Five shifts shaping business in the Kingdom this decade
Khalil
Tourism, local manufacturing, women in the workforce, digital payments and regional headquarters: where founders are finding new customers.
Ask ten investors in Riyadh what is changing fastest and you will hear the same five answers. Together they explain where many new companies are being built.
1. Tourism and entertainment
New destinations and a busy events calendar need hotels, transport, catering and booking tools. Small suppliers are winning contracts that once went abroad.
2. Making it locally
Local-content rules in public tenders reward factories and workshops inside the Kingdom, from food packaging to medical supplies.
3. More women at work
A larger workforce means new demand for childcare, transport and flexible office space, and many of the founders meeting it are women themselves.
4. Cash is disappearing
Card and phone payments are now the norm in shops and cafés, which opens the door to lending, loyalty and accounting tools built on payment data.
5. Regional headquarters
International companies moving regional offices to Riyadh bring demand for legal, recruitment, housing and school services.