Selfologi makes access to cosmetic clinics across the UAE easier
Selfologi is a cosmetics tech startup that facilitates discovery and booking of cosmetic treatments across the UAE.
The cosmetic industry has been traditionally reliant on word-of-mouth. Accompanying this is a prevalent lack of credibility and accountability.
Tamer Wali, founder of , a Dubai-based booking site for cosmetic treatments, had witnessed this word-of-mouth reliability first hand.
“In the past three decades that I have been in this industry, I was constantly asked about cosmetic treatments, from friends and others from across the region,” he says.
Needless to say, there was a gap in the market. As the partner and CEO of Imdad, an energy-based aesthetic medical devices distributor in the Middle East, Tamer was well aware of how the industry worked and what could be done to fix it.
In 2022, Tamer launched Selfologi, a Dubai-based booking site for cosmetic treatments.
“We conducted a study in our early planning stages in 2021 to understand the state of the industry across the region. We found that there are a million searches a month for cosmetic treatments in the GCC, but nearly 40% of clinics don't have a website. Of those that do, a third have no function to take bookings online,” he says.
Talking to customers, Tamer realised many actually preferred online appointments but could not find a platform to do so. This is where Selfologi comes into the picture. Selfologi helps with discovery and booking of various listed clinics and practitioners in UAE.
It also provides content on cosmetic treatments in Arabic and English, which is developed by the team’s sourced industry experts.
Clinics listed on Selfologi’s platform offer treatments ranging from hair removal, Botox, fillers, and acne treatment to cosmetic dentistry.
Behind the scenes
The website only lists licensed clinics and practitioners.
“Our team visits every clinic and verifies their medical license and compliance with the local health authorities. We also check the treatments, machines and products offered by the clinics,” the founder tells YourStory Gulf Edition.
The platform is free of charge for users looking for consultation appointments.
Selfologi derives its revenue through clinics. “The clinics provide a commission on each referral made through the platform,” says Tamer. The company wishes to keep the commission details undisclosed.
Cosmetic treatment market in the Middle East
The Middle East and Africa’s (MEA) cosmetic surgery and procedures market is expected to register revenue growth at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 5.57% in the forecast period 2021-2028, as per a report from Research and Markets.
UAE and Saudi Arabia are counted among the leading markets in the region. Dubai is at the center of the plastic surgery industry, which is valued at $59 billion, as per a report by Arabian Business.
Overall, medical tourism market sales in GCC countries are expected to increase at a CAGR of 10% during the forecast period between 2022 and 2032. UAE is leading the market in the medical tourism segment.
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Tamer says, “The Middle East offers over $2.2 billion worth of cosmetic treatments. The UAE–and the wider GCC region–is a significant and growing market for the industry. With tech at its heart, UAE nurtures startups. This forward-thinking attitude makes it easier for digital start-ups to establish,” he adds.
Future plans
At present, Selfologi provides access to over 150 clinics and over 500 practitioners. It is licensed by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and the Department of Health–Abu Dhabi (DoH).
BellaViso Medical Center, Queens Medical Center-Jumeirah, Paramount Medical Center, and En Vogue Medical Center-DIFC are among the clinics listed on the platform.
In June 2021, Selfologi received seed funding of an undisclosed amount from the founder, Tamer Wali and Xenel International group.
The 30-member team is looking to expand across the Middle East, and eventually head towards setting a global base.
(This article has been updated to rectify a few factual inaccuracies)
Edited by Affirunisa Kankudti