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As a commercial lawyer and the owner of a small business (Q8BookStore) I was pleased to attend a discussion panel held last week by the British Embassy on small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Even though it was great to hear Mohammed H. Alsahya and the Mayor of London Speak about SME’s, I was actually more interested to hear Dr. Mohammed Alzuhair, the executive chairman for Kuwait’s SME fund.

Dr. Mohammed Alzuhair spoke about the government’s new vision for encouraging business in Kuwait. The government of Kuwait has really been trying to develop business in Kuwait for locals and foreigners alike and new important laws have been issued with practical changes, such as:

1) New companies law 79/2013 – Now we can have non-profit companies in Kuwait.

2) New commercial permit’s law 111/2013 – Apparently you can get a commercial permit by applying online. I’ll be investigating this soon.

3) SME fund law 98/2013 – A 1 billion Kuwaiti Dinars fund to support SME’s in Kuwait and rumor has it that their permits will be separate

4) Promotion of direct investments in Kuwait 116/2013 – Kuwait Foreign Investment Bureau is turning into an authority, all sectors will be open to foreign investors, and foreign investors will be allowed an equity share of up to 100%.

The laws are changing and I am excited to understand these changes. If you have an SME or you’re considering launching a start-up soon and want to get an email with related information, email me on [email protected] with the following info: your name, job position (at your SME and/or daytime job), type of business.

If you have more information about the above laws and would like to share changes also email me at [email protected]

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.

The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, The Red Arrows are going to be performing tomorrow in Kuwait as part of their Middle East tour. The RAF Red Arrows are considered to be one of the world’s premier aerobatic teams and they just finished performing yesterday in the UAE. If you’re interested in watching the show below are the details:

Date: Tuesday 26th November, 2013
Time: 1PM
Location: Marina Crescent and the vicinity

Update: I got the 1PM timing from the Red Arrows Facebook page but according to Arab Times it’s at 3PM.

Lorenzo is a locally created Italian restaurant that opened up before the cupcake and burger craze took over the market. They’re old school and although they have a bunch of locations around Kuwait my favorite is easily their Salmiya branch located in Al Khalid Complex where Gia recently opened up.

The interior is small but nicely designed and pretty cozy. The carpeted floors continue along the wall and then curve up onto the ceiling which is an old fashioned thing to do but somehow works out nicely here. Since the location is small they’ve managed to make it look bigger by splitting up the restaurant into two spaces with the back space being a more intimate area separated from the rest of the restaurant by vertical mirror pillars. There’s lots of marble everywhere which helps makes the place feel luxurious without looking tacky at all.

Their menu hasn’t really changed since they first opened up with my favorite items being the fresh bread they serve as well as their mushroom soup and chocolate cheesecake. When I do want a main course I usually go for their fish dishes, either the sole or the hammour.

It’s a very nice location that’s empty most of time. I usually have business meetings there and I’ve never seen the place filled with more than two or three tables. To top it all off the service is really good and the staff are very friendly as well. If you’re looking for a nice quiet restaurant to go to that’s not in a mall than this Lorenzo location would be a great option. It’s in Al Khalid Complex in Salmiya and here it is on [Google Maps]

The American School of Kuwait is holding a production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ at the ASK auditorium. There will be four showings held over a three day period and they’re selling tickets for just KD1. Here are some details:

Show Times:
Wednesday November 27th, 2013 at 2:45PM
Thursday November 28th, 2013 at 6PM
Friday November 29th, 2013 at 1PM
Friday November 29th, 2013 at 6PM

Ticket Prices: KD1

Location: American School of Kuwait [Map]

Tickets are available before the show in the reception area of the auditorium.

Update: I just received an email from the director saying that they just found out the show is for ASK students and their families only.

Out of Kuwait Saad Aldosari from John Parks on Vimeo.

The video above is of the “Out of Kuwait” exhibition that is currently being held in London. The exhibit brings together the works of thirteen emerging Kuwaiti artists and you can see some of the works that they’re exhibiting in the video above. The exhibit is running for four more days so if you’re in London check it out [Link]

Note: A higher quality version of the video above is available on BBC [Here]

Peruvian Chef Roberto Segura will be presenting authentic recipes with quinoa this week at the Dasman Diabetes Institute. He will first present a short introduction to quinoa followed by cooking demonstrations on various quinoa dishes followed by a tasting. If you’re interested here are the details:

Location: Dasman Diabetes Institute
Date: Tuesday November 26th, 2013
Time: 4PM to 6PM

Please RSVP to [email protected] or call 22242999 ext 2052

Note: Just in case you didn’t know (I didn’t until a few moments ago), quinoa originally comes from Peru.

[YouTube]

Last night I got to see ‘Baths‘ perform live at Oval Space in London and he was just phenomenal. I’m a huge fan of ‘Baths’ but wasn’t so sure on how the music would translate into a live performance since it’s so digital. I was worried it might just end up super boring with Will Wiesenfeld in front of a laptop but that was definitely not the case. Will came on stage wearing running shorts with a tshirt and sneakers as if he was about to take part in a marathon but once he started performing I realized why. He was literally all over the place since the music is extremely fast paced and at some points he was just jumping around from vocals to keyboard to laptop to his tech and back like he was jacked up on Molly.

I was standing right in the front row so the music was extremely loud hence why the sound in the video above is not that great. At one point during the performance they had to lower the bass since it was so powerful that it was unplugging all the cables on his setup. Will is very laid back and personal when performing. He’s very down to earth and he makes you feel like you’re in his room and he’s just jamming with you. There’s another video I uploaded which you can watch [Here] (starts past the 2 minute mark) in which you can get an idea of how he was communicating with us at the event. According to Will this was the largest audience he had gotten so far since they started headlining shows and I found that difficult to believe since we weren’t that big of a crowd. I don’t understand how Bieber can fill up a stadium and ‘Baths’ barely a small warehouse.

If you haven’t heard ‘Baths’ before but are into electronic music then I would highly recommend you buy the CD’s, download the tracks from iTunes or check them out on Spotify. Here is a link to the ‘Baths’ [Website]

If you’re looking for an advertisement free Kuwait Airport arrivals and departures tracking app then KAFI is the one to get. The app is very simple in case a flight you’re tracking hasn’t arrived yet you can turn on notification for that flight so that once it lands the app will let you know. The app is available for both iOS and Android and can be found by searching for KAFI or by using one of the links below:

iOS Version
Android Version

Update: Do not download this app. The app no longer works unless you agree to send adverts to your friends.

The Xbox One is now available in Kuwait and surprisingly it’s priced KD20 cheaper than when the PS4 was available on the first day even though the PS4 is actually a cheaper console. The price is also slightly more consistent across the store with the Xbox One selling for KD260 at Rihab Complex and Blink while Digumz is selling it for KD270. This is the PAL version that includes a digital copy of FIFA 2014 as well as the Kinect sensor.

Like the PS4, the prices should drop considerably once the console becomes more readily available.

Cinemagics will be playing the two movies below this weekend:

Thursday November 21st, 2013 at 7:30PM
Surprise Film of the Month
Every month we’ll be playing a surprise film, where you won’t know what you’re watching until just a minute before the film begins. One thing is for sure, every month the surprise film will be either my favourite film of the list, or the most unique in one way or the other. This month’s film is the winner of over 61 awards worldwide, carrying groundbreaking performances and the work of a visionary director on top form. Unmissable.

Saturday November 23rd, 2013 at 7:30PM
The Devil’s Backbone
From visionary filmmaker Guilermo Del Toro, who brought us the incredible Pan’s Labyrinth, The Devil’s Backbone is a unique horror film that is both elegant and heartbreaking whilst also being creepy and nightmarish. After Carlos, a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War, arrives at an ominous boy’s orphanage he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets that he must uncover.

For more information on Cinemagics rooftop movie nights click [Here]

I was looking for ways to breathe new life into my digital camera and while looking at some new lenses for it I realized one great thing I could add to the camera would be WiFi. Memory cards with WiFi built in have been around for some time now but I never saw a need for one until now. Although my iPhone takes some great photos, on more than one occasion I’ve struggled with it and in most cases its because I probably was indoors and the lighting was horrible. By having a digital camera with WiFi, I would be able to take shots with a more capable camera and then send it to my phone wirelessly on the spot so I could upload it onto Instagram.

I checked all the local online stores and found that Blink had two models, one was out of stock while the other available for KD19. It was for only 8GB but I decided to go for it anyway since I was picking up the Mercedes G63 to review that same day and wanted to try out the card while shooting it.

The way the card works is pretty straight forward. You download the Eye-Fi application from the Apple or Android store, and then run it and follow the onscreen instructions. The whole setup process takes a minute and when you’re done you just stick the memory card into the camera and take a photo. While the camera is still on, launch the Eye-Fi app and it will start downloading all the photos from the memory card onto your phone immediately. It works really well and I was able to capture the photo I wanted, send it to my phone, apply my filter and then upload it to Instagram without a hitch.

The memory card I got is an 8GB capacity with a Class 10 read and write speed. The only extra feature it has over regular memory cards is WiFi. It costs KD13 on Amazon without shipping but if you’re in a rush Blink have it for KD19.

If you want to listen to some really talented local musicians, Bayt Lothan is holding their popular “A Night In” event tomorrow. It’s going to be an open air event which is great since the weather is perfect right now.

Location: Bayt Lothan [Map]
Date: Wednesday, November 20th 2013
Time: 7PM to 9PM

You can book your seats now for KD10 by calling 25755866 or 25755877 or else you will have to pay KD12 at the door.

The ad above appeared in the newspaper a few days ago saying that Abercrombie & Fitch had opened up a store in Olympia Tower so I passed by to check it out. I knew A&F hadn’t opened there and figured it might be just a store selling A&F clothing but I figured I would check it out anyway. To my surprise when I got there I realized the store was actually called Abercrombie & Fitch although they had sneakingly snuck the word “stores” into the name because obviously that makes it ok and somehow magically bypasses any trademark infringement.

The store sells both A&F and Hollister clothing and even though I couldn’t tell if they were authentic or not it really didn’t matter since by checking out the prices of some of the items I realized it would be cheaper to just order directly from A&F online.

On a side note I haven’t heard anything new recently on the rumor that the Chalhoub Group was acquiring A&F.

[YouTube]

The storm is here! Check out the other videos below.

The Sony PS4 is out in Kuwait already but the prices as expected are pretty high right now. In Rihab they’re selling it for KD245 including a game while online you have:

Blink KD229 (Sold Out)
Souq KD239
Digumz KD255

People who had pre-ordered directly from Amazon to Kuwait (not via a US forwarding mailbox) have already started receiving shipping notifications. Finally, I have a friend who ordered directly from the online Sony store to his MyUS account and he received his PS4 today.

The PS4 is currently sold out at most online retailers in the States including Amazon and people are selling them on eBay for around KD180 [Link]

Update: Turns out Xcite is not selling the PS4 yet so I’ve updated the post.