Unpacking the Journey of Bilal Mekkaoui: From Investment Banking to Celebrity-Driven Consumer Ventures

At Oui Collab, we’re honored to be featured in Entrepreneur Middle East with the article “Unpacking the Journey of Bilal Mekkaoui: From Investment Banking to Celebrity-Driven Consumer Ventures.” The piece explores the professional evolution of our founder, Bilal Mekkaoui — from global finance and technology strategy to building a venture studio focused on scalable, celebrity-led consumer brands.

The article traces Bilal’s early career in investment banking at Deutsche Bank and UBS, where he specialized in technology, media, and telecommunications. His experience across capital markets, fundraising, and IPO preparation — including leadership roles at Rocket Internet and Delivery Hero — laid the strategic foundation for his later entrepreneurial ventures.

Entrepreneur also highlights Bilal’s transition from finance to building businesses, beginning with the co-founding of Jobi Capital in 2016. It was during this period that he identified a structural gap in the market: while celebrity-driven brands had cultural influence, many lacked long-term operational discipline and strategic execution.

That insight led to the creation of Oui Collab — a venture studio designed to combine authentic celebrity partnerships with rigorous business fundamentals. Under Bilal’s leadership, Oui Collab has launched and scaled brands such as Homecourt, co-founded with Courteney Cox, and Oh Norman!, created with Kaley Cuoco — each built around genuine founder involvement, strong product positioning, and sustainable growth.

Today, as highlighted in Entrepreneur, Bilal continues to expand Oui Collab’s global presence, with new partnerships and market expansion across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and India. His journey reflects the core philosophy of Oui Collab: building category-defining consumer brands designed to last.