We’ve all seen the recent hype and world domination of the Crypto world and Web3.0. In what feels like a blink of an eye, the evolution of the internet is on its way to change the world as we know it.
What does this mean for businesses? Today, I had the chance to sit down with one of the first agencies to adopt all the depths of Web3.0 into its services. Omar Kandil is the young CEO of OBCIDO Inc., a New York based Web2.0 and Web3.0 marketing and web PR agency that wasted no time joining the journey of the evolution of the internet.
A self made man, Omar Kandil runs a global creative team working with tops brands in the world. He is often on a flight from the different OBCIDO hubs, and today he talks to me as he is about to head to NFT.NYC, the event dubbed as the Super Bowl of NFTs by Coinbase.
For those who don’t know you, tell us a bit about you. What is your story?
Oh where to begin? I was born and raised in Lebanon by a single mom and a brother. Our father left us when I was just six months old, my mom took the role of both parents and did an amazing job. Dealing with that was hard enough on its own, but that never held me back, in fact, it pushed me forward. I was constantly motivated and working hard to support my mother because I witnessed how hard life was for her. Despite the hardships, she gave us the best life she could with an amazing childhood and good education.
My father is a Syrian, my mother is Lebanese. With the Lebanese law not allowing the mother to pass citizenship to her children, I lived my life as a Syrian refugee in Lebanon.
When did your career start?
I began working at the age of 15 during the summer holiday to at least make enough money for my allowance. Turning 18 years old was a tough time for me, I couldn’t afford any private universities in Lebanon so I had to hunt for a real and well paid job which was even more difficult due to the contstant discrimination I faced for being Syrian. I lost so many job opportunities because of that. Finally, I scored a job in a hotel as a bellboy which allowed me to register in the Beirut Arab University as a Business Management student. I worked a second job most of the time as well in bars to be able to pay my tuition and support my family. It was really tough but I had to make the best out of it. These hospitality jobs were my opportunity to learn English and gain communication skills with a diverse variety of travelers and people. I was able to graduate and even got promoted to a reception manager at the hotel. I also worked for a marketing agency for six months as a social media manager which gave me great marketing experience.
How did OBCIDO come to be?
I met my mentor and OBCIDO’s founder Chaker Kazaal back in 2017 when he checked into the hotel I worked at in Beirut. I was a receptionist by then. After a few visits, he learned that I was working to finance my Bachelor of Arts in Marketing studies. He then offered me a job at Step Group in Dubai of which he was the Editor of Chief. And since then, our professional relationship truly blossomed. In 2020, our paths reconnected as we met up for drinks, at the time Chaker was writing his book ‘Ouch!’. He offered me a job to design and produce a global marketing campaign for the book. This led to us assembling a team, and from there, the idea to create an agency was born.
OBCIDO was founded in 2021 with several services and we were able to secure some big name clients and business in many fields such as Duggal, Athens Democracy Forum by New York Times, Decibel Event Management, and much more. These clients allowed us to grow into a company of more than 20 creative people working globally on exciting projects.
And where do you see OBCIDO is now?
Late 2021 we ran into the hype of Web3.0. I started hearing more and more about NFTs and as someone who runs on innovation and growth, I figured it would be a great opportunity for the growth of the company yet, getting into Web3.0 was not easy at first. I had to take several courses by the Blockchain Council on all things blockchain, NFTs, the Metaverse, and Web3.0. From there, our journey into Web3.0 began. I suggested starting a Web3.0 department to our board of advisors which was welcomed with enthusiasm and positivity. From there, the department began to grow as we hired professionals in all fields such as smart contract developers, community managers, Discord moderators, marketing professionals, and so on.
Working on NFT projects was difficult at first even with all the theoretical knowledge we had, it was essential to have a lot of practical experience. This is why after 8 months of beginning this field, we consider ourselves as one of the leading agencies in the Web3.0 industry. We are currently working on huge projects such as DCB World, Bionic Heroes, LEGION X, and much more.
How did you manage to become a CEO at such a young age?
It might sound cliche, but I really always felt that I was different from people my age. For example, during my university days, I used my free time to make a living while my friends would finish their classes and do meet ups or parties. I was never a party guy, I was never intrigued by the habits of the youth around me. I always believed in education and experience, I constantly tried to grow.
I was highly motivated despite the obstacles I faced in my life, the hardships could never bring me down, I only viewed them as a challenge. This mentality helped me work harder than anyone else in my position, especially as someone who was always faced with descrimination because of his nationality. I was determined to rise against the discrimination and the bullying, and be proud of who I was and where I came from.
Being a founding member of OBCIDO, our chairman Chaker Khazaal and the advisory board (Adam Giambrone, Barbara Weinberg, and Angus Blair) entrusted me with bigger responsibilities and duties. I look beyond the title to the amazing journey of experiences, projects, and learning with OBCIDO.
What are your thoughts on NFTs and businesses in the future?
I am a strong believer that NFTs will be integrated in most businesses in the near future, we have already seen that this is happening. NFTs are tokenized services and assets that can reflect any business in real life. Moreover NFTs give you a lot of benefits as it is a new market niche, it further expands brands, it’s private and secure, and no third parties are involved. This is our goal at OBCIDO, to support businesses who are already well established as well as start ups in marketing and growing their audience through Web2.0 and Web3.0. Recently, I attended the NFT Summit in Istanbul as a keynote speaker and delivered a presentation on How Business Can Benefit From Web3.0 Technology.
What would you say is the future of OBCIDO?
Today, we are growing in an organic and healthy way. We believed in Web3.0 but did not give up on Web2.0 and that’s why we make sure to service both industries equally and in a parallel way. Technology has always been engineered with fast evolution as its engine. Web3.0 is an industry that is filled with opportunities and investments yet, the main role of investment is to not put all your eggs in one basket as they say, and that’s what we believe in at OBCIDO. We see OBCIDO as a leading Web2.0 and Web3.0 marketing agency and if Web4.0 arises in the near future, then we will see OBCIDO as a leading agency in Web4.0 as well. This field of technology is about riding the wave and always becoming a better swimmer.
