DUBAI: In line with company’s objective to promote the concept of Real Halal food globally, Al Islami has participated in the Sharia-compliant Bazaar set up under the banner of the 2nd edition of the Dubai International Peace Convention and Exhibition held on April 12 to April 14, 2012 at Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The Peace Convention partnered with companies like Al Islami Foods, Emaar, Emirates, Lulu, Dar Al Ber Society, AW Rostamani, Emirates, Dubai Islamic Bank, ADCB Islamic Banking, Khansaheb, Dubai Media Inc., as well as independent sharia-compliant businesses such as, Al Madina Supermarket, Jaleel Distributors, Landmark Hotels, and several others.

Saleh Abdullah Lootah, Managing Director of Al Islami Foods, said: “Islam and Halal have such a wide implication on human beings that no other religion bears. These two systems are obligatory for Muslims, and a sheer benefit for non-Muslim fellow beings at the same time, according to several studies conducted so far. Halal meat is not only healthy but it is clean, safe and delicious. Alhamdulillah, Al Islami has a long legacy of producing Real Halal food.”

The event is conducted every two years. Year 2010 edition received 100,000 visitors during the three-day event. This year over 250,000 attended the Convention, Islamic Exhibition and Sharia compliant Bazaar. Guest speakers include world renowned Islamic scholars such as: Sheikh Mishary Rashid Al-Efasy, Dr. Zakir Naik, Sheikh Yusuf Estes along with other top speakers.

The Dubai International Peace Convention 2012 was officially opened  by H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation. This is under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum honored the guests, along with the event’s sponsors. This convention has brought many guests from all over the world to convene in Dubai with one unified goal: to spread the true image of this religion and in the process cultivate world peace.

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See the full story on the link below:

http://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/Business-News/Multi-million-pound-halal-facility-now-open

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WASHINGTON (RNS) Muslim consumers are growing in the U.S. and they have money to spend. Now, businesses are starting to take notice.

“The emerging American Muslim market is perhaps the new area that a lot of businesses … are starting to look into,” said Rafi-uddin Shikoh, managing director and founder of DinarStandard, a marketing research firm specializing in the emerging Muslim market.

Shikoh said his New York-based firm conducted research in 2011 on the Muslim marketplace and found that, while Muslims are just as hard to categorize as other groups, there are plenty of opportunities for different industries — food, retail and finance — to reach them.

With an estimated disposable income of between $107 billion and $124 billion, Muslim Americans are realizing they can use their size to influence the market, he said. If a business offers halal food products, for example, Muslim consumers will pick that business over the others. “There are these unique things that businesses are not realizing but there’s an opportunity for that,” he said at a recent forum sponsored by the American Islamic Congress.

The Pew Research Center conducted a survey last year on Muslim Americans and estimated a population of about 2.8 million Muslims in the U.S., and they’re growing thanks in part to a higher fertility rate than other Americans.

While the exact number of American Muslims has been disputed, the general consensus in the business world is that the majority of the growing Muslim consumers are young, middle class and misunderstood. Pew also found that U.S. Muslims (14 percent) roughly mirror the general population (16 percent) on the percentage of households with annual incomes of $100,000 or more.

Businesses now want to connect with this new market, said Sarab Al-Jijakli, account director at Ogilvy Noor, a boutique subsidiary of the Ogilvy & Mather global ad agency, which specializes in the emerging Muslim marketplace.

“Many brands are playing catch-up,” Al-Jijakli said at the forum.

Arsalan Iftikhar, a contributing editor for Islamica magazine and author of “Islamic Pacifism: Global Muslims in the Post-Osama Era,” said the American Muslim growth trend line is positive and he is glad American businesses are seeing the potential of selling products to a “previously untapped minority population.”

“I think it is quite heartening that our nation’s corporate and business leaders are beginning to notice our community as an up-and-coming minority group within America today,” he said.

The racially and ethnically diverse Muslim population in the U.S. is concerned about the same issues as everyone else, like jobs, the economy and health care, said John Pinna, the AIC’s director of government and international relations. But, like other immigrant groups, they’re also looking for ways to participate in society.

And in America, that often means shopping.

“Now we’re looking for products, we’re looking to participate in the democratic process and we’re this young population that’s hungry to be noticed,” said Pinna, an Afghan-American Muslim.

“The American Muslim community isn’t really extraordinary at all,” he said. “It’s just that it’s now starting to be noticed.”

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SINGAPORE — As a frequent flier and devout Muslim, businessman Abdalhamid Evans always comes up against the same challenge in the air: when to say his prayers.

Muslims are required to pray five times a day at certain hours, but this schedule becomes complicated when crossing various time zones at thousands of metres above sea level.

“I usually don’t pray when I am in a plane,” said Evans, the London-based founder of the website HalalFocus that provides information on the global halal, or Islam-compliant, industry.

“But lately I have been thinking that it is probably better to do them in the air than make them up on arrival,” he told AFP.

The problem may be solved for travellers such as Evans thanks to an innovation called the Air Travel Prayer Time Calculator, developed by Singapore-based Crescentrating, a firm that gives halal ratings to hotels and other travel-related establishments.

Launched earlier this month, the online tool takes data such as prayer times in the country of origin, the destination city and in countries on the flight path and uses an algorithm to plot exact prayer hours during a flight.

Current programmes only allow Muslims to find their prayer hours according to their position on land, and the absence of any tools that can be used to calculate during a flight has compromised many travellers .

“I knew there was lot of frustration among the travellers on this issue, but nobody had really attempted to solve it,” Crescentrating chief executive Fazal Bahardeen told AFP in an interview.

Before embarking on a trip, a Muslim traveller can now go to the online calculator in the Crescentrating website and input their departure airport, time of flight and destination.

The calculator then comes up with the prayer times set either in the local time of the airport of origin, the destination city or the country that the aircraft is flying over, which the traveller can then email to themselves to access later.

Fazal said his team plans to develop a mobile app that will also point users in the direction of the Islamic holy city of Mecca, to which Muslims must face when they pray, based on the flight path.

Muslim travellers have welcomed the tool. “It’s good for long-haul travelling,” said Shiraz Sideek, a vice president at the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank who travels almost a dozen times a year.

“When you cross different times zones in an airplane, you have a problem of timing when to pray,” he told AFP from Abu Dhabi. “The application sounds like a very unique thing and very useful.”

Indonesian airline industry executive Sabry Salahudeen agrees that there is a potentially big market for the new tool.

“I’ve been in the airline industry for the past 20 plus years… To my knowledge I don’t think anyone has come up with anything like this,” said Salahudeen, vice president for airport operations and aircraft procurement at Pacific Royale Airways, a soon-to-be-launched premium airline in Indonesia.

As more Muslims travel around the world, services catering to their needs are expanding, industry players say.

In 2010, Muslim travellers spent $100 billion, or about 10 percent of total global travel expenditures, according to Crescentrating’s Fazal. This is projected to increase to 14-15 percent of the global total by 2020.

The World Tourism Organization last year estimated that an additional two million Arabs will travel overseas within the next twenty years, raising their region’s total of outbound tourists to 37 million.

While it is still early days for the Air Travel Prayer Time Calculator, potential customers say mobility is important.

“If it becomes a smartphone app .. it could prove to be a popular idea,” said Evans.

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IP Bank was the key innovative outcome at the two-day World Halal Research Summit 2012 which ended today. International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said these intellectual properties referred to innovations and innovative ideas that have commercialisation potential and have been transformed into halal prototypes for global halal markets.

“HDC will manage all innovations retained with the IP Bank as this is the platform towards consolidating prototypes that are ready for commercialisation,” he told reporters after the closing ceremony today.

In support of innovations, HDC also organised a WHR Innovation Exhibition in collaboration with Agensi Inovasi Malaysia for purposes of showcasing the product prototypes for the halal industry at the summit.

The exhibition which focussed on 37 product prototypes, identified for commercialisation and ready to be pitched to the business, investors and entrepreneurial sectors, will be reposited in the IP Bank and can be viewed at the HDC web portals.

– BERNAMA

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The 7th World Halal Forum (WHF) started on 2 April with Deputy Prime Minister, YAB Tan Sri Muhyiddin Hj Mohd Yassin officially launching the annual forum at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

The two-day forum attracted the participation of 720 delegates and over 35 speakers. With participants and speakers from over 36 countries, WHF 2012 provides a stirring platform for a stimulating discussion on the USD800 billion worth Halal industry.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Hj Mohd Yassin, in his keynote address, praised the World Halal Forum for its efforts in emphasizing on a universal appeal on Halal principles and for leveraging on creative channels like the arts, media and entertainment in spreading good values.

“The success of a system is not just about numbers but also about whether it could improve the quality of life and about good values,” said Tan Sri Muhyiddin in his keynote address, officially marking the opening of WHF.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin also stated that the new generation of Muslim youths are asking for more value out of Halal and not just mere compliance to its standards.

Established in 2006, WHF has since become part of the Malaysian government’s 15-year plan to become the world’s Halal hub. With this year’s theme “INSPIRE, INNOVATE, INVEST”, WHF 2012 goes beyond its usual exploration of business perspectives and reached out towards the grassroots with its primary focus on consumer issues, as well as helping the industry’s understanding on its beneficial values, to Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

The annual gathering of industry captains showcases contemporary speakers such as Advertising, Branding and Marketing expert from the United Kingdom, Jonathan Bilal Wilson; author of UK bestseller “Unimagined”, Imran Ahmad and Graphic Designer and Artist, Peter Gould from Australia. They shared their views on challenges related to consumer issues as well as promoting key messages of universal values via various communication channels.

“For 2012, we want to leverage on all our past achievements and cultivate a universal Halal lifestyle that transcends religion, race, culture and location,” said Hajjah Jumaatun Azmi, the Founder-Director of the forum. “We also believe in the power of the music and arts to spread universal ideas and channel positive, wholesome values.”

She stated that the Halal industry is steadily evolving towards a more holistic values-based direction making the concept of Halal applicable to everyone.

WHF, which became a non-profit entity in 2011 and hosted by the International Halal Integrity Alliance (IHI Alliance), also emphasized that all parties including small and medium-sized entrepreneurs (SMEs) should seize lucrative potentials and use the forum as a platform to explore new strategies in the booming Halal market globally.

“What is certain now is that, the Muslim world’s population is currently increasing. The Muslim population as at year 2010 is estimated at 1.6 billion. Naturally, the expansion of the Halal market is inevitable,” said Darhim Hashim, CEO of IHI Alliance.

Acknowledging the many challenges in ensuring global Halal integrity, he stated that the solution was the formulation of a set of International Halal Standards which will serve as a benchmark to the Halal industry.

“The Alignment of Halal Certification practice should be in place to ensure Halal integrity globally,” he added.

WHF 2012 also showcased at its display area a new retail arm, Rumi and Kohl and its vast collection of jewellery and ethnic furnishings; “Rezeki”, a new publication which aims to convey universal ideas and concepts to young, urban entrepreneurs and “99″, the critically acclaimed comic book series by Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, which features the world’s first superheroes based on Islamic culture, values and society.

WHF 2012, with the Platinum sponsor being the Malaysian chapter of Turkish ice cream brand “Mado”, concluded on a high note with the resolution to pave the way towards a future where good values and noble principles are shared universally, achieving a complete, holistic and Halal lifestyle for all. Other sponsors include Nestle Malaysia, Chemical Company of Malaysia Berhad (CCM), Fonterra Malaysia, Bank Rakyat, Prince Court Medical Centre, Tanjung Manis Halal Hub, Penang International Halal Hub and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

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Much of the Finnish startup scene has been debating the aftermaths of an article Helsingin Sanomat (largest Finnish daily) published on Sunday about the CEO and founder of Muxlim Inc, Mohamed El-Fatatry. The title of the article, directly translated, is Mohamed’s Bubble. We’ve covered Muxlim in the past as well. In the article, Helsingin Sanomat journalist Esa Mäkinen, paints quite a dim picture of the entrepreneur and how he received hundreds of thousands of euro in government support and then shut down the site.
Having this kind of an article published does not improve the public’s perception of growth entrepreneurs, of who are in dire need to save the Finnish economy. However, it has to be said that the article itself is factually quite correct (even though the figures differ slightly from El-Fatatry’s corrections, shown below) – one statement is completely off, and this is where Esa Mäkinen states Mohamed El-Fatatry donated over €40 000 to Eva Biaudet’s presidential campaign. There was a correction regarding that in today’s paper – El-Fatatry did not donate any money to the campaign, even though he supported her presidency.

The article paints a picture of El-Fatatry as a resemblance to an American business man that talks a lot with his hands and is good with words. In doing so, it also makes a point in saying El-Fatatry’s company Muxlim Inc. received more than €400 000 in government support, meaning of course tax payer money, before it shut down. Mäkinen is also careful to note that in 2010 El-Fatatry’s income was around €6000 a month.

The article continues to paint the picture that the company was overly hyped in global media as El-Fatatry also received the Finnish President’s Internationalisation Award as well as other awards.

The journalist seems to state that all of these people have somehow been cheated, since the company is now shutting down and failing on its original idea.

This is a great reminder to all of us that the general public at large, still does not share the same amount of appreciation nor understanding towards growth companies and how they are built, if this kind of an article is able to generate so much debate.

Failure is part of creating high growth businesses and it’s a lot more common than success.

So how did El-Fatatry and Muxlim actually do then? El-Fatatry put out a fact sheet yesterday on his site where he tackles some of the figures represented in the Helsingin Sanomat article. With permission from El-Fatatry, we have posted this below.

Even though we have not had the chance to fact check this, it is inline with our own calculations. The company raised €1.425 million in foreign investments to Finland. From this and the Tekes money (€385k), it paid tax-like expenses back to government €470k. In doing this the company also created jobs worth 34 employee years in Finland.

The only big contradiction I caught from this are the traffic figures and those cited in public. The media has cited Muxlim reaches 25 million people around the world. To get this sorted out, we interviewed Mohamed El-Fatatry himself. Below are his answers.

ArcticStartup: Do you feel like you’ve been creating a bubble around Muxlim?

Mohamed El-Fatatry: Every startup entrepreneur creates a kind of hype to get their startup noticed. Some do it better than others, and in our case, most of the attention seemed to come from mainstream publications that are not specialized in tech-news as most other startups. This meant that while we tried to communicate and explain all the intricate details of our metrics, etc. it was sometimes inevitable that they misquoted or misrepresented the numbers. This never happened when we talked to specialized publications such as ArcticStartup or Techcrunch.

AS: One of the biggest items people seem to complain about is the misled figures of the site. You say Muxlim reaches more than 25 million in 190 countries, but today in a post on the Disruption Manifesto you say the site had around 580k uniques and the ad network some 2.3 million. Where does the 25 million come from?

MEF: As the factsheet states:

Muxlim.com: 0.58M uniques/month
Muxlim ad network: 2.38M uniques/month

However, for the whole advertising network which includes Muxlim + IKOO + other partners (we have an exclusive representation agreement in Europe and North America) the only metric we could find to highlight how many total people are reachable by advertising with us was the aggregated total of all the people on all the sites combined over a 12 month period which amounted to approx. 25 million. The main purpose of this metric was to show that the Muxlim ad network amounts to approx. 10% of the total Muslim online population (250 million people per year; reference: Handbook of Islamic Marketing), a fact that is important for large advertisers who want to cover a large segment in one shot. The statement was obviously promotional and meant for advertisers, but we did explain how we came up with that number whenever someone asked.

Also as an example, Unanimis in the UK uses a similar metric: http://www.unanimis.co.uk/about/

“With a reach of over 73%* in to the UK online population, Unanimis creates value from online audiences for both advertisers and website publishers.”

“The company is not over.”
AS: What do you think led to the failure of the company?

MEF: The company is not over. A re-launch with a new strategy is currently on the table, and I don’t think we should be celebrating the demise of any startup company prematurely when we all know that for example, Google changed it’s business model 3 times before finding the right one. It happens in startup world. Muxlim Oy and Muxlim.com are two separate entities. The site was shutdown to search for a better business model, but the company is still around.

***

El-Fatatry also states that he finds it odd that people are celebrating the failure of a Finnish company to this extent in media and in conversations.

He also got back to us with another follow-up comment regarding the interview:
“As much as people like to look back and rationalize a reason for a failure, the fact is our traffic numbers had nothing to do with the difficulties we faced as a company in generating revenue (the traffic numbers are not bad, and have delivered value to many advertisers over the years). The main reason for the difficulties was the inability to scale our sales/business development operations abroad which required a lot more money and time than we had (and we were constantly running out of both). When the book comes out, you will see in detail how we actually got disrupted mid-way through product development by the financial crisis, and were never able to raise the amount of money we needed.

Our plan was to raise €5M as a first round, and we ended up raising a total of €2.5M over 5 years so we were either in survival mode, or bootstrapping mode (never really in growth mode apart from the first few months and before the financial crisis). In some cases, we were not able to capitalize on a good pipeline or partnership because of the inability to scale abroad. Let’s not forget that the company was founded in December 2006 (during the myspace days) and the advertising industry has changed a couple of times since. Once after the financial crisis, and once after Facebook became an advertising giant. The name of the game was stamina, and we just couldn’t get more of it no matter how hard we tried with our old business model. So we decided to shut down the site for the time being, search for a better business model and re-launch on more solid grounds.

I think it’s important to note that whatever the outcome of our new strategy, we believe the existence of the company had a net positive effect on Finland and the ecosystem. The people who have worked for Muxlim have gone to join startups or start startups, and the tax-type payments made by the company exceeded the government support we have received. Our Finnish company will always be credited to have written the digital chapter of the 1st industry guide to a huge global market, and many institutions are better of for understanding this community in a better way because Muxlim existed. Finally, all the valuable lessons we have learnt over the last 5 years across three countries (Finland, UK & US) are being shared in my upcoming book Mohamed 2.0: Disruption Manifesto, for the benefit of everyone in Finland who is thinking big. Napster didn’t make any money, but it changed the world.”

***

But this whole case and discussion is a great reminder to all the people working in the startup community that we’re still very much in our own bubble. Startups are not mainstream, nor is growth entrepreneurship. Once they are mainstream, failure is tolerated and those affiliated with the venture won’t feel cheated – they had a good run at it.

It is a completely different question though, how much an early stage entrepreneur should take out in salaries from their company or how much they should pay to consultants. Market forces and an able board of executives ought to help out there.

But looking back at this over the past few days, the only bubble that has been created – is the bubble all startups are involved with and that’s called over optimistic supporting of entrepreneurship and the thought that the general public, including the media at large, shares that notion.

Update: changed 0.58K to 0.58M to reflect the correct figure.

Source: http://www.arcticstartup.com/2012/03/20/muxlim-debate-a-great-reminder-startups-far-from-mainstream

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Hewar accepted the award Tuesday evening at a gala in New York City attended by over 500 industry peers at the ARF’s annual convention. The David Ogilvy Awards for Excellence in Advertising Research celebrate the extraordinary or creative use of research in the advertising development processes of research firms, advertising agencies, and advertisers.

“We’re happy to see ARF and the advertising industry as a whole recognizing the value of the Muslim consumer market and are thrilled to be a part of carving out this multicultural marketing practice,” says Lisa Mabe founder and principal of Hewar.

The objectives of the campaign were to increase brand awareness and sales among Muslim consumers. Digital outreach resulted in significant increase in Saffron Road’s social media base and online conversations, but most importantly, increasing sales by 300% during the month-long campaign.

“It’s not often when brands and retailers acknowledge American Muslim consumers, but as you can see, when they do, it certainly pays off,” continues Mabe. A detailed case study about the campaign, Halal History in the Making, will soon be posted on the ARF website.

Hewar’s work in cross-cultural public relations is frequently cited as case studies on how to effectively reach consumers online. The agency’s continued success in reaching Muslim consumers with Saffron Road Foods can be found in the new book, Marketing to the New Majority.

MEDIA CONTACT: +1 202-505-2890, info@hewarcommunications.com

About Hewar Social Communications
Based in Washington, D.C., Hewar Social Communications is a new breed of social communications consultancy that empowers brands to better define their social media reality and more effectively drive their digital dialogue. As experts in cross-cultural communications, we often focus on helping companies reach niche and multicultural consumers in culturally relevant, impactful and results-producing ways. An award-winning agency, Hewar is frequently cited in media for its successes in social communications, specialty foods and multicultural marketing. Learn more about Hewar at http://www.hewarcommunications.com.

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Specifically, some members of the Christian community are angry at Woolworths, a major South African retail chain, for putting a halal certification mark on packages of hot cross buns sold ahead of Easter.

In emails, Facebook messages and Twitter posts, the fired-up Christians argued that hot cross buns have special meaning in their religion, and so the halal symbol (which indicates the food is permissable for Muslims to eat, under Islamic law), should not be used, according to the Cape Times.

“Woolworths SA clearly has no respect of the Christian faith to make hot cross buns halal,” tweeted Tony Seifart.

“What is objectionable to people… is the idea of our food being blessed by a totally foreign faith to ours,” wrote another online commentator.

Other comments on South African news websites defended the halal buns.

“The only reason I can see why people could be offended is if the ingredients have been changed to comply with halal regulations and the buns are no longer lekker [nice/tasty] as a result,” wrote one woman.

Father Chris Townsend of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference criticized the cross Christians, calling their behavior an “overreaction,” the Cape Times reported.

The issue is “nothing more than a storm in a baking pan,” Townsend said, calling for more understanding and tolerance in South Africa’s multicultural society.

“Hot-cross buns are only a symbol and not a central tenet of Christianity. There are a lot more weighty issues to deal with in SA than a few ‘hot cross Christians’,” he said.

Woolworths told The Mercury, a Durban newspaper, that its Easter hot cross buns have been halal certified for several years, and throughout the year the buns are also produced in a halal-certified facility.

“Our desire was to offer this well-loved product on an all-inclusive basis that would not exclude any of our customers from enjoying them,” the company said.

“We apologize and assure our customers that no offense was intended… our next Easter offer will have both non-halal certified hot cross buns and halal certified spiced buns,” it said.

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Muslim consumers are growing faster than any other segment in size and spending power. The world’s Muslim population will increase 35 percent in the next 20 years, rising to 2.2 billion by 2030.

Despite an immense diversity of cultures, governments, and economies, Islam binds Muslims together in their daily lives, including consumption choices. The global halal market is worth $2.1 trillion today and is growing at an annual rate of $500 billion.

Certifying a product as halal signals that it follows Islamic law for production and delivery. Consumers of halal products view them as wholesome, pure, and ethical. Alcohol, pork, and their derivatives are not permitted in halal products. Animals must be slaughtered following Islamic prescriptions, which are similar (but not identical) to kosher rules. The rules apply to products containing any animal-derived ingredients, including clothing, furniture, and cosmetics. Halal rules encompass even pharmaceuticals, financial products, and tourism.

Muslims often buy kosher products, the closest thing they can find to halal. The US kosher market has grown to about $12.5 billion, yet only 25 percent of kosher consumers are observant Jews. Other consumers simply believe kosher food is healthier. Muslims believe halal food may similarly appeal to a broader consumer base. Yet kosher products outnumber halal ones by a whopping 800 to 1, according to Muxlim, a social network for Muslims (which shut down last month after financial losses).

There is also significant overlap between halal consumers and environmentally conscious consumers. Beauty products comprise $500 million of the $2 trillion global halal market. These products are made using plant extracts and minerals and contain no alcohol or pork ingredients. Halal cosmetics also appeal to a global trend for beauty products that are not tested on animals, nor use animal derivatives, as well as booming demand for products based on natural ingredients.

The US Muslim consumer market represents a niche opportunity comparable to the one a decade ago in the Hispanic market, which has grown to $1.4 trillion. The number of Muslims in the United States is projected to more than double over the next two decades, to 6.2 million by 2030, and the purchasing power of American Muslims is about $12 billion annually. Yet few brands and products are targeting US Muslims.

With controversies such as the “Ground Zero mosque,” NATO Quran-burning, and the Arab Spring constantly in the headlines, brands have been hesitant to speak to Muslim consumers or make them a high priority in their marketing strategies. Brands that have taken steps sometimes experienced backlash, as Best Buy did in November 2009, when it wished Muslim customers “Happy Eid” in an ad. Critics threatened to boycott the chain and said the ad should have wished customers “Merry Christmas.” But Best Buy stood by its ad and won the support of Muslim consumers. Sales increased by 13 percent from a year earlier. Since then, Best Buy has included holiday wishes for other faiths in its ads.

More recently, the health food supermarket chain Whole Foods faced criticism, mostly from anti-Muslim bloggers, for a blog-based campaign to promote Saffron Road halal foods during Ramadan. After some initial ambiguity, Whole Foods held firm. As a result, sales increased 300 percent, and Whole Foods acquired a new and loyal segment of customers.

The lesson is that courage pays off. Muslims will show loyalty to brands that support them in the public space. They want brands to reach out to them and show them the same respect as other faiths (pdf). And because Muslim communities all over the world tend to emphasize and trust in relationships, word of mouth and peer influence are extremely important. If brands can see every interaction with the Muslim consumer as an interaction with the Muslim community as a whole, addressing Muslims can pay off in a big way.

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