The Good Bartender: Ali Khalifeh

Last night saw the return of Chivas’ The Good Bartender series for 2019
The evening brings together like-minded individuals who share the Chivas values
This is the second year of the series, which aims to explore why success is a blend of different values and characteristics
The second evening saw Esquire sit down with entrepreneur Ali Khalifeh

Last night saw the continuation of Chivas’ The Good Bartender series – a collection of evening events that aim to explore those who win the right way and for whom success really is a blend.

The event, which was held in Morimoto Dubai at the Renaissance Downtown Dubai, was attended by more than 250 of Dubai’s best-dressed men and women. Before sitting down to the main event, guests sipped Chivas drinks while exploring the brand’s many activations, and taking pictures of the stunning view.

The main event was a discussion with Ali Khalifeh, a man who certainly embodies that success is a blend. Before going on to start youbetterfly.com (Dubai’s first online sneaker and counter-culture emporium) Khalifeh worked for P&G, selling – among other things – diapers and shampoo. He built website on the side, before going on to work at online retailer Noon.com – before decided to go out on his own.

THE GOOD BARTENDER: RAJ KOTECHA
THE GOOD BARTENDER: DONNA BENTON
THE GOOD BARTENDER: IDRISS AL RIFAI
THE GOOD BARTENDER: THOMAS LUNDGREN

Khalifeh explained to the crowd that there really isn’t a secret to success, it’s all about passion and working hard. “When you do something that you love, it’s a lot easier to spend more time working on it. I used to code in the evenings, after my busy 9-to-5 job. But my coding didn’t feel like it was work, which means I could work on it for long periods of time without getting sick of it”.

Today, Khalifeh is still dedicated to his side-hussle of coding, offering logistical support to a variety of local businesses while continuing to develop his main business youbetterfly.com

After the discussion, Khalifeh moved on to his biggest challenge of the night – heading behind Chivas’ bar to make drinks for the hundreds of guests.

This is the second in a series of three Chivas The Good Bartender events celebrating the men and women who demonstrate that success is a blend.