Shark Tank Lebanon: A Look Back at the Startups Making Waves

The launch of Shark Tank Lebanon back in October on LBCI marked a new milestone for Lebanon’s growing startup ecosystem.

Entrepreneurs from across the country pitched their ventures to a panel of seasoned investors, competing not just for funding but for national visibility, strategic feedback, and a shot at transforming their businesses.

The first season featured a diverse mix of startups—from wellness and tech to logistics and lifestyle. While some walked away with deals, others chose to hold out for terms that matched their vision. Among the first confirmed participants were Medaid, Bilo, Hello Healthy Days, and GoPark, each representing a different sector, and each with a story that captured the tension and opportunity of building in Lebanon.

The Investors Behind the Tank

The Lebanese edition of Shark Tank brings together five industry veterans with decades of combined experience across the Middle East:

– Maroun Chammas – Chairman of MEDCO and a key player in Lebanon’s tech investment space through Berytech

– Christine Assouad – Food and retail entrepreneur, CEO of Dunkin Lebanon
– Georges Karam – International telecoms expert and angel investor
– Hassan Ezzelddine – Retail executive heading major brands like Spinneys
– Alain Bejjani – Former Majid Al Futtaim CEO, known for scaling billion-dollar enterprises

Each brings a unique lens, making for dynamic deal-making, and deal-breaking, on the show.

Medaid: Making Global Products Locally Available

Medaid, a health, beauty, and lifestyle platform, came to the tank with a mission that resonated: making almost any product in the world available to customers in Lebanon and the GCC.

Their platform, built around sourcing efficiency and logistical flexibility, offers global supplements, leading beauty brands, baby products, electronics, home goods, and more—all accessible via their website and mobile app on the App Store as well as Google Play Store.

Even more impressively, users can preorder nearly any product in the world through Medaid’s system, turning the platform into a flexible, customer-led gateway to global commerce.

With over 25,000 fulfilled orders to date and thousands of orders being delivered each month, Medaid continues to scale its reach across Lebanon and the wider region.

Their pitch to the sharks emphasized traction, scalability, and regional expansion. But after receiving a counter-offer that significantly undervalued the business, they declined.

Co-founder Alfred Kaldany explained: “We made a proposition which we felt was fair. However they counter-offered with 1/3rd of what we wanted, so we felt it was not the best deal. We hope to have made the right decision.”

Bilo: A Bold Pitch in the Billboard Space

Bilo, co-founded by Neahme Jbaily, tackled an industry few think about daily: billboard advertising. Their pitch blended humor and insight, using a creative skit to demonstrate inefficiencies in traditional billboard management, and how Bilo’s platform solves them for both advertisers and property owners.

The performance struck a chord. Four sharks made offers.

But, like Medaid, Bilo’s team opted to decline. They believed their valuation held stronger potential than what was offered. In Jbaily’s words: “The sharks loved it… but our sights were set on a higher valuation than what they had in mind, so we had to decline their offer.”

Hello Healthy Days: A Personal Leap into Business

Clara Chammas, founder of Hello Healthy Days, brought a different kind of pitch to the tank—one built on passion and purpose. A nutritionist and health coach by training, Clara’s leap into entrepreneurship came without a business background. That made the pitch even more daunting.

Still, she secured a deal on air. But in the days that followed, she reflected and ultimately chose to walk away.

“I learned so much from my shark about negotiation, about valuing my work, and about staying grounded even in high-pressure moments,” Clara said after the experience.

GoPark: Bringing Order to Urban Parking

Another anticipated participant is GoPark, a mobile app designed to solve one of Beirut’s most persistent urban frustrations: parking. The app enables users to find, reserve, and pay for parking spots in advance, reducing traffic, stress, and wasted time.

Their pitch is expected to showcase how digital infrastructure can tackle deeply rooted inefficiencies in daily Lebanese life.

Visibility Over Capital?

While funding is a headline metric, Shark Tank offers something just as powerful: exposure. Medaid’s growing platform, Bilo’s unique pitch, Clara’s personal journey, and GoPark’s urban utility will now be visible to audiences across the country. For many, that spotlight is just as valuable as investment.

In many cases, the attention gained from a national platform leads to customer growth, strategic partnerships, and follow-up investment beyond the show itself.

What to Expect This Sunday

With the season premiere airing this weekend, viewers can expect:

– Real-time pitches from founders of all backgrounds
– Intense negotiation and valuation debates
– Deals made—and respectfully declined
– Entrepreneurial creativity that transcends sector lines
– A rare glimpse into the resilience driving Lebanon’s private sector

Shark Tank Lebanon offers more than drama. It offers hope, strategy, and a fresh platform for national innovation.

Want to stay updated? Make sure to follow Shark Tank Lebanon on Instagram.

About the author:

Originally from the U.S., Rana Tarakji is the Founder and Managing Director of Medaid, an e-commerce website and mobile app specializing in health, beauty, and lifestyle across Lebanon and the Middle East. She is also the founder of One SEO, a multinational digital marketing agency, the author of Off-site SEO Guide: A Hands-On SEO Tutorial For Beginners & Dummies, and a seasoned web content specialist. Rana’s work has appeared in a wide range of publications in print and online, including LifeHacker, Upwork, Christian Today, Newswire, and many others.