Omar Fayed
Omar Fayed is an environmentalist and publisher.[1][2][3] He is CEO of ESTEE (Earth Space Technical Ecosystem Enterprises), based in Switzerland and Great Britain, that advocates human space exploration, space colonization, and sustainable human development within the biosphere.[4] He is co-founder and CEO of EarthX,[5] a data visualization and mapping company based on NASA’s World Wind Project.[6] He is chairman of Synergetic Press based in New Mexico, and a fellow of the Institute of Ecotechnics.[7]
Fayed is chairman of Biotecture, a provider of modular green wall systems,[8] that built large-scale living walls for the Walkie Talkie skyscraper, in the City of London, and the Veolia recycling and energy recovery facility in Leeds. In 2014, he founded Living City, an initiative to connect and consult green enterprises and government projects.[9]
He attended ACS Cobham school in Surrey, and started in business, trading commodities as a teenager. In 2006, aged 19, he was appointed as director of Harrods of Knightsbridge,[10] the largest department store in Europe. Fayed was expected to take over as chairman of Harrods,[11] however he resigned in 2009,[12] stating he "felt uncomfortable being publicly associated with it," citing concerns in regards to labour conditions, which he said had "no exposure to natural light, air and nature." He expressed a desire to focus on environmental entrepreneurship instead, commenting at the time, "that consumerist culture wasn’t doing anything positive for the future of humanity."[8] His father Mohamed Al-Fayed, subsequently sold Harrods in 2010,[13] to Qatar Holdings, the sovereign wealth fund of the emirate of Qatar, for £1.5 billion ($2.3 billion).[14]
Omar Fayed is a director of the Ritz Hotel Paris, and the satirical magazine Punch. Punch founded in 1841, ceased print publishing in 2002. Fayed, continues to publish Punch posts via Facebook, as the page editor.[15]
He was executive producer for the 2015 documentary film, "The Sunshine Makers," about the manufacture of the psychedelic compound LSD in the 1960s.
Fayed was ranked 75, in Arabian Business magazine's "Power 100" list in 2009.[16]
References
- ^ "Fayed and Harrods: keep it in the family?". theguardian.com. The Guardian. 3 December 2006.
- ^ "Untold stories in the death of a princess". camdennewjournal.com. Camden New Journal. 31 August 2017.
- ^ "Omar Fayed: Environmental impact as important as the bottom line". telegraph.co.uk. The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ "ABOUT – ESTEE". est2e.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "Team". earthx.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "Our-History". earthx.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "Our Team - Synergetic Press | Regenerating People and the Planet". Synergetic Press | Regenerating People and the Planet. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ a b Isaac, Anna (2017-04-03). "Omar Fayed: 'I didn't want to become Mr Harrods'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "Biotecture reports "huge" expansion in the Middle East". Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ Robinson, James (2006-11-19). "Omar, 19, joins Harrods board". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "30 Under 30 - Omar Al Fayed". ArabianBusiness.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ Sibun, Jonathan (2009-06-27). "Omar Fayed leaves Harrods". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2018-11-09.
- ^ "Farewell Fayed". Financial Times. Retrieved 2018-11-09.
- ^ "Al Fayed sells off Harrods store". 2010-05-08. Retrieved 2018-11-09.
- ^ "Punch". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
- ^ "Power 100 - Omar Al Fayed". ArabianBusiness.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.