The Entertainer Inks $100M Deal
This Single Mom Just Sold 1 of the UAE's Best-Loved Companies For $100M and It's Proof We Can Do Anything
Donna Benton is a 43-year-old single mother and Dubai resident. She's also the founder and CEO of the Entertainer, which she launched in 2001 and just sold a few days ago for at least AED367 million ($100 million).
Australian-born Benton sold an 85 percent stake of her buy-one-get-one-free app to FH Financial Group, a Bahrain-based financial group, reports Gulf News. Although it started out as a coupon book, the now app-only company operates in 15 countries and is 50 percent owned by Abraaj, the Dubai global investment group.
When Benton inked the deal with Abraaj in 2012, the first thing she did is buy her divorced parents a house each, to keep them safe and secure financially for the rest of their lives, she told The National. And to announce it, Benton posted an endearing picture of herself signing the deal at home with her kids on either side of her.
"A proud moment as I signed over a majority stake in the company that I've lived and breathed for the last 17 years," she captioned the happy snap. "Emotional as I reflect on where I started in 2001 to where the Entertainer is today. Never give up on your dreams because they do come true. Signing the deal at home with the two people I love so much couldn't have made me happier. It's the journey that makes you the person you are today."
Talk about #momgoals. Not only is she a good daughter, she's a pretty awesome parent too. There is something so touching about seeing this single mother include her children in the most important moment of her professional life – teaching everyone how hard work pays off.