Name any well-known American actor, musician or athlete who has visited the the Middle East for a major brand partnership over the past decade, and it’s likely that Sarah Omolewu was the driving force behind the collaboration. She founded Maven Marketing & Events in Dubai in 2012 with a vision to connect leading brands across the Middle East with Hollywood’s icons. Her work has advanced the role of entertainment marketing and public relations in the region, landing her on CEO Middle East magazine’s list of the 50 Most Influential Women in the Arab World.

Under Sarah’s leadership, Maven Marketing & Events has delivered many firsts in the region: the first privately-owned marketing agency to have organized a major red carpet movie premiere in the UAE (Suicide Squad with Will Smith, 2016), the first activation with an active NBA player (Kobe Bryant Health & Fitness Weekend, 2013), and the first to bring celebrity clothing line pop-up stores to Dubai (Jaden and Willow Smith MSFTS, Nicole Richie’s House of Harlow 1960, and Giuliana Rancic’s G by Giulaina, 2015).

Omolewu is proud to have led the first female-owned agency to secure talent for the KSA market, including Ronaldinho at Misk, and Usain Bolt for the 2020 G20 Youth Summit.

“I was fortunate to have strong-willed parents in my life who encouraged me to reach for the stars. I love projects like the G20 Youth Summit that give me a platform to inspire our future leaders.”

The Ohio native’s knack for forging strategic celebrity-brand partnerships blossomed during her time at Atlanta’s top radio station, V-103FM. Fortune 500 brands like Coca-Cola, Chase Bank, and Delta were strategically aligning themselves with experiential celebrity activations.

Sarah attributes her creative vision to being raised by immigrant parents, both university educators, growing up in small town America as the middle child of seven siblings.

Fascinated by life in foreign places, Sarah seized the opportunity to relocate and lead marketing projects in Dubai – a city that lives, breathes and was built on ambition.

While she continues to elevate experiential marketing in the Middle East, Sarah’s current focus is on paying it forward. She founded Maven Global Access in 2021 to bridge the gap between East and West and ultimately pave the way for US businesses, particularly those led by women and minorities, to bring international growth ambitions to life. The MGA platform helps countries achieve their foreign direct investment goals leveraging the power of celebrity engagement. Sarah launched MGA’s inaugural programme, Access Abu Dhabi, in November 2021 with support from the Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary as the programme’s ambassador.

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