Micky Daher is evidently a gregarious guy. When we sit down to talk about his insanely user-friendly and intensely exclusive luxury concierge platform Butterfly Social, which launched in 2022, he’s all smiles and as relaxed as an interviewee can come – before I can even get to my first question, he’s already got in there first to ask about my day, my schedule and my background. So it’s no surprise that after years of working on construction industry mega-projects – including the Dubai Mall – this engineering graduate decided to change lanes completely, with the father-of-three making it his literal business to connect people: and in the most socially pleasing settings of all.
Butterfly Social is Micky’s answer to the problems that have plagued every newcomer to a big, buzzing city – where do I go, what do I do and where can I meet likeminded people? Instead of wasting months on half-baked recommendations and evenings on mismatched company, the Butterfly Social app’s curated address book can connect its members with tried-and-true hotspots and experiences at just the touch of a button – as well as a vibrant social network that’s painstakingly selected and managed by Micky and his team. So how did it all happen? GMT GCC met the community-making maestro to find out more about being his kind of social butterfly.
GMT GCC: How did the idea for Butterfly Social come about?
Micky Daher: Working in construction was intense in the sense that there aren’t many times when it’s been happy day when you come home. It was challenging to balance family life and hectic work, especially in the UAE where there’s a lot of competition. So I decided that I wanted to do something on my own, something I’m good at. I realised that there was a gap in the market that wasn’t being addressed. A lot of people were starting to move to Dubai for all sorts of reasons – economic crisis and safety concerns in a lot of countries and cities, and wars, and covid… Everything came together to make Dubai more and more attractive. And for people who are used to a certain quality, a lot of the new residents were struggling to find service providers, get recommendations and know where to go. So I thought, why not create a social platform that can help these newcomers, or even just people who are on the shy side, so that there’s room for these good people to get access.
A luxury concierge with a built-in friend network to boot? Sounds like the ultimate helping hand when it comes to settling in and making the most of your new home. So what sets this service apart from the luxury concierges we have seen come and go before?
Our strength and our core is that we are a very easy to use application. So before being a members’ club or an access or a community, it’s an app. It’s redefining a new era of concierge, where everything can be within three clicks. You don’t have to go into emails or phone calls so that you can get a restaurant reservation – your part is just as easy as booking an Uber, you know? This is where the whole idea came from, that people don’t have time to spend on phone calls these days. They just want to be sitting together, make plans, I go into my app and tick, tick, tick: I’m done. Also, we have kept our growth very niche and rejected lots of applications, because we don’t want the wrong people with the wrong intentions to come in. Our membership fee isn’t crazy, but you have to be invited through a referral – the last thing I want are investment guys calling every single member, bankers trying to sell credit cards… But so far we have had zero incidents.
Aside from the fact that you live in the city, why was Dubai your choice to launch this platform?
Dubai has a constant fight between residents and tourists: it’s really half and half, but the resident has his value. I know Dubai very well and I love the way it moves, so I went to the service providers, restaurants, bars, hotels, beach clubs and so on that I knew also offered a certain quality of service, and would understand the value proposition that the resident is more valuable than a tourist.
I told them that I’m going to have a platform that will only have Dubai residents who are paying a certain membership fee, they’re to be treated exclusively and in a nice way, and will have their reservations done through us, and they’ll be well taken care of.
So how long did it take for you to finally get the idea off the ground?
It was a bit of a catch-22 because I had zero members and zero service providers! So I went to six or seven of my friends, from all different nationalities and industries – a Saudi friend, a Palestinian friend, a Korean friend, a Mexican friend, a German friend… I told them I wanted this group to be as diverse as it can be, and to invite three interesting friends each. So that’s how I grew the network, from word-of-mouth only, with friends and family. Dubai is all about who you meet and how you meet them, making new connections and brainstorming business ideas, friendships, passion projects… This is why I want the quality of people who enter Butterfly Social to be a filtered one.
What do you think made you so passionate about the power of connection, hospitality and being social?
I believe that a small gesture of hospitality can change the whole experience. Gifting a Dhs50 espresso at the end of a meal can really make the whole difference, if it comes at the right time and is done properly. And this is something that’s very Lebanese too.
In Lebanon, when you finish lunch in a restaurant, they prepare another table for you with all the desserts and fruits on in. And then they come and tell you, please move to your dessert table, it’s complimentary. And then you have your whole meal again. It’s a very Lebanese tradition to always give something at the end.
Which are your personal favourite Butterfly Social services?
The restaurant reservation feature is just so, so easy, that’s the number one most-used feature – I love the Tasha Group restaurants, but I also love the option to have such variety. We partner with a lot of concept brands born in the UAE. Something that I personally use a lot is our hosting category – we have caterers, drinks suppliers, supper club chefs from all different cuisines, entertainment, furniture, décor, everything! Whatever the occasion, whether a movie night, a birthday or a party, we can have a whole team on the ground to run the whole event, and at great rates from top suppliers. We also have the ticketing section, where we pre-buy tickets to all the things that happen in Dubai, and we sell or gift them to our members just a week or two in advance. These are just my favourite categories, but we have all kinds of home services like spa and nails, beach clubs, hotels, staycations, international travel experiences and retail discounts with some cool retailers too.
How about scaling the business? Do you plan to keep Butterly Social just in Dubai, or could we see the concept spread to other cities too?
I won’t scale it in a way that’ll lose its quality, so we have a plan for a ceiling for number of members in each city. But we will target other cosmopolitan cities where there’s a lot of inflow and change in people, where it’s hard to discover, make quick connections or blend if you’re not introduced by someone directly. We have London, Miami, LA, Singapore and Riyadh on our radar – we’re talking to a few key people in each one to see which would be the best fit for us to start.
On My Watch
What’s your go-to watch style?
I like a sportier type of watch. I’m very casual in the way I dress – backwards cap, funky bracelets, always with sneakers on my feet. So I like watches that can look cool with that. Audemars Piguet make my favourite watches, I’m currently wearing a Royal Oak in gold but I put the rubber stap on it to dress it down a bit. I also have an AP Millenary Quincy Jones that I hold dear to my heart, and watching both him and my watch age together makes it something really cool to have!
Are there any other watch brands that you’re a fan of?
I also like F.P.Journe, I have the Elegante with the orange rubber strap which is a bit cooler for summer. There’s a few Rolexes in the mix too, but the F.P.Journe and the APs are really my go-tos.
What’s your earliest watch memory?
Both mom and dad collected pieces – in fact, my mom has some very limited and old-school Audemars Piguets. The brand contacted her to see if they could put some in their museum! So that’s how I got familiar with the brand and started to like it. I was always intrigued by watches and their movements.
Can you recall your first watch? What was the story behind it?
When I was a twentysomething I bought a Graham – I was quite a bodybuilder at the time with big arms and wrists, and I needed a watch that would represent my wrist properly. It was a very bulky orange and blue watch, very manly and I really loved it!
Are you a careful planner or an impulsive buyer?
I do plan. If I get a watch on my radar I try to put my name on some of the waiting lists. But I’m also really impulsive – so if I like a watch and it’s on secondary market, and I know that I’m going to have to wait three years before I get it from the store, I’ll just buy it!
