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Updates from the team
"Zileej wants to marry innovation, technology, design, and creativity with Islam to make smart lifestyle products for Muslims across the world."
Interviewed for Inc. Arabia about Zileej, as part of their series on “New Stars of the Global Islamic Economy. Read the full article here
Designing an experience to share the Islamic month of Ramadan with the local Westfield shopping centre community in Sydney, Australia.
The outcome: A colourful and fun pop-up stall celebrating Ramadan and educating shoppers about the Islamic month of fasting, receiving press coverage and broad reach through social media.
Shopping centres are not only places of convenient necessity, but also places to build a sense of community. Westfield Hurstville embraced this potential for a positive community experience by inviting Arkana College, a local Islamic primary school, to share their tradition of Ramadan.
Our challenge was to design an experience that encouraged confidence in the young students representing their school and their faith, while sparking the interest of Westfield Hurstville shoppers to create a space of conversation and connection.
We designed an interactive daily countdown concept representing the 30 days of fasting that make up Ramadan. The students were involved creatively to share their personal experiences of celebrating Ramadan.
This was also an opportunity to share facts about fasting in Ramadan and the long history of Muslims in Australia, which was shared through flyers addressing common questions and conveying uncommon facts.
On the day, the event was live-streamed through Facebook and we created a short, easily shareable video to capture the heart-warming moments of connection that came out of this campaign. Together, these two videos were shared over 195 times on social media reaching over 100,000 views.
The Ramadan campaign also received media coverage in local newspapers to a positive response from the wider community.
“We welcome and celebrate cultural diversity at Westfield Hurstville and was very grateful to have been able to work with a local community school to share and educate the wider community on what Ramadan means to them. From shoppers’ positive response, we intend to grow this initiative and continue to build Westfield Hurstville as a place where people can come to explore and immerse themselves in social engagement with different cultural celebration. ”
In her insightful book, Generation M: Young Muslims Changing The World, Shelina Janmohamed quotes me in the closing pages:
“We need to dream big, be bold, and spark the imagination of millions of young Muslims around the world. We must shift our mindset from reactionary projects and pessimism to raise a generation of creative thinkers and innovators solving the many, many problems we have. It’s ambitious, but I believe we have the technology, energy and drive to make it happen, inshaAllah.”
I’ve spent time with many of the founders driving this wave of entrepreneurship, innovation & creativity and feel like we’re about to hit another positive inflection point. And yet, it’s just the start of a much bigger journey. We have to think positively and optimistically about our shared future.
My hope for Zileej is to help set new standards in imaginative, fun, creative products and brands for Muslims, that will inspire a new generation of entrepreneurs. It’s a truly exciting space to be a part of.
by Peter Gould, Chief Creative Officer, Zileej
An important part of my personal journey towards Islam was discovering how spirituality inspires creativity.
Muslims have an incredibly beautiful artistic heritage and creative legacy. At the heart of Islamic creative expression there is a deep sense of sincerity, humility and authenticity.
If we are to honour this tradition, modern Muslim-centric creative brands must be developed with ihsaan (spiritual excellence) and intentions much deeper than ‘market opportunity’.
As individuals, families and communities, we are ready for a new wave of brands, products and creative experiences that directly reflect our aspirations and hopes for a more inclusive world.
Zileej serves this global community with balance and purpose. Zileej lives at the intersection of design, innovation, creativity and Islam. I am deeply honoured to be a part of this ongoing journey.
by Peter Gould, Chief Creative Officer, Zileej
Attending the Spielwarenmesse fair in Nuremberg was a great opportunity to check out the current toy trends and technologies.
Among the brilliant products, we noticed one large gap — toys & games designed with young Muslim children in mind. This confirmed to us that our dedication to developing fun experiences for the Muslim community is a unique offering.
We hope our approach will add to the growing diversity of the toy industry and inspire generations of young Muslims through positivity & play.
We look forward to attending again in 2018!
When holding a great product in my hand, I have a deep sense of appreciation for the amount of thought, planning and detail that went into taking it from an idea to the shelf.
I admire the teams who build great products, and observe the loyal followers who help companies become much-loved brands.
Growing up, I wondered why most Islamic products were not as appealing, exciting and innovative as all of the other products competing for our attention.
I always had a dream of making a positive impact on the Muslim world. I wanted to find a way through which I can influence Muslims across the globe and inspire them, both the young and old, to strengthen their understanding and love for Islam starting first with myself.
Zileej is my opportunity to make this happen. I dream that it will become the global lifestyle brand that Muslims have been waiting for, inshAllah.
by Ansarullah Ridwan Mohammed, CEO, Zileej
