the same time, there has been a dramatic fall in tourism, a cornerstone of many of our merchants’ income. With the reduction in visitors, this period is really a call to the residential community in particular to support their local hospitality venues—as long as they feel safe to do so. It’s a snowball effect: support your local community, support your local economy, support the job market. So, the Our Home. Our Heart. initiative works twofold: driving footfall to venues, while helping residents save money.”

At a time when the UAE’s hospitality industry is facing mounting pressures, Benton said the support of the wider community—through initiatives like Our Home. Our Heart., for instance—will be essential to safeguarding the sector. “Whether it’s a couple of coffees a week, shopping locally, dining out, or enjoying experiences when it’s safe to do so, small actions help keep businesses going and communities strong,” Benton explained. “Ultimately, Our Home. Our Heart. reflects The ENTERTAINER’s longstanding partnership with the UAE’s world-leading hospitality and services sectors. For over two decades, we’ve grown alongside this industry, and this initiative is about standing with it—and with the community—during a challenging time, encouraging people to support the businesses that make the UAE such a vibrant place to live.”

At the same time, Benton emphasized that businesses in the UAE will also need to adapt how they operate during this period. “Right now, it’s difficult to plan too far ahead,” she said. “Businesses need to stay agile and focus on what’s happening in the moment rather than a six-month roadmap. The priority is executing for today—forget the due diligence, forget the flip charts, you’ve got to go with your gut and what feels right to ensure the business stays afloat. Longer-term plans can be revisited once there’s more stability and you can learn to swim freely again. In the meantime, careful cash flow management is critical; this is about focusing on needs, not wants.”