Qatar Living features CMU-Q alumna Farha Khan

Editor’s note: The article “Plum Qatar: Home-cooked food at your fingertips,” appeared on QatarLiving.com

Farha Khan, the CEO of Plum Qatar, graduated from CMU-Q’s Business Administration Program in 2018

Plum Qatar: Home-cooked food at your fingertips

Are you an expat longing for the flavours of home? Are you a local resident tired of even the most exotic restaurant fare? You’re definitely not alone (not to diss all the wonderful eateries that Qatar has, we’re all thankful for those).

Plum Qatar is a soon-to-be-launched app, not unlike Talabat and Round Menu. But what makes it truly unique is that it only deals in homemade food. Hygienic, wholesome, reasonably priced homemade food—so get excited.

Plum Qatar is the creation of five very different, but no less excellent, individuals from across the world that came together thanks to the European Innovation Academy (EIA). And Plum’s CEO, Farha Khan, happens to have grown up in good old Qatar.

It was thanks to the support of Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP), which aims to nurture entrepreneurs and tech start-ups, that Farha was able to meet her fellow founders at EIA.

European Innovation Academy, Portugal, 2018

After three weeks of intensive brainstorming, planning and pitching at EIA in Estoril, Portugal, Farha (India), Corinne (Canada), Alisha (Pakistan), Leah (USA), and Christian (Mexico) conceived Plum Qatar, and even managed a successful test run of the app during the proceedings.

Other than a shared love of traveling and food, the five of them know what it’s like to miss home-cooked food, having lived abroad and away from their families for long periods of time. This is part of what inspired Plum, but Farha was also able to identify how successful a market Qatar has the potential to be, especially as around 80 percent of the population is made up of expatriates with a nostalgia for familiar flavours.

Farha Khan at European Innovation Academy

Not to mention the fact that the plethora of nationalities in Qatar means that an array of cuisines will be on offer from stay-at-home chefs across the country.

Farha has pointed out that although Qatar provides a rich and diverse range of gastronomic options, they nevertheless tend to cater to a middle ground that appeals to the masses, which often leads to muted flavours, and a feel that’s not quite as wholesome as a homemade meal.

The Plum Qatar presentation

The app is about to go through its trial stages, but Farha is more than cautiously optimistic, and confident of the demand, but also of the many unsung chefs that are more than happy to cook and sell their food for reasonable prices.

About the European Innovation Academy

Plum Qatar receives a Top Team award

The EIA is known as a leader in tech entrepreneurship education. Their non-profit, educational programmes are developed through partnerships with professionals from some of the world’s top institutions, including Google and Stanford University.

Follow Plum on social media and follow them as their launch draws nearer!
Instagram – @plumqatar
Twitter – @PlumQatar 
Facebook – Plum Qatar